A Rio de Janeiro Thriller Chief of the Copacabana precinct Espinosa is more than happy to interrupt his paperwork when a terrified young man arrives at the station with a bizarre story. A psychic has predicted that he would commit a murder, it seems, and the prediction has become fact in the young man's mind. As the weather changes and the southwesterly wind―always a sign of dramatic change―starts up, what at first seems like paranoia becomes brutal reality. Two violent murders occur, and their only link is the lonely, clever man who had sought Espinosa out a few days earlier for help. In Southwesterly Wind , the third in this atmospheric, erotic series featuring the inimitable Inspector Espinosa, Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza once again "breathes fresh air into the crime novel genre." ( Los Angeles Times ) “Fascinating...seductive.” ― The New York Times Book Review “Beautifully sad and seductive.” ― Chicago Tribune “Beguiling and ingenious.” ― Kirkus Reviews “One of the pleasures of reading Garcia-Roza derives from watching how he thwarts our narrative experiences. Throughout Southwesterly Wind , he shuffles and reshuffles a limited deck of secondary characters to assemble startling patterns. [A] wry and poetic voice.” ― Maureen Corrigan, Newsday Fascinating...seductive." -- The New York Times Book Review Chief of the Copacabana precinct Espinosa is more than happy to interrupt his paperwork when a terrified young man arrives at the station with a bizarre story. A psychic has predicted that he would commit a murder, it seems, and the prediction has become fact in the young man's mind. As the weather changes and the southwesterly wind -- always a sign of dramatic change -- starts up, what at first seems like paranoia becomes brutal reality. Two violent murders occur, and their only link is the lonely, clever man who had sought Espinosa out a few days earlier for help. In Southwesterly Wind , the third in this atmospheric, erotic series featuring the inimitable Inspector Espinosa, Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza once again "breathes fresh air into the crime novel genre." ( Los Angeles Times ) "Beautifully sad and seductive."-- Chicago Tribune "Beguiling and ingenious."-- Kirkus Reviews "One of the pleasures of reading Garcia-Roza derives from watching how he thwarts our narrative experiences. Throughout Southwesterly Wind , he shuffles and reshuffles a limited deck of secondary characters to assemble startling patterns. [A] wry and poetic voice." --Maureen Corrigan, Newsday Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza is a bestselling novelist who lives in Rio de Janeiro. Fascinating...seductive." -- The New York Times Book Review Chief of the Copacabana precinct Espinosa is more than happy to interrupt his paperwork when a terrified young man arrives at the station with a bizarre story. A psychic has predicted that he would commit a murder, it seems, and the prediction has become fact in the young man's mind. As the weather changes and the southwesterly wind -- always a sign of dramatic change -- starts up, what at first seems like paranoia becomes brutal reality. Two violent murders occur, and their only link is the lonely, clever man who had sought Espinosa out a few days earlier for help. In Southwesterly Wind , the third in this atmospheric, erotic series featuring the inimitable Inspector Espinosa, Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza once again "breathes fresh air into the crime novel genre." ( Los Angeles Times ) "Beautifully sad and seductive."-- Chicago Tribune "Beguiling and ingenious."-- Kirkus Reviews "One of the pleasures of reading Garcia-Roza derives from watching how he thwarts our narrative experiences. Throughout Southwesterly Wind , he shuffles and reshuffles a limited deck of secondary characters to assemble startling patterns. [A] wry and poetic voice." --Maureen Corrigan, Newsday Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza is a bestselling novelist who lives in Rio de Janeiro. Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza is a bestselling novelist who lives in Rio de Janeiro. His Inspector Espinosa mysteries― The Silence of the Rain , December Heat , Southwesterly Wind , A Window in Copacabana , Pursuit , and Blackout ―have been translated into six languages and are available in paperback from Picador. Southwesterly Wind An Inspector Espinosa Mystery By Garcia-Roza, Luiz Alfredo Picador Copyright © 2005 Garcia-Roza, Luiz Alfredo All right reserved. ISBN: 031242454X 1 At four in the afternoon, the little neighborhood restaurant was empty. The only waiter, toward the back, divided his attention between a pile of plates in front of him and the television perched in the corner of the room. Eyes glued to the screen, he took a plate, sprayed some alcohol on it, wiped it off, and stacked it on another pile next to the first one. He did it unhurriedly, at the pace of the TV movie. Once he was done, he separated the plates into two perfectly equal piles; the movement forced him to tear his eyes away from the screen. T