Imagine if you were the first and only female police detective in Acapulco. The squadroom reeks of machismo. It’s just a matter of time before they squeeze you out.Detective Emilia Cruz fought her way up the police ladder in Acapulco, where Mexican drug cartels battle for control and politicians are bought with blood money. The lieutenant was forced to accept her in the detectives squadroom, but … accept her in the detectives squadroom, but that doesn’t mean she can stay. Every day is a battle for Emilia, especially when any charges against him will dirty her as well.
But when the lieutenant’s body is found in a boat adrift near a luxury beach hotel, Emilia is picked to lead the investigation. The odds are soon stacked against her.
The head of the police union wants to direct the case from behind the scenes. The ambitious mayor of Acapulco offers political favors in return for a cover up. The other detectives plot against her.
Thanks to local hotel manager Kurt Rucker, Emilia uncovers the lieutenant’s sordid sexual past and his role in a kidnapping and extortion scheme. A little more digging and a rival detective becomes Emilia’s prime murder suspect.
But do family secrets point in a different direction?
Feeling like one of Acapulco’s famous cliff divers hoping not to crash on the rocks below, Emilia must choose between truth and survival. But no matter which choice she makes, she won’t be ready for the shock of the water.
And neither will you.
“Consistently exciting . . . A clever Mexican detective tale that will leave readers eager for the series’ next installment.” — Kirkus Reviews
“A wonderful crime mystery that keeps you fast flipping to the last page.” – MysterySequels.com
Read all of Carmen Amato’s books:
The Detective Emilia Cruz series
CLIFF DIVER
HAT DANCE
DIABLO NIGHTS
KING PESO
PACIFIC REAPER
43 MISSING
MADE IN ACAPULCO
Suspense
THE HIDDEN LIGHT OF MEXICO CITY
AWAKENING MACBETH
MEET DETECTIVE EMILIA CRUZ: Emilia Cruz is the first and only female police detective in Acapulco. She’s a good liar, a fast thinker, and a mean kickboxer in a squadroom that didn’t want her and is still trying to break her. Even as she fights to get what she’s earned as a cop, Emilia keeps a record of women who have gone missing–casualties of Mexico’s drug violence–and is always searching for Las Perdidas, the Lost Ones.
The one thing Emilia doesn’t know how to handle is gringo Kurt Rucker, the manager of a luxury hotel in Acapulco. A former US Marine, he has the confidence and leadership qualities she admires. A triathlete, he’s calm under pressure and knows what he wants. But does Emilia?
THE TWO FACES OF ACAPULCO: There’s the Acapulco that tourists know; the sweep of the most beautiful bay in the world, the majesty of the clear blue Pacific, candlelit nights on the beach, and luxury hi-rises. There’s also the Acapulco that is a prize to be fought over by drug cartels–the city that is home to hookers and thieves, the streets where life is cheap and poverty is as pervasive as the wind off the ocean. Both of these versions of Acapulco claw at each other and force Emilia to survive between them. No investigation will be easy, no crime will be simple.
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A wonderful tale. Once again I was hooked on Detective Emilia Cruz. An excellent series!
Carmen Amato has crafted a realistic, plausible, and genuinely strong heroine in this crime series. There’s intrigue, action, and mystery–a trifecta of awesomeness!
Carmen Amato books are all a great read.
Emilia Cruz is an Acapulco police detective with as much danger coming at her from inside her department as from the criminals outside. She’s the only woman in the department, and to say she’s being sexually harassed by her fellow male detectives is an understatement. That’s just one of the issues addressed in this thriller police procedural. This is a very face-paced, suspenseful and often violent story about a smart, beautiful, vulnerable, and muy macha woman trying to make it in her chosen career. The plot that leads to the bad guys (and to one really horrible bad guy) is complex and engaging. Just as engaging are her struggles as a woman, both in her career and her personal life. These struggles create in the reader an intense connection to her. Amato’s book is very well written. This is literally a page turner, “I couldn’t put it down,” story and I will definitely read more of Amato’s work, especially in the Emilia Cruz series.
Very realistic. Great characters and story that kept me reading late into the night.
I have book 2, and the prequel in my reading queue.
Since I love Mexico, and I am happy to be a member of the Mexico Writers group, I am also lucky enough to have come across the work of Carmen Amato. She’s written a series of police capers starring a plucky woman cop and a cast of dubious characters who surround her, all told with wit and love and insight. The usual heads roll in Acapulco and environs, but our fearless Detective Emilia Cruz wades in, kicks ass, and takes names; she also has a soft side and gets dressed up for dates with her love interest at the local posh resort, a manager who seems to be a cross between a Navy Seal and Bradley Cooper. I immediately went to Amazon and bought all five books in the series. Cliff Diver is the first.
For exciting crime fiction, you can’t go wrong with a book by Carmen Amato. I’ve read three of the Detective Emilia Cruz novels. Cliff Diver is the first in the series, and here is the review I wrote in April 2013:
I thoroughly enjoyed this murder mystery! Cliff Diver achieves the perfect combination of plot-driven/character-driven fiction. The multi-layered story is complex but accessible and kept me moving to the next screen. Plot alone will not carry a novel without the spark of interesting, relatable characters, and this novel has them. Foremost on the list is our protagonista, Emilia Cruz, a unique detective who possesses a fascinating mix of toughness, humility, gumption, insecurity, and smarts. There isn’t much physical description, but we just know Emilia is beautiful. This is one aspect of Ms. Amato’s writing I admire—her talent for subtlety and leaving just enough unsaid, trusting the reader’s imagination to fill in the rest.
The foils to Emilia include several male detectives and city officials, a cast of vividly drawn characters. Ms. Amato helps us to keep them straight with small but telling and significant details in their dress, appearance or behavior, making each immediately recognizable. As the first female detective, Emilia admirably and realistically deals with the stresses and prejudices thrown her way in a world of macho men. While I found one of her headstrong acts to be somewhat out of character, I was carried through on the strength of the writing and the ingenuity of the story. Similarly, there was a single scene of dialogue which struck me as incongruous—a sudden sharing of autobiographies by Emilia and her heart throb of recent acquaintance. On the whole, however, scenes with dialogue were excellent and integral to the action.
Ms. Amato provides a colorful backdrop for this novel in the city of Acapulco, portrayed in all of its glamour and seediness, poverty and wealth. The reader is introduced to interesting personalities from every social stratum. The various twists and turns in the plot will engage the mind of every sleuth. I foresaw only one revelation early on, but the many detours and subplots kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat. I recommend Cliff Diver to anyone who enjoys a good mystery.
Writing of this caliber deserves a flawless presentation. This work would benefit from copy editing to remove multiple typos which, for me, were distracting.
I very much enjoyed reading this book and I am looking forward to reading book #2 and #3 of the series. The characters were real people with Emilia being a very serious and intelligent young woman. Thank you
Mystery with a surprise ending. Plot twist, sub stories that continue into the next book. Reading the next in the series, but could be read out of order. But Why??? Set in Aculpulco, MX.
Beautifully written with a cast of wonderful characters.