Left of Boom
How a Young CIA Case Officer Penetrated the Taliban and Al-Qaeda
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Narrated by:
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Mike Dawson
About this listen
The explosive New York Times best seller!
On September 11, 2001, Doug Laux was a freshman in college, on the path to becoming a doctor. But with the fall of the Twin Towers came a turning point in his life. After graduating, he joined the Central Intelligence Agency, determined to get himself to Afghanistan and into the center of the action. Through persistence and hard work, he was fast-tracked to a clandestine operations position overseas. Dropped into a remote region of Afghanistan, he received his baptism by fire.
Frustrated by bureaucratic red tape, a widespread lack of knowledge of the local customs and culture, and an attitude of complacency that hindered his ability to combat the local Taliban, Doug confounded his peers by dressing like a native and mastering the local dialect, making contacts, and building sources within several deadly terrorist networks. His new approach resulted in unprecedented successes, including uncovering the largest IED network in the world, responsible for killing hundreds of US soldiers.
Meanwhile, Doug had to keep up false pretenses with his family, girlfriend, and friends - nobody could know what he did for a living - and deal with the emotional turbulence of constantly living a lie. His double life was building to an explosive resolution, with repercussions that would have far reaching consequences.
©2016 Douglas Laux (P)2016 Douglas LauxListeners also enjoyed...
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Morgan Cooper has always found it difficult to balance her home life - mother of two young children and wife of a workaholic civil rights lawyer - with her work life as an undercover CIA officer. When Morgan gets stressed, anxious, or scared, whether at home or in the field, she tends to talk to herself until she can clear her head. This habit, though, puts her life in danger during an assignment in the strife-torn Gaza Strip.
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unrealistic
- By Coverdale on 08-09-22
By: David Rose
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The Operators
- The Wild and Terrifying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan
- By: Michael Hastings
- Narrated by: Lloyd James
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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An explosive, behind-the-scenes look into the workings of the U.S. war in Afghanistan that lifts the curtain of the world stage to reveal the devastating greed, waste, and failure surrounding this unwinnable war.
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VERY INTERESTING STORY
- By Professor on 01-04-13
By: Michael Hastings
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Agents of Innocence
- A Novel
- By: David Ignatius
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 14 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Agents of Innocence is the book that established David Ignatius's reputation as a master of the novel of contemporary espionage. Into the treacherous world of shifting alliances and arcane subterfuge comes idealistic CIA man Tom Rogers. Posted in Beirut to penetrate the PLO and recruit a high-level operative, he soon learns the heavy price of innocence in a time and place that has no use for it.
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breathy over-actor tarnishes an OK story
- By reader on 05-11-20
By: David Ignatius
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It Happened on the Way to War
- A Marine's Path to Peace
- By: Rye Barcott
- Narrated by: Rye Barcott
- Length: 14 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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In 2000 Rye Barcott spent part of his summer living in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya. He was a college student heading into the Marines, and he sought to better understand ethnic violence - something he would likely face later in uniform. He learned Swahili, asked questions, and listened to young people talk about how they survived in poverty he had never imagined.
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Not What You Think It Is
- By Hailey on 10-01-12
By: Rye Barcott
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Secret Sanction
- Sean Drummond Series, Book 1
- By: Brian Haig
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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A battalion of Serbs has been senselessly murdered in Kosovo, and the Green Berets stand accused. Now, Major Sean Drummond, a top Army lawyer, is assigned to investigate this unspeakable atrocity. But of course, no one saw anything. Drummond gets consistently suspicious depositions from all of the Green Berets: Supposedly pursued by Serb soldiers, they left the engagement with wounded Serbs firing at them, and no one can explain the number of deaths.
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I want the rest of the Sean Drummond series!
- By shelley on 11-10-16
By: Brian Haig
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Drone Warrior
- An Elite Soldier's Inside Account of the Hunt for America's Most Dangerous Enemies
- By: Brett Velicovich, Christopher S. Stewart
- Narrated by: Brett Velicovich, Roger Wayne
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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For nearly a decade, Brett Velicovich was at the center of America's new warfare: using unmanned aerial vehicles - drones - to take down the world's deadliest terrorists across the globe. One of an elite handful in the entire military with the authority to select targets and issue death orders, he worked in concert with the full human and technological network of American intelligence - assets, analysts, spies, informants - and the military's elite operatives to stalk, capture, and eliminate high-value targets in al-Qaeda and ISIS.
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So Few Protecting the Many!
- By Gerald J. Vogt on 09-11-17
By: Brett Velicovich, and others
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Son of Hamas
- A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices
- By: Mosab Hassan Yousef, Ron Brackin - contributor
- Narrated by: Mosab Hassan Yousef
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Since he was a small boy, Mosab Hassan Yousef has had an inside view of the deadly terrorist group Hamas. The oldest son of Sheikh Hassan Yousef, a founding member of Hamas and its most popular leader, young Mosab assisted his father for years in his political activities while being groomed to assume his legacy, politics, status...and power. But everything changed when Mosab turned away from terror and violence and embraced instead the teachings of another famous Middle East leader.
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Very insightful look at the underbelly of Hamas.
- By C,L, Richey on 05-05-14
By: Mosab Hassan Yousef, and others
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The Third Target
- J. B. Collins, Book 1
- By: Joel C. Rosenberg
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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When New York Times foreign correspondent J. B. Collins hears rumors that an al-Qaeda splinter cell has captured a cache of chemical weapons inside Syria, he knows this is a story he must pursue at all costs. Does the commander of the jihadist faction really have the weapons? If so, who is the intended target? The U.S.? Israel? Or could it be Jordan?
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Looking forward to get part 2 on sale
- By Marie on 03-17-18
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A Time to Betray
- The Astonishing Double Life of a CIA Agent inside the Revolutionary Guards of Iran
- By: Reza Kahlili
- Narrated by: Richard Allen
- Length: 13 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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A true story as exhilarating as a great spy thriller, as turbulent as today's headlines from the Middle East, A Time to Betray reveals what no other previous CIA operative's memoir possibly could: the inner workings of the notorious Revolutionary Guards of Iran, as witnessed by an Iranian man inside their ranks who spied for the American government.
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Great book, Farsi speakers will hate narrator
- By Johnny on 10-27-13
By: Reza Kahlili
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Charlie Mike
- A True Story of War and Finding the Way Home
- By: Joe Klein
- Narrated by: Holter Graham
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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In Charlie Mike, Joe Klein tells the dramatic story of Eric Greitens and Jake Wood, larger-than-life war heroes who come home and use their military discipline and values to help others. This is a story that hasn't been told before, one of the most hopeful to emerge from Iraq and Afghanistan - a saga of lives saved, not wasted.
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Thank you for all. Aco. 2/14TH INF 10TH MNT
- By Wolf on 07-14-20
By: Joe Klein
What listeners say about Left of Boom
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Jamie Fairchild
- 09-07-16
Very Engaging
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Unusual inside story regarding CIA operations in Afghanistan. It's hard for the average citizen to imagine doing what this author did as a CIA operative. That's some pretty intense stuff for a young person to engage in and it's not surprising the emotional toll that it took when the author returned home. He does cover some of his personal life and I didn't mind at all (although the Afghan stuff was more interesting) because it personalized the author and what he was experiencing during his years as a spy. The effort it must take to lie to just about everyone around you to either keep secrets or protect family/friends must be very difficult. Like I said ... hard to imagine this life which is why the book was so good.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Left of Boom?
Hearing a first hand account of conversation between a CIA agent (author) and a Taliban informant.
Any additional comments?
Yes, there are redactions, but it's pretty simple to figure out what was going on despite the redactions. In some cases, it added to the intrigue.
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- Edward J. Seaton
- 12-23-17
read this review before buying!!
This book was very good. it would've been spectacular if every third word wasn't redacted. the reactions were ridiculous. I paid a little less the $14 for this book and got about $3.50 worth of value. I would very much like to hear this story unclassified. wait until then.
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- james
- 11-30-16
Disliking the blackout spots
The classical music disrupted a good story The classical music disrupted a good story the end
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- dave
- 09-01-16
Great Book
Great Book I couldn't stop listening! Loved the way you got around the redacted info.
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- Eric
- 01-14-17
Very interesting
This is a very interesting look deep inside of what happens in the Middle East. The redactions were sometimes frequent and lengthy, but I understand the reason for them.
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- Drew Solomon
- 09-03-24
Excellent
While the redactions were a bit of a pain, I still really enjoyed the book…Thanks for your service Sanchez.
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- AJ
- 08-02-19
Instant Classic
The classical music playing over the classified portions is brilliant. "Oh man!" is what I kept saying every time I heard the music playing because I really wanted to know those specific details. It left me wondering and wanting more.
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- Jennifer M.
- 08-15-16
My favorite book of all time.
I have never been able to relate to a story so well. I cannot express how much I appreciate this being written. Thank you for creating this book. I don't think anyone who hasn't walked in similar shoes will quite appreciate the details and background, but I do.
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Overall
- Courtney
- 05-25-17
A must listen
LOVE LOVE LOVE this book! That part of Chris Laux's life was meant to be a book. Left me wanting more. It was a very interesting look into how the cia works for anyone that's ever been curious. And Mike Dawson did an awesome job narrating.
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- David Brancolini
- 07-31-16
Insightful
The story was very good although the redacted sections made it incomplete. Still gave a great story of the realities of the present.
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