Élmer Mendoza – författare

When the mutilated body of Mayra Cabral de Melo is found in a dusty field, Detective Edgar "Lefty" Mendieta has personal reasons for bringing the culprit to justice. Mayra, a well-known stripper, had no shortage of ardent, deluded and downright dangerous admirers, and Lefty himself is haunted by the night he spent in her company.As Mexico's drug war ramps up, Lefty's pursuit of a gallery of jealous and powerful suspects, all with a murderous glint in their eye, leads him to Samantha Valdés, the godfather's daughter, who is battling to retain her father's empire. And as the mystery deepens, the bodycount rises.

An intelligent, atmospheric police procedural series for fans of John Le Carré and Mick Heron"The most important thing that's happened in Mexican literature in the last thirty years" Gaby Wood, Sunday Telegraph.Detective Lefty Mendieta makes a deal with the devil in a gripping new novel from the Godfather of Narco Lit Short of leads on the execution-style murder of a fortune-teller, Detective Lefty Mendieta turns to his contacts in the drug underworld. They oblige, but there is a quid pro quo: Help Samantha Valdés, head of the Pacific Cartel, slip through the net of Mexican army and federal police encircling the hospital where she is recovering after an attempt on her life. Grudgingly he agrees, but then gets caught on camera during the escape and becomes headline news.Fired from the force and on the run from the Feds, Lefty again seeks Samantha's help when he learns that his son Jason has been kidnapped in Los Angeles. There, he must come to terms with the woman who broke his heart, while contending with a thicket of conspiracies, feints and double-crosses that further blur the distinction between crime and the law. Betrayal is certain. To save his son, who will Lefty sell out?Translated from the Spanish by Mark Fried

For Detective Edgar "Lefty" Mendieta, tormented by past heartbreak and dismayed by all-pervasive corruption, the murder of lawyer Bruno Canizales represents just another day at the office in Culiacán, Mexico's capital of narco-crime.There is no shortage of suspects in a city where it's hard to tell the gangsters from the politicians. Canizales was the son of a former government minister and the lover of a drug lord's daughter, and he nurtured a penchant for cross-dressing and edgy sex. But why did the assassin use a silver bullet? And why, six days later, did he apparently strike again? Mendieta's hunt for the killer takes him from mansions to low-life bars, from gumshoe reporters to glamourous transsexuals. Unearthing the truth can be as dangerous as any drug.

Egdar "Lefty" Mendieta investigates the death of a notorious stripper in this second sweltering "Narco-lit" noir from the Godfather of Mexican crime fictionAn intelligent, atmospheric police procedural series for fans of John Le Carré and Mick HeronWhen the mutilated body of Mayra Cabral de Melo is found in a dusty field, Detective Edgar "Lefty" Mendieta has personal reasons for bringing the culprit to justice. Mayra, a well-known stripper, had no shortage of ardent, deluded and downright dangerous admirers, and Lefty himself is haunted by the night he spent in her company.As Mexico's drug war ramps up, Lefty's pursuit of a gallery of jealous and powerful suspects, all with a murderous glint in their eye, leads him to Samantha Valdés, the godfather's daughter, who is battling to retain her father's empire. And as the mystery deepens, the bodycount rises.

Perfect for fans of Mick Herron and John Le Carré"The most important thing that's happened in Mexican literature in the last thirty years" Gaby Wood, Sunday Telegraph.It's 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. The only snag is that Jason Mendieta wants to follow in his father's footsteps-even as Mexico's drug war descends a slippery slope toward chaos.While Lefty pursues a lunatic who has taken to 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 then persuades Lefty to help her find the killer that pushed her over the edge. The truth he discovers will underline an old adage: revenge is a dish best served cold. No quiet family Christmas for our detective.