Synopses & Reviews
Mexico City independent detective Hector Belascoaran Shayne is summoned back home from vacation by his sister, whose childhood friend Anita has been raped and nearly killed by unknown assailants. Hector soon discovers that Anita, recently married into the wealthy Costa family, has just seen her husband and his two brothers systematically murdered. Now, Anita stands in line to receive a legacy of some 200 million pesos if she can stay alive long enough to receive it.
During his investigation, Hector trades stories with novelist Paco Ignacio (who bears no little resemblance to Taibo), who is writing a crime novel based upon the recent murder of fourteen narcotraficantes and has traced the crime directly back to Judicial Police Commander Saavedra.
Taibo weaves these two seemingly disparate threads together into a novel that stretches the boundaries of the crime genre and poses the question: how does a detective operate in a society in which the social and political institutions designed to protect the people are hopelessly corrupt?
Review
"The real enchantment of Mr. Taibo's storytelling art lies in the 'wild and melancholy' tango of life he sees everywhere."
-Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review
Review
""A vibrant, pulsating, and often poetic tale. An homage to the crime-fiction masters of old and a fresh spin on some of the old-timers' best moves, this novel has a subtle power that belies its size.""
-Booklist
Review
"A fascinating novel from south of the border in which hard-boiled pulp stylings complement an outraged social conscience." -The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Review
"A fine example of the post-modern detective story."
-The Washington Post
About the Author
Born in Spain in 1949, Paco Ignacio Taibo II has lived in Mexico since 1980. The author of numerous novels, works of history, and short-story collections, Taibo is currently president of the International Association of Crime Writers.
Taibo, a best-selling author thoughout the Spanish-speaking world, has published works around the globe, including editions in France, Germany, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Bugaria, and Russian republics.