Inside the cartel How an undercover FBI agent smuggled cocaine, laundered cash, and dismantled a Colombian narco-empire

In this gripping true-crime account, former FBI Special Agent Suarez recalls how he spent years undercover to infiltrate Colombian drug cartels. He joined the FBI in the late 1980s and was assigned in the early 1990s to go undercover, smuggling cocaine for the Colombia-based Medellín Cartel. Suarez learned the ways and the culture of the cartels--how to speak, how to dress, what questions to ask (and not to ask)--which ingratiated him with the gangs' leaders and allowed him to move up the ranks. After smuggling over a billion dollars' worth of cocaine into the U.S. on behalf of the Medellín Cartel, he transitioned to laundering money for the North Coast Cartel. His deep cover work exposed a huge money-laundering apparatus called the Black Market Peso Exchange, in which wealthy bankers, U.S. corporations, and even Colombia's president were implicated. Thwarting the risk of exposure and threats to his life, Suarez ultimately spent over 20 years with the FBI and holds the record for longest time spent continuously undercover. Beyond recounting his exploits in pulse-pounding fashion, he explains how it feels to lead a double life and interrogates the family history that led him to the career. His book, written with journalist Ian Frisch, reads like a thriller, giving readers a rare look at the inside workings of a cartel, but also paints a picture of the emotional toll of such dangerous work. VERDICT Will appeal to a broad audience of true-crime readers. Highly recommended for all public libraries and any academic or special library serving social psychology or criminal justice programs.--Steve Dixon