by Don Winslow
First published 2015
Art Keller has spent thirty years as a DEA agent fighting the Mexican cartels. In 2004, he finally puts away his nemesis Adán Barrera, head of El Federación, the world's most powerful drug organization. Barrera murdered Keller's partner years ago, turning their conflict into a personal blood feud. The victory costs Keller everything he values. When Barrera escapes prison and begins rebuilding his shattered empire, Keller cannot accept living in the same world as his enemy. He launches a ten-year crusade to destroy Barrera once and for all. The obsession consumes Keller as he pursues his target across Mexico's cities and deserts, through Washington's power corridors, and into the streets of Berlin and Barcelona. Mexico's drug war rages around them with unprecedented brutality as cartels battle for territory and control. Keller must decide whether his quest represents justice or merely revenge, knowing that his final confrontation with Barrera will determine not just who survives, but whether he can retain his humanity in the process.
Genres: fiction, crime, thriller, action
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, obsession, revenge
Setting: Berlin, Barcelona, Mexico, Washington
Period: 2004
616 pages · Hardcover · Knopf
Content warnings: drug-use, graphic-violence, murder