The Lizard’s Tale
by Kurt Kamm
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GENRE: Mystery/Crime Thriller
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BLURB:
Kurt Kamm has written a novel that's a literary crime novel, with a strong thread of non-fiction running through it. The Lizard's Tale is a tale of crime—with an a wide-ranging cast of characters.
When the DEA goes up against the Sinaloa Cartel, an orphan and an endangered lizard are caught in the conflict. The action moves from Guatemala to Mexico to Catalina Island off the coast of California.
Alejandro, a middle class Guatemalan, wants his share, and makes a deal with the cartel. Now he’s risking his life to deliver the goods.
El Dedo, a brilliant financier, is the Sinaloa Cartel’s banker. He worries about what to do with the billions of dollars collecting dust in his underground vault.
Ryan, a DEA Special Agent, needs to make a high profile case to get a promotion. Is the big yacht headed for California carrying a Mexican drug shipment?
Kate, a wildlife officer on Catalina Island, smells smoke. When she heads out in the middle of the night to investigate a fire, she makes an astonishing discovery.
Jorge, an orphan from the streets of Mexico, is abandoned in the United States. Will he find his way back home and track down his mother’s killer?
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Excerpt One:
Dedo was one of the few outsiders at the top of the cartel
hierarchy. He came from a different background than most of the drug lords, who
had grown up in poor towns in the Sierra Madres where people suffered a hard
existence living in hovels made of cinderblocks. Dedo had no poverty to escape.
He grew up in Mexico City and lived a blessed childhood. His father owned a
small Mexican chemical business that grew large when it began to supply the
Cartels with the ingredients used to make methamphetamine. His mother was
Swiss, and had worked for a chemical company in Basle when she met his father.
Dedo inherited his intellect and business sense from his father. His grey eyes
came from his mother.
When his father brought him to the State of Sinaloa for the
first time, Dedo stood in the dust and blasting heat and felt the moisture
evaporating from his skin. “Those mountain highlands,” his father had told him,
pointing off into the distance, “are ideal for growing poppies. All they need
is sunlight and moisture.” Then he turned and pointed in the direction of the
Pacific Ocean, and continued, “And out in those valleys between the mountains
and the coast, the climate is perfect for growing marijuana.” Finally, his
father looked at Dedo and told him, “Fortunately for us, sunshine and water
don’t produce methamphetamine. For that, they need chemicals—a lot of
chemicals—and that’s why we’re here.”
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Malibu, California resident Kurt Kamm has written a
series of firefighter mystery novels, which have won several literary awards.
His newest novel, The Lizard’s Tale, provides a unique look inside the
activities of the Mexican drug cartels and the men dedicated to stopping them.
Kurt has used his contact with CalFire, Los Angeles
County and Ventura County Fire Departments, as well as the ATF and DEA to write
fact-based (“faction”) novels. He has attended classes at El Camino Fire
Academy and trained in wildland firefighting, arson investigation and hazardous
materials response. He has also attended the ATF and DEA Citizen’s Academies.
After graduating from the DEA Citizen’s Academy in 2014, he began work on The
Lizard’s Tale.
Kurt has built an avid fan base among first responders
and other readers. A graduate of Brown University and Columbia Law School, Kurt
was previously a financial executive and semi-professional bicycle racer. He
was also Chairman of the UCLA/Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center Foundation
for several years.
Visit his author website at www.kurtkamm.com
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Kurt Kamm
LITERARY AWARDS
TUNNEL VISIONS
(MCM Publishing 2014)
2014 USA Best Book Award -Fiction: General – Finalist
HAZARDOUS MATERIAL
(MCM Publishing 2013)
Best Novel 2013 – Public Safety Writers Association
Winner of the 2012 Hackney Literary Award for best
novel of the year ($5,000 PRIZE)
Reader's Favorite 2013 – Finalist – Urban Fiction
The 2012 Dana Award – Finalist
Eric Hoffer Award - Finalist (2014)
Excerpt published in Birmingham Arts Journal
http://www.birminghamartsjournal.com/pdf/baj10-2.pdf
ONE FOOT IN THE BLACK
(MCM Publishing 2012)
The 2012 USA Best Book Awards – Fiction: General – Finalist
The 2013 Beverly Hills Book Awards – Fiction:
General – Finalist
Excerpt published in Felons, Flames and Ambulance
Rides: Stories About America's Public Safety Heroes
CODE BLOOD (MCM
Publishing 2011)
Writer’s Type -
First Chapter Competition.
January 2011- First Place
2012 International Book Awards - Fiction: Cross Genre Category – First Place
National Indie Excellence Book Awards – Faction
(fiction based on fact) - Winner of the
2012 Award
The 2012 USA Best Book Awards - Fiction: Horror -
Winner
LuckyCinda Publishing Contest 2013 First Place – Thriller
Reader's Favorite
2013– Finalist – Horror Fiction
Knoxville Writer’s Guild - 2011 Novella or Novel Excerpt – 2nd Place
RED FLAG WARNING
Aberdeen Bay 2010
The Infinite Writer– Mystery 2010 – First Place
The Written Art Awards - Mystery/Thriller 2010 – First Place
Royal Dragonfly – Mystery Category 2011 – First Place
Buy Links:
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GIVEAWAY
One randomly chosen winner via
rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
congrats on the tour and thanks for the chance to win :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteWhat is the best book that you have read recently? Thanks for the giveaway. I hope that I win. Bernie W BWallace1980(at)hotmail(d0t)com
ReplyDeleteHi Joseph - All The Light we cannot See is perhaps the best book I have EVER read. (Asise from The Lizard'sTale).
DeleteBest wishes
Good morning and thank you for hosting me and my new novel, THE LIZARD'S TALE. Most reviewers call my work "FACTION" because it is fact based fiction. Anyone who reads this book could easily believe it is true.
ReplyDeleteThe book is full of fascinating characters, including the orphan from Mexico and his lizard, DEA Agents, Narcos, firefighters, and some great women. One of the key characters is GINA, and I had great fun creating her, because she preys on men (Isn't it usually the opposite in most novels?) Here's an excerpt about GINA:
Gina wasn’t looking for a husband—she was far too independent to let a man run her life—but she needed male companionship. After coming to Catalina, she spent a lot of time alone until she met Brad, a captain with the Los Angeles County Fire Department. He worked at Station 55, and was big, strong, and good-looking. All her Latin lovers had been dark and she was attracted to his blond hair. She loved running her fingers over the blond carpet that covered his chest. At thirty-six, he was five years younger than she was, and married. Brad was perfect.
Their affair had lasted almost two years. She didn't see him every day—in fact, she didn't want to see him every day. His wife and daughter lived in Seal Beach, and once a week he took the ferry to the mainland and spent three days at home. But he didn’t always head home right away, and they often stole a few hours together on one of the remote beaches on the rugged, wind-swept west end of the island. During the off-season, they sometimes managed to spend a night at a local bed and breakfast in Avalon, and occasionally she cooked dinner for him at the ranch house. When nothing else worked, they drove up into the hills and screwed in the back of his SUV. For Gina it was a perfect relationship—she got what she needed without making a major emotional commitment.
Her relationship with Brad had gone on longer than any other liaison she had ever had and she’d begun to wonder how long it could last.
In addition to GINA, I have a gorgeous Mexican prostitute and a female Air Force Sergeant who is a drone pilot. Lots of characters for your readers to like (or hate!).
I liked the excerpt, thank you.
ReplyDeleteI love a good mystery and this one sounds really good. Thanks for sharing the excerpt :)
ReplyDeleteHi Victoria - thanks for taking a look. If you read the book, tell me what you think of it
ReplyDeleteDefinitely will! :D
DeleteSounds like a good Mystery/Thriller. How long did it take to write this book?
ReplyDelete