Willie Cuesta, former Miami Police Department detective-turned-private investigator, is swinging in his hammock, estimating the number of mango daiquiris he can squeeze from a ripe piece of fruit about to fall from his tree. He’s also waiting for a prospective client who refused to discuss her case over the phone.
Ellie Hernandez hasn’t seen her fiancé, Roberto “Bobby” Player, in ten days, and she wants Willie to find him. Bobby has been obsessed with the suspicious death of his parents more than thirty-five years ago in Cuba, and he recently went to the island to find their killers. Only six years old when they were murdered, he was living in the United States, where they were supposed to join him. He was one of the “Peter Pan” kids smuggled out when Fidel Castro took over.
Willie learns the Players controlled one of the most successful casinos on the island and a large sum of money—half a million dollars—disappeared with their deaths. His investigation reveals an assortment of suspicious characters who were in Havana when the Players were killed, including a former Cuban spy now living in Little Havana, Mafia gangsters involved in gambling institutions and even an undercover US intelligence agent. Were they murdered by the Cuban government for being involved in the counter-revolution underground movement? Did the Mafia kill them to steal their fortune? Or did anti-communist Cubans believe they were traitors and execute them? Rumors and questions abound, but when men in rubber masks firing machine guns turn up, Willie knows someone is trying to keep a long-buried secret under wraps!
“First published in 1999, this outstanding series launch from Edgar finalist Lantigua (Heat Lightning) introduces PI Willie Cuesta, who used to work in the intelligence unit of the Miami PD. Lantigua makes the most of the intricate plot with its colorful mix of CIA agents, mobsters, and ordinary crooks. This reissue will thrill George Pelecanos fans.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Praise for the work of John Lantigua:
“A clear, forceful writer.”—The New York Times
“The rich and varied characters in this intriguingly twisty tale spring organically from the sandy soil of South Florida. This intelligent, timely novel is sure to win Lantigua new fans.”—Publishers Weekly on Remember My Face
“This thoroughly entertaining crime novel flirts with a number of the genre’s central themes— kidnapping for ransom, drug dealing, betrayal, revenge, the silky seductiveness of a whole lot of money—filtering them through the special sensibility of Miami PI Willie Cuesta. A real find for crime-fiction fans.”—Booklist (starred review) on On Hallowed Ground
“Nonstop action and an exciting ending make this a good crime novel. In addition, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lantigua’s use of Argentina’s tragic recent history as the basis for his plot adds depth, and his insider knowledge of Miami’s Latin American subculture provides spice.”—Library Journal on The Lady from Buenos Aires
“Cuesta, introduced in 1999’s Player’s Vendetta, is a noirish kind of chap, and the novel is appropriately atmospheric, with a large cast of villainous types and a beautiful client who may not be entirely what she seems. Readers familiar with the Cuesta series will note that, with this novel, the author is tackling a theme of greater sociohistorical importance than previously; but even though the story centers on a politically volatile period in recent history, Lantigua never forgets he’s writing a mystery, not a polemic.”—Booklist on The Lady from Buenos Aires
JOHN LANTIGUA is an award-winning journalist and novelist. His novels include The Ultimate Havana (Arte Público Press, 2022), Remember My Face (Arte Público Press, 2020), On Hallowed Ground (Arte Público, 2011) and The Lady from Buenos Aires (Arte Público Press, 2007). His novel, Heat Lightning (Putnam, 1987), was a finalist for the Edgar Awards Best First Novel. He is the recipient of numerous awards for his journalistic writings, including two Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards (2004, 2006) and the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting (1999). He lives and works in South Florida.
