Some Clouds
By Paco Ignacio Taibo II 

     Hector Belascoaran Shayne is an unlikely, one-eyed, Mexico City detective. His sister Elisa talks him into ending his vacation early with an improbable tale about her friend Anita who recently married into the Costa family. Anita's husband and his two brothers have been systematically murdered, and Anita was raped and nearly killed by an unknown assailant. Anita is now the heir to over 200 million pesos, but it looks like she will not live to receive it. Hector's old school chum Arturo Melgar, now a mobster called the Rat, and corrupt policeman Jacinto Saavedra are working to get Anita's inheritance. It seems that Hector is fighting an uphill battle.

     If you are looking for something quite different in crime fiction, this book should fill the bill. The characters are very colorful and the lines between good and evil are rendered with powerful strokes. Taibo has a great sense of humor and his timing accelerates the suspense in this hard-to-put-down story that could well become a classic.

     I thought the title Some Clouds was odd for a mystery novel, and did not see its relevance until the very last paragraph.