ABOUT
THE BOOK

Translated from the Spanish by Mark Fried

2020 Longlist

Christmas in Culiacán and Detective Edgar “Lefty” Mendieta can’t believe his luck. An old flame has returned with a teenage son he knew nothing about. Happiness seems to finally beckon for our careworn hero but unfortunately Jason Mendieta wants to follow in his father’s footsteps-even as Mexico’s drug war escalates towards chaos.

While Lefty pursues a lunatic who is bumping off dentists with a heavy-calibre pistol, a secret agent infiltrates a meeting of the drug lords and hears Pacific Cartel boss Samantha Valdés implore her underlings to stay out of the war. But an audacious murder provokes Samantha to change her mind and launch a wave of grisly killings across the country.

Samantha persuades Lefty to help her find the killer that pushed her over the edge but revenge is a dish best served cold.

About the Author

Élmer Mendoza was born in Mexico and is a professor and author who through his writing genre  explores drug trafficking and corruption in Latin America. He won the José Fuentes Mares National Literary Prize for Janis Joplin’s Lover, and the Tusquets Prize for Silver Bullets.

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