Sebastian Rotella

Reposted by permission from Reviewing the Evidence.

If you're looking for an intelligent thriller that matches adrenaline with a journalistic eye on international affairs, look no further than Sebastian Rotella's border-crossing thrillers. In the third of these, following TRIPLE CROSSING and THE CONVERT'S SONG, he pairs up his naive but talented ex-Border Patrol agent Valentine Pescatore, now a private investigator, with weary, principled Mexican journalist, Leo Mendez, once again. This time they're working on an off-the-books investigation for their friend, Isabel Puente. Though she now works for Homeland Security, she can't entrust her case to anyone official because all indications are that a colleague on the inside is protecting someone powerful. And dangerous.

As inured to drug cartel violence as people on both sides of the US-Mexican border have become, a horrific slaughter of women migrants from South America and Africa has made the news. It seems to be the work of a "rip crew" - a new kind of criminal gang that targets traffickers to seize money using any means necessary. Isabel Puente wants to find two women who escaped the carnage because one of them reportedly is being hunted by agents for an American corporation that is pulling all the levers it can in Washington to seal a valuable deal with a corrupt Mexican business partner. There's money laundering involved, but as Pescatore and Mendez begin to put the pieces together, they realize there are uglier crimes as well. Before it's all over, readers will follow the team and their allies across continents, tracking down every lead from the southernmost border of Mexico, to Brazil, to the teeming refugee camps of Lampedusa to the quiet but deadly streets of suburban San Diego.

Through his cast of characters and their global investigation, Rotella manages to raise ethical questions about immigration policies, the power of the wealth to cross borders while bypassing legal and ethical obligations, the role of journalists in holding the powerful accountable, and the tangled loyalties of reporters and DC insiders. in addition to all that, he pulls off thrilling action scenes worthy of adrenaline-fueled Hollywood films. Without sacrificing pace, he uses the authenticity of a reporter's eye to provide multiple perspectives on the refugee crisis, violence against the vulnerable, and the new kinds of chaos mutating from Mexican cartels.

Those who enjoy John le Carré's cynical view of espionage packaged in character-rich moral dilemmas should try Rotella's globe-trotting adventures, a smart and welcome riff on the international thriller.… (altro)

I wanted to title this review "intelligent" but I thought that might turn off some readers. What's the best word for complex and well-written book, a book by an author who uses his brains to work out the plot, the people, and the action? Well, whatever that is, this book deserves it.

Mr. Rotella writes a rather straightforward and in no way unusual good-guys bad-guys story focused on criminals so low or so stupid they can't even plan a good crime. They make their living ripping off criminals. The rip crews of the title are operating in Mexico and Italy, but really they are everywhere.

Our heroes are two groups of cops – Mexican police and US Border Patrol – who retired from their official ranks and joined together as a private investigative company that built up an excellent reputation. Later they retired and went their own ways, with a few still remaining in policing and security work. They are called together again to look into a particularly heinous murder in a Mexican motel. A group of women being trafficked into the USA from Mexico was slaughtered gangster style for no apparent reason. Except… there is a possible link to a rich and corrupt business family in the USA.

The leaders of the two groups – Valentine Pescatore, who works freelance for US Homeland Security, and Leo Méndez who is now a provocative journalist – rouse their teams. Early in their investigation they discover that two of the women have survived, and that one of these woman, and her link to the businessmen.

As I said, this is pretty straightforward stuff. What sets this book apart is the writing.

Mr. Rotella is a well respected print journalist who has won or been nominated for several awards for his work. Here he pays close attention to the logic of his story and to maintaining good pace for the action. He also to writes clean, pleasing sentences. His good guy characters are humans, not lumbering military stereotype. I must say, though, that his bad guys, possibly because they are not overly smart, are not compelling characters.

If you are in the mood for a thriller, I think you will like this book very much.

I received a review copy of "Rip Crew" by Sebastian Rotella (Mulholland) through NetGalley.com.… (altro)

I liked Triple Crossing a lot and think that Sebastian Rotella has a lot of good stories in him. I don't think The Convert's Song is one of them, though. Too many holes, the writing doesn't flow, and the dialogue ranges from wooden to very believable. At a high level, the plot was interesting and I liked the way it was wrapped up, but getting there was problematic.

Without trying to be a spoiler, I don't believe somebody like Raymond would be able to make it to the level where he ended up, I don't believe an American citizen who's not military or law enforcement (Pescatore) would be able to operate as he did throughout the story, I don't believe the French investigator (Belhaj) would allow herself to get into an unprofessional relationship with someone tangential to her operation, I don't believe Valentin could disguise a pistol in an ankle holster among hordes of policemen for as long as he did, I don't believe a sophisticated international terrorist would recruit a partner the way he did... just too many things that didn't make sense to me.

Don't get me wrong, this is a good read and Rotella has a good story to tell. I just had problems with the details not adding up for me. I look forward to subsequent books as he seems to have a pretty good perspective on the gray areas that exist in international relations in today's world.… (altro)

This is a fine effort for a new novelist who is actually an experienced international reporter. It's well written, with a pretty believable plot and a lot of action.

One thing that really improves the reading experience for me is when I learn something about an unfamiliar subject. I've lived in the Chicago area for nearly 25 years, which is quite far away from the border with Mexico, and am not as conversant about the issues related to border security and drug issues in that part of the country as I should be. Triple Crossing delivered a real education (assuming it's credible) on those subjects.

I liked the fact that the characters were developed throughout the book. The main character starts out as a neophyte border patrol agent and goes through an incredible journey while keeping his core values relatively intact. Other key players are introduced and, through their actions, are likewise developed and, by the end of the story, you feel like you know them all pretty well. The dialogue, which to me can make or break a book, was well-done. Although the corruption, crime and political issues presented were disgusting and for a while it seemed like they were all insoluble, the conclusion was quite satisfying.

The only issue I had with the book was with the writing style. As mentioned previously, I thought it was written pretty well, but it seemed rather choppy at times. It was always propulsive and did sort of match the pace of the action, but other writers (Robert Wilson, for example) have covered similar ground a little more smoothly. This isn't a big criticism, though, and I highly recommend this book.… (altro)