Cuba Strait: A Novel

Carsten Stroud's heart-pounding thrillers have earned him comparisons to Elmore Leonard and Michael Connelly. Now the author of "Black Water Transit" returns with a scorching cocktail of lies, murder, and espionage. Rick Broca's had more than his share of hard knocks -- which may explain why he's a retired cop at the age of thirty-three, working as a technical consultant for Hollywood producer Jake Siegel. For the last few months, that's meant taking care of Siegel's boat, "Cagancho," in the Florida Keys.

But everything changes when Broca rescues a pilot from his downed seaplane during one of the Keys' notorious storms. Charles Green, injured but alive, is thankful for his good fortune, and Broca takes a liking to him. But is Green who he seems to be? Why does the faded photograph Green carries of two little girls in front of an old warship seem to haunt him? And why does he deny having had any military training, despite obvious evidence to the contrary? Questions fill Broca's head as he and Green steer "Cagancho" back to Miami. But when they are intercepted by a fishing boat carrying artillery, Rick knows enough to shoot now and ask questions later. So begins an insidious sequence of events that will ultimately force Rick Broca back into working for the government and force the U.S. government into an ugly confrontation with Cuba.

With its deadly maze of international espionage and political intrigue, "Cuba Strait" is a blistering thriller with all the trappings of a breakout bestseller.