Mexican Standoff

Mexican-American ex-cop turned L.A. private investigator Antonio ``Chico'' Cervantes debuts here in a predictable mystery. Chico is hired by two mena sinister, wealthy businessman, and a Washington, D.C., bureaucratto find the man who killed their about-to-be-married children in a car accident. Francisco Cruz-Rivera, who was driving a hearse while intoxicated, has jumped bail and returned to Mexico. The only clue to Cruz-Rivera's whereabouts is a letter from A. Ramirez in Culiacan. The mysterious correspondent turns out to be Alicia Ramirez, a beautiful, pregnant prostitute with dreams of becoming a Hollywood star. She reveals that Cruz-Rivera is part of the local drug trade, and helps Chico when he agrees to smuggle her across the border. Caught in the toils of the drug ring themselves, they battle ruthless contra-bandistas , corrupt Fed er ales and chicken-hearted DEA agents in a chase that leads them to the Sierras, Ensenada and across the border back to L.A. The book is burdened by stereotypical charactersfrom a greedy, sadistic Arab, to bureaucratic government officials, to the Mexicans, none of whom speak grammatically correct Englishthe latter especially disturbing in a mystery featuring a Mexican-American detective. (Oct.)