MYSTERY AUTHOR | CIA VETERAN
Carmen Amato
I learned a few things about danger, deception and resilience during a 30-year career with the CIA. As an author, those lessons play out on the page, especially in the Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series set in Acapulco.
Join me for high-stakes crime fiction fueled by authentic tradecraft and tomorrow's headlines.
"A must-read for lovers of smart, character-driven crime fiction with a global edge." - Reader's House
LATEST RELEASE
DRAGON CARTEL
Acapulco police detective Emilia Cruz is already stretched to the max hunting cartel assassin El Barracuda when she agrees to take on the case of a missing Customs inspector.
At the same time, the interrogation of a mysterious Chinese national turns a local crime into an international puzzle.
A missing inspector. A cartel assassin. And a conspiracy that links Mexico and the United States to China.
DRAGON CARTEL is the 10th mystery in the award-winning Detective Emilia Cruz series. Available at your favorite online book store.
SIGNATURE SERIES
Meet Detective Emilia Cruz, the first female police detective in Acapulco.
Think Narcos meets Hawaii 5-0, as she navgates cartels, corruption and social inequality while hunting for Mexico's missing.
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DETECTIVE EMILIA CRUZ SERIES
Emilia Cruz is the first female police detective in Acapulco, fighting drug cartels, official corruption and social inequality amid the hunt for Mexico's missing.
2019, 2020 Outstanding Series Award, CrimeMasters of America
2019 Silver Falchion Award, Killer Nashville
GALLIANO CLUB TRILOGY
Lido, NY. 1926. At the height of Prohibition, an Italian immigrant and a trigger-happy Chicago bootlegger battle for control of the Galliano Club, where trouble is always on tap.
Based on tales told by my late grandfather, a Deputy Sheriff of Oneida County, NY in the 1920's.
2023 Silver Falchion Award, Killer Nashville
STANDALONE THRILLERS
Contemporary thrillers featuring complex plots, unforgettable characters and layers of risk, power, and deception.
Longlist, 2020 Millennium Book Award
Latest Posts
Book Review: Jihadi Apprentice by Bruns & Olson
I write mysteries and thrillers and love to read them, too. In this book review, I look at JIHADI APPRENTICE by David Bruns and J.R. Olson, a very modern thriller with an insider’s ring of authenticity. With a compelling scenario and characters at cross purposes,...
Fiesta Stories from the Insider’s Guide to the Best of Mexico
Mexico's rich culture is a big part of my Detective Emilia Cruz series set in Acapulco and inspired a new project: The Insider's Guide to the Best of Mexico. This free guide is a collection of great stories from 36 experts who shared their insider tales of where to...
Art Stories from the Insider’s Guide to the Best of Mexico
As a mystery writer, my Detective Emilia Cruz police procedural series usually explores the dark side of Mexico: cartel violence, police corruption, and missing persons. But Mexico's rich culture is as much of a character in the books as Emilia herself. Mexico's art,...
“Relevance and immediacy:” A chat with thriller author David Bruns
The #friends section of this website is all about walking and talking with awesome mystery and thriller authors. This week I was lucky enough to catch up with David Bruns, half of a dynamic writing duo (with JR Olson) that gave us the contemporary thriller Weapons of...
Author to Author: Jinx Schwartz and Carmen Amato
As a mystery author of books set in Mexico, I have been lucky enough to build a great network of friends with books. Mystery readers love following along with the Detective Emilia Cruz series and the troubled relationship between Acapulco detective Emilia Cruz and...
Author to Author with Penn Wallace
On real life Tell us a bit about your family. I have a rather unconventional family. My father is of Scottish heritage; my mother’s parents came from Mexico. I grew up with a foot in both worlds. When I was little, we interacted mainly with my mother’s family. I...