This was a very interesting read. There are some pretty amazing and insightful stories in this book. I would recommend for any fan of true crime.

The author is a former drug dealer who, when caught with a large amount of drugs, "sees the light" and decides to become an informant. In my career, I've seen dozens of men like the author, dealers who, when caught and facing a long sentence, sell out to receive lesser sentences. This guy seems different. I found myself actually believing that he really changed, that he was disgusted with the drug business (and himself) and wanted to make a difference. Plus, he was actually a likable guy. (Or, maybe the older me is just getting soft, and wants to see some good in the world?)
The author describes setting up his former bosses. After that turned out successful, he found that he actually enjoyed this kind of work. Through different law enforcement agencies, he works to take down several other drug dealers. He claims to have worked for the next seventeen years as an informant.
There were some weak parts in the book. Things that set off my internal radar as falsehoods. In the beginning, he claims to have three children, who appear to be around 3-5 years old. Later in the book, it's two, or four. And towards the end of the book, he describes tucking the children into bed. After 17 years, wouldn't the "children" have been in their late teens or early twenties? He also claims to have performed his own extensive surveillance of a neighborhood in which he was going to buy drugs, what law enforcement agency would allow their informant to set up in this way? And, the author claims he would pick and choose what drug organizations he would work against, and the law enforcement agencies would welcome this? It stretches my imagination too far.
However, despite these issues (and they could all be a result of a bad edit, or of my own overactive imagination), the book is highly enjoyable. It is a fast read, and moves along very well. The writing is good. It makes for a good, enjoyable book. I can definitely recommend it.

Confidential Source Ninety-Six is the tale of Roman Caribe - a former drug dealer who – after being arrested with a truckload of drugs decided to turn into a confidential informant, and would go on to work as an undercover agent taking down other drug operations. It provides an insight into the operations of both the drug lords responsible for so much pain in the United States; and the law enforcement agents who are trying to stop them.

I was actually somewhat surprised that I found Caribe to be quite a likable and charismatic figure, and I really enjoyed his emotional journey. I have read other memoirs by former Mafia bosses, or other criminals who were flipped to the ‘good side’ after being arrested, and there’s just something disingenuous about the whole thing. It is one thing to turn away from one’s criminal past voluntarily, but often it feels like they did it for purely selfish reasons.

The book begins with Caribe’s early life and devotes a reasonable amount of pages to explaining how he went into the ‘life’, and found himself trapped with a series of psychotic drug lords and incompetent henchmen. You really get the sense that these are real people, and they are colourful and very dangerous.

As the book progresses, the author’s life shifts to one of deception, and even greater danger, as he struggles to protect his family from getting dragged into his dangerous work as an undercover operative. I think that is ultimately where the humanity comes from, that he does not shy away from the real danger and emotions that he is going through.

If there is a downside to this book it is that the author is being sold as “the most successful confidential informant in the history of US law enforcement”, and it is difficult to get an overall sense of the accomplishments of the author. He describes a number of operations he participated in, and the financial rewards he received from those, and I have to be honest, they didn’t seem that big or important. I felt that the author could have done a better job of wrapping and capping the story to justify the aforementioned claim.

This is a fascinating look at the war on drugs, from both sides of the line. I found it very readable, and a very human story filled with realistic and fascinating characters.

This fascinating book showcases the life and career of the most successful confidential informant in the history of US law enforcement. The bar is set high in the prologue with a sample of the dangerous missions CS 96 encountered as an informant, putting his life at risk day in and day out.

Before he turned, Roman Caribe's job was to devise the circuitous, off-the-beaten-path routes used for transporting the hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of illegal narcotics they were distributing for the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico through Temeculah, California. This American arm of the operation was subsidized by the Beltrán Cartel out of Sinaloa, Mexico, and led by Tony Geneste, a brilliant and ruthless kingpin. By all accounts, Tony was very smart and good at what he did. Roman was also very smart in this business, but he had his work cut out for him as he set his sights on bringing down the operation.

When Caribe talks about the reasons he was ready to give up the life, you can't help but believe him. I suppose you could argue that he flipped simply because he was arrested and needed a way out, but I believe his intentions were true. Caribe was disgusted and ashamed by the life he had been living. He was a broken man searching for redemption. He wanted to right his wrongs and provide a safe and loving environment for his family. This book takes you inside the operation as Caribe orchestrates the cartel on one side and feeds information to law enforcement on the other side in an effort to systematically dismantle a drug empire. The bulk of the book focuses on two major operations the he helped to orchestrate and carry out. The end of the book focuses on his continued career as a CI and the struggles it presented at home and on the streets, as well as the hopeful road to redemption CS 96 has found.

I would recommend this book to fans of true crime, law enforcement procedures, organized crime, and the war on drugs. I received this as a free ARC from Hachette Book Group on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Community Assistant at NetGalley. Review is for testing purposes.