Cuernavaca

Scott Flores' life implodes overnight.

All that he's built - a promising career as a standout college professor, his reputation as a brilliant young anthropologist and a near perfect marriage to his beautiful wife - is leveled and none of his personal fortune can change what happens. Grappling with the devastating aftermath and battling his own personal demons, he finds himself on an airplane headed to southern Mexico and the city of Cuernavaca, at the desperate urging of his mentor, fellow anthropologist Jerry Dwyer.

The chance for a new start at a fascinating archeological dig turns into the ultimate test of character when he's dragged into a shadowy underworld hidden behind the gritty charm of this new land. It's an invisible world of good versus evil, black-market smuggling, merciless criminals and murder-all punctuated by a corrupt legal system.

Set in contemporary Mexico against the backdrop of a wildly-contested national election that touches Scott's life in ways he doesn't understand, Cuernavaca showcases the best and worst of a nation struggling to recreate itself as Scott struggles to earn his own second chance.

©2014 Richard W. Perhacs (P)2014 Richard W. Perhacs