The Sonny Baca Novels

From the author of Bless Me, Ultima: Four mysteries featuring a Chicano PI in New Mexico. These four novels starring detective Sonny Baca are set against the lush terrain of the American Southwest, blending its Spanish, Mexican, and Native American cultures.

* Zia Summer: Sonny Baca's cousin Gloria is brutally slain, her body found drained of blood with a Zia sun sign-the symbol on the New Mexican flag-carved on her stomach. His quest to find her killer leads Baca across New Mexico's diverse South Valley to an environmental compound and a terrifying brujo.

* Rio Grande Fall: A woman plummets to her death from a hot air balloon during Albuquerque's famous Balloon Fiesta-and Baca recognizes it as no accident.

* Shaman Winter: Baca, confined to a wheelchair after a violent encounter, is haunted by chilling dreams, but has no other choice than to go to work when the Santa Fe mayor's teenage daughter disappears and the trail leads to a charismatic and dangerous shaman.

* Jemez Spring: A high-profile murder ignites a hotbed of political treachery and terrorist threats that take Baca to Los Alamos, pitting him against a formidable foe and a nuclear bomb.

Unrelentingly suspenseful, with vivid details of the physical and spiritual landscape of northern New Mexico, these mysteries are great for fans of Margaret Coel or James D. Doss.