This book was profoundly eye-opening in how the lethal injection process works and how dehumanizing it truly is. This book was utterly mindboggling and so important.

ARC REVIEW

This book was riveting. What an eye opener. I cannot begin to think how much this book gave an insight regarding such a conflicted topic and I'm glad to have read it.

The truth contained in this book, with all evidence and sources, will live with me. Already the notions of it did, but laid out so cut and dry, and so well supported, just shored up the foundations of what I already knew to be the horrors of our criminal justice system. This is one I had to read in small chunks so as not to depress and anger myself too deeply.

There were some sections that I felt were unfortunately repetitive, in that I'd read a paragraph and the next one would feel like a restating of the previous, but that's about the only thing that felt off to me.

This is certainly a book I will recommend for our nonfiction shelves at my library, as its importance in terms of contents and delivery cannot be overstated.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and NYU press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!!

First and foremost, a large thank you to NetGalley, Corinna Barrett Lain, and NYU Press for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

While the topic of the death penalty has been simmering in the United States (and elsewhere) for long periods, no one really talks much about the nitty-gritty. Many headlines about botched executions appear in the press, though there has been little to really peel back to see what's going on. Many of these mistakes are tied to lethal injection, the 'humane' way that states have chosen to put prisoners to death, but Corinna Barrett Lain has chosen to take up the cause to explore this form of killing. Is it as calm and peaceful as states would have us believe, or is there an underlying issue there? What Barrett Lain discovers will surely open the eyes of many, as it did me, and leave the reader wondering just what sort of circus is being done behind closed doors. A stellar look into lethal injections and the faux science that is being peddled by US states to try making the death penalty appear worthwhile.

While the topic of capital punishment is highly divisive, it is worth exploring. Corinna Barrett Lain does so in depth within the pages of this book. Her first foray into the topic is how the US got to the point of using lethal injections and why it is so popular. Interestingly enough, lethal injection is seen to be the most humane way to kill a human being, by inserting a three-drug cocktail into the vein. What few know is that this collection of drugs was never tested or properly assessed by any medical professional. Rather, it was pulled out of thin air in the late 1970s based on what one prison official thought might work best and then peddled to others. There is no science here and when asked about using something that is known to prevent pain, some scoffed at trying to be 'too gentle' to those who had done so wrong in society. This mentality makes such little sense, though it is pushed out. Why not use a single drug, as is done by veterinarians for pets? It has never been considered and might make people feel prisoners are pets on the same level. 

Barrett Lain then ventures into a discussion of the execution itself. She explores the drugs being used and what they do, as well as how they interact with one another. This includes their preparation, which is sometimes not done beforehand and left to prison officials. Issues arise in the mixing, which changes concentration and thereby alters effectiveness. As nothing is formally regulated, changes are not usually frowned upon and the courts have steered clear from making mandates in this regard. The delivery of these drugs is open to success or failure, which has been documented many times, as prisoners have been turned into pin cushions while searching for a vein. One might question how this happens, which advances the discussion to who is administering the drugs. Rarely are medical professionals involved at all, leaving the poking and prodding (not to say the steady nerves) to those with little training at all about how to properly find a vein and ensure the drugs enter effectively. The entire system ought to be examined under a microscope, as the author posits repeatedly.

Discussion of medical ethics also enters the conversation, so much so that many medical professionals and their associations have refused to allow members to be involved in the process. Drug companies, some outside of the US, have also boycotted providing products destined for lethal injections, thereby making it harder to procure needed drugs and items that would pave the way for 'humane' solutions. This is surely worth noting and a problem, as Bennett Lain suggests, yet there has not been a halt to the process, at least permanently.

One final area worth mentioning is the legal perspective to the entire process. As Barrett Lain discusses throughout her tome, the courts (especially the US Supreme Court) have remained at arm's length on the matter of lethal injections. It would seem recent Supreme Court decisions have denied the power of the Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment) as it relates to lethal injections. This divorce from concern adds questions to the issue of being able to advocate for changes to lethal injections. The author does not pull any punches that this could pose advocacy issues. Additionally, states have started to use secrecy rules to protect themselves and any businesses who might play a part in supplying things for lethal injections. This is also concerning and opens additional confusions for those seeking to keep the discussion open and forthcoming.

Corinna Barrett Lain offers up this thrilling piece of analytical writing about the death penalty and the specifics of lethal injection. While not trying to engage in a debate around the usefulness or morality of capital punishment, there is surely a chance to pull back the curtain on this keep and shed light on some of the troubling aspects. Barrett Lain delivers her arguments with many facts and keeps the narrative moving along effectively. She is sure to provide supporting arguments and synthesises many of the arguments for the curious reader to enjoy. While there are technical aspects to the subject matter, Barrett Lain keeps the writing for the layperson to enjoy, not just legal or medical minds. I could not get enough of all the details, the revelations, and even then debunking of half-truths found throughout the book. It opened my eyes to a great deal and left me to wonder about even more. I will have to look through many of the references and bibliographical material to add some more books to read on this topic, when time permits!

Kudos, Madam Barrett Lain, for this enriching read!

Highly recommended for readers interested in criminal justice, human rights, and ethical issues surrounding the death penalty, Secrets of the Killing State is a crucial contribution to the ongoing debate about capital punishment and the methods used to enforce it.

Wow this book was wildly fascinating from start to finish. I should say right from the get go that I am anti-death penalty, but I don’t think that is WHY I liked this book so much. It was obvious how well-researched the information was. This book was extremely dense yet digestible. I totally do not consider myself a science person, but I was able to follow all of the discussion about the science and medical side of lethal injection. In this book, I learned about the history, process, and laws of lethal injection. There are so many common misconceptions about lethal injection that are cleared up in this book. It was not a happy, light-hearted read, but I am very glad I read it!

This is probably obvious, but this book is not for the faint of heart, as it does get quite graphic in parts.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest rating and review.

I am so glad I picked this up. I had a vague knowledge about lethal injection from my criminology courses so it was nice to brush up on the topic but also learn so much more about the history that we didn't get to really touch upon in class. So sad, and definitely thought provoking.

Negatives first because there aren’t many: the italics comments are a bit annoying, usually unnecessary too. Also the “brought the receipts” considering it’s a presumably academic book.

Not a negative but a warning: I have a strong stomach and reading the first chapter made me feel a bit icky, but the rest was fine. Awful to read, but not so detailed as to be nauseating.

Otherwise I really loved the numerous in-text citations. That the author also touched on the mental toll it takes on the executioner. And I spent a lot of time with my eyebrows raised at the ineptitude or going ‘come on WHAT THE HELL SERIOUSLY!?’

Fascinating and informative book to read. I always knew there was a lot more surrounding what happens with the death penalty and lethal injection. This book is very revealing and well researched. Informative.

The negligence around lethal injection practices were shocking to read, although not surprising. It was a lot of information to take in and process, although the author did try to balance the technical content with narrative storytelling and real life cases.

"Secrets of the Killing State" is a provocative and deeply researched exploration of the death penalty in America, weaving together history, law, and culture to reveal the darker truths behind capital punishment. Lain examines how the death penalty has been shaped not only by legal principles but also by social attitudes, political pressures, and systemic biases. The book draws on compelling historical cases and modern developments, shedding light on how the practice reflects broader trends in American governance and justice.

What makes Lain’s work so impactful is her ability to connect the past with the present, showing how historical practices and rhetoric continue to influence contemporary debates. Her writing is clear and accessible, making complex legal and historical concepts understandable without oversimplifying them. Whether you’re a student of history, law, or ethics, this book is a powerful and thought-provoking read that challenges readers to confront uncomfortable truths about justice and power in America.

“The state at its most powerful is also the state at its worst”. For a true democracy to exist, the citizens of a nation have to know what their money is funding, from the smallest aspects to such impactful issues as the death penalty. The lethal injection is one such method introduced as the "merciful" alternative to the classic "medieval like" methods that might not fit within modern society. Hiding behind the image of science and doctors, and the ignorance of the public, unwilling or not, the US has been using prisoners to impose an image of all-powerfulness grandeur. I believe that this book, "Secrets of the Killing State" by Corinna Barret Lain is changing the discussions surrounding the death penalty in the right direction by pointing out to the american public what it is that is happening in their backyards.

The book begins with a few of the astoundingly many botched executions of the last few years, just to give you a sense of whats at stake, what it is she means by tortuous death. She then dives right into the lawsuits, science and gubernamental incompetence and unwillingess to change. It is an eyeopener that all american taxpayers should read. Throughout the entire book the same executions and lawsuits are revisited so they can be seen through different lenses, and it is the best way to squeeze all you can out of them, making sure we can learn what all the mistakes and deliberate choices were, to understand how deeply the incompetence, or negligence, of the state was. In the beginning, I thought this book was a showcase of how the whole system was a case of the blind leading the blind, of how “they were wrong but they were confident”, but as I read I realized that it was more sinister than that; the purposeful hiding of information, their “if you can’t fix a flaw, hide it” approach to the public is inmoral at best and antidemocratic at worst. It is also my belief that it is a way for the government to remind people who is in charge and the consequences of not following their rules. The justice system will never be flawless enough for a death penalty based system to not devolve into a fear machine and tool to control the masses.

This was a curious read. I spent the first half just saying to myself, just get doctors to do it, it'll alleviate so much unnecessary pain, and just when youre convinced thats the solution, this book bursts that bubble and explains just why that is not possible. It was such a disappointing moment, it induced such profound desperation and makes you think there is no way this method can ever be redesigned to work. From its conception, the lethal injection was doomed to fail, and take with it those unlucky enough to be executed with it. As a european, the death penalty seems to me to be an inconveivable punishment, specially when considering the chances of accidentally executing an innocent, but when you add to it the horrific ways they use, I just don't have the words. I spent the entire book thinking to myself how if I was going to be executed I would rather be shot, have my head cut off, i didn't care, I just wanted for the poor prisoners that were going to be executed to be taken out of their suffering. Not even dogs are treated as callously as these convicts are. I have also come to the conclusion, in this anti-intellectual era, that even if we don't work in scientific fields, it does not hurt to have some knowledge of scientific terms and concepts. This way, they cannot sell you something at fase value, banking on society's lack of knowledge on substances not only used for executions, but in our daily lives in all products around us.

All in all, this is a must read for not only those paying for this system (American taxpayers) but all those interested in the justice systems around the world and how quickly can aspects of a society that seem so established can devolve so profoundly in the wrong hands. This book was also accesible to read, her prose and tone were never too complicated or convoluted and she laid out complex legal and chemical explanations in a way that most should be able to understand. Quickly changing the subject, I had some issues with my arc's format.The PDF did not allow internal navigation between chapters and annotations while also not specifying which pages corresponded to the chapters. This is however, a non issue with a physical copy but still worth mentioning. Finally I would like to mentiont hat since I started reading this book I have begun many conversations with those around me on capital punishment, and for that, I think "Secrets of the Killing State" was a resounding success.

Whether or not someone supports capital punishment, it should be done in a humane manner. This book provides ample evidence that that is not happening. Inadequate drugs are used, and the people approving and administering them don't know enough about them. There are multiple descriptions of times when the state attempted an execution and it went badly wrong, which shouldn't be happening. If it's possible to euthanize pets humanely, it should be possible for humans. This was appalling and depressing.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

"In 2018, cultural historian Colin Dickie wrote: 'The work of American torture has always been twofold: not just the violence itself, but the complex legal and rhetorical strategies that obfuscate it away to maintain a myth of America as a civilized place without cruel and unusual pun-ishment.' He wasn't writing about lethal injection. But nowhere are those words more true than here..." p.273

That pretty much sums it up. This is peak investigative journalism - the receipts, the absurdity, the tea-spilling. Whether you're a proponent or protestor of the death penalty, this is a must read. Lain's well-researched and in-depth analysis of modern capital punishment draws attention to huge flaws in the system that are deplorable, inhumane, and impossible to ignore. (The states know that too, hence secrecy laws. Wowzer.)

Also a reminder that we aren't much different than we were 200 years ago hanging people in the public square. We like to think we've matured, that we've grown more consciously aware, but we haven't. Not really.

The book's exploration of the human psyche is both captivating and unsettling, forcing readers to confront the darker aspects of human nature. Lain's analysis is thought-provoking and insightful, encouraging readers to think critically about the complexities of human behavior.

Before this book, I had assumed (retrospectively very naively) that lethal injection in the United States was like pet euthanasia (quick, painless, humane) but for humans. To my surprise, people incarcerated on death row will choose the electric chair over lethal injection when given the choice on their method of execution.

The author, Corinna Barrett Lain, is a law professor who specializes in the death penalty and clearly is extremely knowledgeable on the topic. Barrett Lain is not directly advocating for or against the death penalty in this book and focused on the issues associated with lethal injection (although her position on death penalty is clear). She covers the scientific fallacies of states' lethal injection methods, moral issues of the state sponsor of torture and cruel punishment, the financial drain on taxpayers to execute prisoners, gross misconduct and disregard for human life by government employees, indirect implications for public health, and concerted cover up by the government of the above.

Barrett Lain's writing itself is digestible for those of us who are not pharmacological or legal experts. The book provides a mix of eyewitness testimony, legal reviews, and expert opinions in a professorial tone (paraphrasing, like "as we learned in the previous chapter", "as we will learn in chapter 3"). I was very surprised with the sheer amount of information and evidence provided in less than 300 pages. Regardless of your position on the death penalty, I think this book is an important read for any taxpaying American whose tax dollars go to the lethal injection effort (and that's all of us- we all contribute to federal executions regardless of our state's opinion on death penalty!)

Thank you, NYU Press, for the arc!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

Corinna Barrett Lain’s Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection is a meticulously researched and profoundly unsettling examination of the realities behind one of the most controversial methods of capital punishment. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the ethics, legality, and human impact of the death penalty.

Lain pulls back the curtain on the practice of lethal injection, revealing a system fraught with incompetence, secrecy, and inhumanity. Contrary to the popular belief that lethal injection is a humane and painless method of execution, Lain presents evidence of botched procedures, unqualified personnel, and the use of torturous drugs.

Strengths: One of the book’s greatest strengths is its thoroughness. Lain leaves no stone unturned, providing a comprehensive overview of the history and current state of lethal injection in the United States. Her writing is clear and compelling, making complex legal and medical issues accessible to a broad audience. The inclusion of real-life cases and personal stories adds a poignant and humanizing touch to the narrative.

Weaknesses: While the book’s depth is a strength, it can also be overwhelming at times. The sheer volume of information and the graphic nature of some of the content may be difficult for some readers to process. Additionally, the focus on U.S. practices may limit its relevance for international audiences, although the ethical questions raised are universally significant.

Lain’s writing is both scholarly and engaging. She balances detailed analysis with narrative storytelling, ensuring that the book is informative without being dry. Her ability to convey the gravity of the subject matter while maintaining a clear and accessible style is commendable. The book is well-organized, guiding readers through the complexities of the topic with ease.

Secrets of the Killing State explores themes of justice, morality, and the abuse of power. It challenges readers to reconsider their views on the death penalty and the methods used to carry it out. The book also highlights the broader implications of state-sanctioned violence and the ethical responsibilities of those involved in the process.

Secrets of the Killing State is a powerful and eye-opening book that sheds light on the dark realities of lethal injection. Corinna Barrett Lain’s rigorous research and compelling writing make this an essential read for anyone interested in criminal justice, human rights, and ethical governance. The book’s revelations are both shocking and necessary, prompting critical reflection on the practices carried out in the name of justice.

Highly recommended for readers interested in criminal justice, human rights, and ethical issues surrounding the death penalty. Secrets of the Killing State is a crucial contribution to the ongoing debate about capital punishment and the methods used to enforce it.

This was extremely informative and educational.
I am from Australia where capital punishment has long been abolished, so this was really eye opening to the horrors that are still occurring in the world. The language used is really easy to understand and flows well.

Very interesting, but I admit I did skim over some of the drug names and other things that felt too technical for someone like me who knows nothing about this topic.

hello Corinna,
I hope you are doing well. This book is very interesting to me and I would love to review it but sadly the book is not in a format I can access. I hope we can resolve this issue as I would love to read this book. I hope that I can read this book soon.