Get ready for the next Detective Emilia Cruz mystery set in Acapulco! DRAGON CARTEL releases 16 June 2026 in ebook format on all platforms.
Look for the paperback edition on 30 June in all your favorite online bookstores.
No date yet for the audiobook, but Leeann Maksin will narrate, continuing her fantastic voicing of the series.
What it’s all about
The initial concept for DRAGON CARTEL was sparked by reports that the number of Chinese nationals arriving at the US-Mexico border went up 8500% between March 2021 and March 2024.
According to the Migration Policy Institute, 24,300 Chinese nationals arrived “without authorization” at the U.S.-Mexico border in FY2023, and 38,200 arrived in FY 2024. The numbers of Chinese at the US-Canada border doubled to 12,400 during the same time period.
Although an increase of 8500% is eye-popping, the overall number of Chinese migrants is still a drop in the bucket compared to the estimated 6.3 million Border Patrol encounters with migrants of all nationalities at the US-Mexico border in the same time frame.
Was it possible that Beijing, knowing how overtaxed US border officials were, purposely funneled Chinese spies into the migrant flow?
In mid-2023 reports about Chinese men of military age with military haircuts crossing Panama’s Darien Gap en route to the US southern border raised concerns.
Some speculated that these migrants were part of a Chinese espionage operation with “deep insertions” similar to how Russia inserted operatives before invading Ukraine.
Chinese spying on US bases
Washington has tracked about 100 recent incidents involving Chinese nationals gate-crashing American military installations, including a launch site in Key West, Fort Wainwright in Alaska, and a missile range in Missouri.
When caught, they offer scripted language and stock excuses. They have a reservation at a hotel on the base. Google directed them this way. They are lost tourists.
Very innocent mistakes.
Recipe for a Chinese dragon
For the sake of fiction, let’s combine these ingredients:
- A giant increase in unauthorized Chinese migration over the US-Mexico border, and
- Chinese nationals attempting to access and photograph restricted US military facilities.
Now add another ingredient, one that Detective Emilia Cruz all far too familiar with:.
- Chinese fentanyl.
This is the recipe for DRAGON CARTEL. Mark your calendars for 16 June!
