Starting out in the early 90s and making the rules up as he went, Neil was at the forefront of police surveillance. It kept me enthralled all the way to the anti-prohibition message at the end, which I thought was well delivered. for cannabis, 10% for cocaine, 10% for alcohol and 15% for crystal meth - with heroin as an outlier at 25%. Despite the seriousness of the story, there are some humorous passages that will mitigate the heartache you can feel toward some of the individuals described. Even though I hear horror stories from my patients who struggle with addiction, I was unaware of the gruesome criminality that accompanied these mental health issues.

Good Cop, Bad War' is a unique story about a man with a striking ability to infiltrate and extinguish drug gangs, but who, as the success of his operations grows, becomes disillusioned with the 'War on Drugs', as he sees how it demonises those who need help while empowering 'the very worst elements in society'. Very gripping account, and very persuasive on its central argument, although I have to admit that he was preaching to the converted with me. The logic of the drugs war only leads one way: the police get smarter, so the criminals get nastier. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. This book started off with great promise, getting to read about Neil’s life going from standard cop to undercover and all that entails.Neil Woods was the first and best of his kind – an undercover cop whose brief was to infiltrate Britain’s most dangerous drug gangs, befriending the foot soldiers before taking on their gangster bosses. The book is a description of Woods' work in the police force as an undercover agent in various drug squads in the UK. This is why Neil started to see legalisation as the only solution and would support a change in government policy on drugs. Overall an outstanding book for me and I'd like to thank him for his honesty and strength in writing this. A real life page turner from an ex undercover cop with each chapter getting more and more intense, culminating in some true powerful observations and insights from the author.

In Switzerland they created a series of official injection centres in major cities, supplying clean equipment, medical advice and a space where addicts could inject safely. This action-packed book is a narrative-driven true crime read and a fascinating story of a character under pressure. Neil recounts how at one point, while chasing a major league dealer in Manchester, he came into contact with a secret squad of twelve police officers. I did not want to read about someone with regrets and a clear disdain for his work over the last x number of years.He starts by sharing how he got into the police force and ended by explaining how his perspective about the "war" they had been fighting shifted. If I wanted to read about his mission on decriminalizing drugs then there are other books, I wanted to read about undercover cops and the work and effort that goes on. A perfect gift to law enforcement officers and others who still believe that the drug war in its current form still can be won. I would highly recommend this book, as well as the numerous podcasts Neil speaks on regarding the war on drugs.

This is a really great book for those of us who do not have much knowledge about the life of an undercover police officer. Gave it three stars difficult to gauge how much is true as police are not necessarily going to want to reveal secret tactics but interesting as to what goes on the streets. The horrific account of the life on the streets but very eloquently conveys the authors change of perspective over his career. Drawing on Neil’s experiences, with the insight that can only come from having fought on the front lines, GOOD COP, BAD WAR is at once a narrative-driven true crime read and a fascinating story of a character under pressure.There was no training, no manual and no plan for when things went wrong; he was just dropped at a corner and told to make connections. Everyone shrugs it off – with so much money in the drugs game, corruption is part and parcel of the whole deal.