Good day, book people. Authors come to the craft of writing via so many different career paths: practicing and retired lawyers/judges, practicing and retired teachers/professors, practicing and retired law enforcement officers, practicing and retired military, as well as practicing and retired intelligence officers/analysts. It’s truly fascinating to discover how an author arrives at their writing career and then see if the genres they write in align with their former careers. I’m incredibly pleased to welcome former CIA professional turned author, Carmen Amato. Ms. Amato will be providing us some background information for the first book in her Detective Emilia Cruz Mystery series, Cliff Diver. I hope you’ll enjoy what she has to share, be like me and add this series to your ever-growing TBR list, and follow along the blog tour to learn more about this book and author. Thank you, Ms. Amato, for taking the time to join us today, we look forward to learning more about Detective Emilia Cruz and Cliff Diver.
Could You Be a Cliff Diver?
By Carmen Amato
Picture this.
You’re standing on a flat rock on top of a cliff taller than a five-story building. The cliff wall arches outward, creating a killer curve of jagged rock before dissolving into the churning Pacific Ocean. Far below, waves froth around the base of the cliff. Nearby pinnacles of rock rise from the ocean like brown stalagmites.
These soaring monoliths have been positioned by nature to create a sheltered pool of deep green water along the rocky shore.
The place is called La Quebrada. It’s a stunning spot on the western side of Acapulco, Mexico, where tourists flock to see the famous cliff divers soar into the ocean.
If you dive off the flat rock, you must do so with enough power to soar over the curved wall of the cliff and enough control to hit the sheltered pool.
Anything less and you’ll tumble against the rocks on your way down or smash into the pointed stalagmites at the bottom.
Either way, you’re dead.
Detective Emilia Cruz isn’t a cliff diver, but she feels like one as she investigates the murder of her own lieutenant. Emilia is the first female police detective in Acapulco, Mexico, which is not only an iconic tourist destination but a top contender for the most homicides per capita in the Western Hemisphere.
The first book in the series (8 books and counting) is called Cliff Diver because Emilia not only has to climb up to that small rocky ledge—figuratively, of course—but she must dive into the most important and terrifying case of her career.
With a combination of skills, luck, and daring, Emilia uncovers the lieutenant’s creepy sexual past as well as his role in a kidnapping double-cross and counterfeit money scheme. The revelations are as dangerous as they are sordid.
Reputations are threatened. No one wants the news to be made public. Acapulco’s ambitious mayor makes an offer Emilia is not expected to refuse. The powerful police union is as dangerous as any jagged rock. A fellow police detective could be her prime suspect.
Hotel manager, Kurt Rucker, has some helpful advice for Emilia but the heat between them is too hot to handle.
As Emilia hurtles over the face of the cliff, will she hit the rocks or the water? Either way, she’s in the for the shock of her life.
So are you.
Grab your copy of Cliff Diver and find out!
Cliff Diver
by Carmen Amato
November 1-30, 2021 Virtual Book Tour
Synopsis:
Acapulco’s first female police detective dives into an ocean of secrets, lies, and murder when she investigates her own lieutenant’s death.
In this explosive start to the award-winning Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series set in Acapulco, Emilia beat the odds to become the resort city’s first female police detective. But she’s living in a pressure cooker. Other detectives are scheming to push her out and the police department is riddled with corruption and drug cartel influence.
When the lieutenant is murdered, Emilia is assigned to lead the investigation. Soon the man’s sordid sex life, money laundering, and involvement in a kidnapping double-cross combine to create an ugly mess no one wants exposed. The high profile murder case could wreck Emilia’s career. When another detective–Emilia’s worst enemy in the squad room–emerges as the prime suspect, keeping her job might be the least of her worries.
Readers who love international mystery series crime fighters including Armand Gamache, Harry Hole, Guido Brunetti, and the Department Q series will also love Detective Emilia Cruz’s complex plots, pulse-pounding suspense, and exotic location. Perfect for lovers of detective fiction by Ian Rankin, Jo Nesbo, and Peter May, as well as Don Winslow’s Mexican cartel and border thrillers.
“Consistently exciting”
— Kirkus Reviews
“A wonderful crime mystery”
— MysterySequels.com
Poison Cup award, Outstanding Series 2019 and 2020
— CrimeMasters of America
Book Details:
Genre: Mystery
Publication Date: September 23rd 2021
Number of Pages: 304
ISBN: 9781482308044 (paperback)
ISBN: 9780985325626 (ebook)
ISBN: 9798200460922 (audiobook on CD)
ISBN: 9781541472990 (digital audiobook)
ASIN: B00B76XSUK (Kindle edition)
ASIN: B071DSVHZG (Audible audiobook)
Series: Detective Emilia Cruz Series, #1
Purchase Links #CommissionEarned: IndieBound.org | Amazon | Amazon Kindle | Audible Audiobook | Audiobooks.com | AudiobooksNow.com | BookDepository.com | Downpour Audiobook | Kobo Audiobook | Goodreads
Author Bio:
Carmen Amato turns lessons from a 30-year career with the Central Intelligence Agency into crime fiction loaded with intrigue and deception.
Her award-winning Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series pits the first female police detective in Acapulco against Mexico’s drug cartels, government corruption, and social inequality. Described as “A thrilling series” by National Public Radio, the Detective Emilia Cruz series was awarded the Poison Cup for Outstanding Series from CrimeMasters of America in both 2019 and 2020 and has been optioned for television.
Originally from upstate New York, Carmen was educated there as well as in Virginia and Paris, France, while experiences in Mexico and Central America ignited her writing career.
Her family tree includes a mayor, a Mensa genius, and the first homicide in the state of Connecticut with an automatic weapon. The perpetrator, her great-grandfather, eluded a state-wide manhunt after killing two people–one of whom was his wife. He was never brought to justice. Carmen is a recipient of both the National Intelligence Award and the Career Intelligence Medal.
Grab a free copy of the Detective Emilia Cruz Starter Library at CarmenAmato.net.
You’ll see why Amazon Hall of Fame reviewer Grady Harp wrote: “For pure entertainment and a gripping story likely resulting in nail biting, read Carmen Amato’s addictive prose. She knows this territory like a jaguar!”
Catch Up With Carmen Amato:
CarmenAmato.net
Goodreads
BookBub – @CarmenAmato
Instagram – @authorcarmenamato
Twitter – @carmenconnects
Facebook – @authorcarmenamato
Tour Participants:
Visit these other great hosts on this tour for more great reviews, interviews, guest posts, and giveaways!
Click here to view Cliff Diver by Carmen Amato Tour Hosts
Enter to Win:
This is a Rafflecopter giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours for Carmen Amato. There will be 1 winner of one (1) gift box of 5 best-selling mystery/thriller books by various authors hand-selected by Carmen Amato, plus a signed copy of the latest book in the Detective Emilia Cruz series, AND a $20 Amazon.com gift card (U.S. ONLY). The giveaway runs November 1 through December 3, 2021. Void where prohibited.
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The Book Diva's Reads 
Nice guest post!
Could I be a cliff diver?? – the quick, short answer – NO WAY! LOL
But, this book sounds great! I am glad Emilia doesn’t have to dive off any actually cliffs in the making of this book! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person