She’s the first female detective and the last honest cop in Acapulco
Detective Emilia Cruz Series
“A thrilling series” – National Public Radio
2019 & 2020 Poison Cup award, Outstanding Series – CrimeMasters of America
2019 Silver Falchion Award, Best Short Story
In the Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series, you’ll go on a gripping journey through Mexico’s drug war through the eyes of the first female police detective in Acapulco. Based on author Carmen Amato’s own counterdrug experience as an intelligence officer with the CIA, it’s a place where loyalty is for sale but violence comes cheap.
The series is a 2-time winner of the Outstanding Series Award from CrimeMasters of America and a Silver Falchion Award from Killer Nashville. Kirkus Reviews said, “Danger and deception never more than a few pages away while NPR dubbed it “A thrilling series.” Huffpost featured Emilia’s origin story in Rita Wilson’s curated Fiction50 showcase.
Acapulco is an iconic city, famed for night life, sports, and Old Hollywood glamour.
But Acapulco has fallen on hard times, thanks to the drug trade. With one of the highest homicide rates in the Western Hemisphere, Acapulco is a prize being fought over by rival drug cartels. Their fight spills over into official corruption, making the police department a stew of deception and dirty money.
Settle in for plot elements straight out of the headlines, an authentic dive into one of the most beautiful settings on earth, and a little salsa fresca from Carmen’s years in Mexico and Central America.
Novels
Short Reads & Collections
Spanish editions
This bilingual edition of a prequel short story won the 2019 Silver Falchion award for Best Short Story/Collection.
This bilingual edition of a prequel short story won the 2019 Silver Falchion award for Best Short Story/Collection.
This bilingual edition of a prequel short story won the 2019 Silver Falchion award for Best Short Story/Collection.
Extras
Gallery
A gallery of photos of Acapulco, plus check out these posts about the setting for the series:
Why Acapulco is the perfect setting for a mystery series
Reshaping the Acapulco skyline in DIABLO NIGHTS
The hotels that inspired Kurt Rucker’s Palacio Real

Acapulco at night, seen from the east side of the bay.

Sinfonia del Mar amphitheater, the best place to watch Acapulco’s fabled sunsets
Credit: panza.rayada [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Skyscrapers along Acapulco’s main road a round the bay, the Costera Miguel Alemán Credit: Eneas De Troya from Mexico City, México (Acapulco) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Catedral de Nuestra Señora de La Soledad Credit: Andrew in Raleigh [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Fuerte de San Diego on the western side of Acapulco Bay Credit: Enrique Galindo (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Caleta Beach Credit: Miguel Angel Alvarez Bernardo from Madrid, Spain (La playa de la caletilla por la mañana) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Map of Acapulco

Courtesy maps-of-mexico.com
Get the Cookbook
Get a PDF copy of the Detective Emilia Cruz cookbook featuring recipes for Mexican dishes featured in the books.
CLICK HERE for the Cookbook page.
Cover artist Matt Chase
Find out more about cover artist Matt Chase’s design inspiration and the signature look he’s created for the Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series.
The Dreamcast
If Detective Emilia Cruz and company ever (finally) make it to the silver screen, I think it would be a cross between Hawaii 5-0 and Netflix’s Narcos.
Could this be the dreamcast? Let me know!
From Silvio's point of view
As an experiment, here is the first major confrontation between Emilia and rival Franco Silvio, written from his point of view.
The scene takes place in the first book, CLIFF DIVER, which is all from Emilia’s point of view.
#EmiliaCruz updates
New Release! PACIFIC REAPER, the New Detective Emilia Cruz Novel
New release! Detective Emilia Cruz goes up against the cult of Santa Muerte, Mexico's forbidden saint of death in PACIFIC REAPER, the 5th novel in the series set in Acapulco. Without giving anything away, early reviews say REAPER is the most powerful Emilia Cruz...
When Detective Emilia Cruz Meets Santa Muerte
Every Detective Emilia Cruz novel uses unique aspects of Mexican culture to create crimes and situations that would not be possible anywhere else. In PACIFIC REAPER, Emilia confronts the cult of Santa Muerte, the saint of death embraced by drug cartels. Someone is...
Coming Soon! PACIFIC REAPER: A Detective Emilia Cruz #Mystery
PACIFIC REAPER, the 5th book in the Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series will be released for Kindle on 28 March, with the paperback version coming the following week. Detective Emilia Cruz discovers an altar to Santa Muerte at a crime scene and the case will impact...
Detective Emilia Cruz’s gambling addiction
Detective Emilia Cruz is a gambler. You could even go so far as to say she has a gambling addiction. The Gambler As a cop in Acapulco, one of the most deadly cities in the world thanks to Mexico’s drug cartels, Emilia gambles every day that she’ll survive the violence...
Exclusive! First chapter of KING PESO
The countdown to KING PESO is officially on! The 4th Detective Emilia Cruz novel will be released for Kindle on 18 August and in paperback on 30 August. While you wait to see just how hot it can get in Acapulco, read the first chapter. In KING PESO, Acapulco is rocked...
Countdown to KING PESO, the 4th Detective Emilia Cruz novel
KING PESO, the 4th Detective Emilia Cruz novel, is all about gambling and greed.The high cost of building family and friends. How easy it is to tear them both apart.In KING PESO, Emilia is shocked by the murder partner Franco Silvio's wife, as Acapulco reels from the...