The good people at Serpent’s Tail have been kind enough to offer Crime Always Pays three free copies of Sam Hawken’s
THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ, a debut no less than a personage than Sir Kenneth of Bruen describes as, “A beautiful, compassionate, gruelling novel, as ferocious to read as it is soul wrenching … This book will haunt you for a long, long time.” Quoth the blurb elves:
Since 1993 over 400 women have been murdered in Ciudad Juárez. Residents believe the true number of disappeared stands at 5,000. When a new disappearance is reported, Kelly Courter, a washed-up Texan boxer, and Rafael Sevilla, a Mexican detective, are sucked into an underworld of organised crime, believing they can outwit the corruption all around. THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ follows these two men obsessed with seeking the truth about the female victims of the Mexican border wars.
To be in with a chance of winning a copy of THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ, just answer the following question:
What one Mexico-set novel, other than Sam Hawken’s debut, should we all read before we die?
Answers via the comment box below, please, making sure to include a contact email address (using ‘at’ rather than @ to confuse the spam monkeys). All entries go into my bobbly hat. Competition closes at noon on Thursday, January 13th.
Et bon chance, mes amis …
The good people at Serpent’s Tail have been kind enough to offer Crime Always Pays three free copies of Sam Hawken’s THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ, a debut no less than a personage than Sir Kenneth of Bruen describes as, “A beautiful, compassionate, gruelling novel, as ferocious to read as it is soul wrenching … This book will haunt you for a long, long time.” Quoth the blurb elves:
Under the Volcano-damn, that was easy.
ReplyDeleteoh, bother...kieranjshea@aol.com
ReplyDeleteNo Happy Ending by Paco Ignacio Taibo.
ReplyDeletekvnsmith at thrillingdetective.com
Badges, We Don't Need No Stinkin' Badges by Chico 'Chicovitch' Morientes.
ReplyDeletePower of the Dog by Don Winslow
ReplyDeletehullcrimefiction at hotmail.co.uk
Dear Mr Morientes - plugging your own books on this site is strictly forbidden, unless you happen to called Declan J. Burke. If such unpleasantness occurs again, I will be forced to go over there and spank you - unless, of course, I suspect that that is what you're really after. You have been warned.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Donny
Gringos by Charles Portis.
ReplyDeletemacavityabc at gmail.com
DIA DE LOS MUERTOS by Kent Harrington.
ReplyDeleteLambLetters@gmail.com
Bordersnakes by James Crumley
ReplyDeleteagriffy(at)dsl.pipex.com
I'm coming up empty, but Adrian McKinty's FIFTY GRAND has an awesome scene set in Mexico. I think in real-life the Mexican cartels are providing plenty of great story material. Gilby Clark & Slash's TIJUANA JAIL is what I'd be listening as I'm trying to outrun the policia with a trunk full of ...
ReplyDeleteYou know me too well, Mr Burke. Too well. Alcohol must be taken at the end of January - purely for medical reasons, you understand
ReplyDeleteI'm going way back, but I loved "The Old Gringo," by Carlos Fuentes. Not a crime novel, but beautiful evocation.
ReplyDeletelilhmb(at)sbcglobal.net
the shadow of the shawdow, taibo.
ReplyDeleteshelterfromthestorm@ earthlink.net
Crikey. And there was me thing that Blank the Blankety Blanks by Blankety Blank, and The Blank of Blank Blankety Blank by Blank Blank, were two certs to feature.
ReplyDeleteAnyone guessing those titles, by the way, is up for a special prize.*
Cheers, Dec
* No Adrian McKintys may apply.
I thought I had the first of them, but I had the rhythm wrong. Still it gives me something to enter.
ReplyDeleteThe Death of Artemio Cruz by Carlos Fuentes.
seana(at)cruzio.com
Luckily for us, Adrian is probably trapped in a snowstorm right now, so try harder, everyone.
Also, the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, by B. Traven. Another one I thought scanned, but didn't.
ReplyDeleteTequila Blue - Rolo Diez
ReplyDeletecol2910(at)gmail.com
I'll take a punt at All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy. As for the other...
ReplyDeleteBob
The Black Minutes by jenimom at gmail.com
ReplyDeleteTijuana Strait by Kem Nunn
ReplyDeleteblindenmuth at geemail dot com
The Uncomfortable Dead by Subcomandante Marcos and Paco Ignacio Taibo II
ReplyDeletemds1142 at gmail dot com
So many great recommendations already. I'd second TEQUILA BLUE by Rolo Diez, THE DEATH OF ARTEMIO CRUZ by Carlos Fuentes, POWER OF THE DOG by Don Winslow, and DIA DE LOS MUERTOS by Kent Harrington. Paco Taibo's a must read--wonderful stuff. Also just about anything by Luis Alberto Urrea, specifically THE HUMMINGBIRD'S DAUGHTER and INTO THE BEAUTIFUL NORTH. But his non-fiction books about the border are wonderful too. And Chuck Bowden's MURDER CITY, also about Juarez, is a mindfuck from hell.
ReplyDeleteThe best thing about this challenge is that I'm getting some great recs and reminders.
ReplyDeleteSo I'll add Stones For Ibarra by Harriet Doerr and and a great nonfiction travel narrative, A Visit to Don Octavio by Sybille Bedford.
Seana - The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, yes - it would have been too easy if it had scanned perfectly.
ReplyDeleteBob - All the Pretty Horses it is, squire.
Gold stars and spotter's badges all round, folks.
Meanwhile - no one taking a punt on Richard Ford's The Ultimate Good Luck?
Cheers, Dec
"Mexico Set" by Len Deighton. Second book of the first trilogy of perhaps the most brilliant cold war/spy sequence ever. Or not. But they're really, really good.
ReplyDeleterick at ollerman.com
The Ruins by Scott Smith
ReplyDeleteGeofferson (at) gmail dot com