The Lord of Opium (The House of the Scorpion)

In the riveting sequel to the acclaimed bestseller The House of the Scorpion, Matt reels from the change in status quo and struggles to do the right thing; find out his story’s end in this new edition with a reimagined cover!

Matt Alacrán is a fourteen-year-old drug lord.

Until recently, Matt was just a clone grown from a strip of El Patrón’s skin. Now he is lord of the land of Opium, on the one-time US–Mexico border, and rules over an army of microchipped, zombielike workers who are programmed to produce the drugs that are Opium’s main export. El Patrón kept the air and water in Opium clean, but the rest of the world is a polluted wasteland.

Matt is sure that, in his new position, he can find a way to break the cycle of violence and destruction—but it will only be possible if he chooses the right people to trust.

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Published Sep 3, 2013

448 pages

Average rating: 6.5

8 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Zach23Weiss
Jun 24, 2025
8/10 stars
The first book was much better because of character portrayal and how we were introduced to them.

Lord of Opium, though enjoyable, was a bit all over the place. Also, not enough Celia or even Maria in this one.

Chapters being shorter also made it a little harder to read.

Lea F
Oct 27, 2024
10/10 stars
actually a fantastic YA sequel

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