The Missing Girl Of Cartagena

A gripping international detective crime thriller

By: Pablo Poveda

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Some girls vanish. Others are made to disappear…

When Elsa Rey goes to the police to report her sister missing, no one seems interested.

No one except Inspector Francisco Rojo.

At first, Rojo thinks Lucía’s disappearance is just another dead-end case in a city already drowning in violence, corruption, and unrest. Another young woman swallowed by the night. Another file that will gather dust while everyone moves on.

But something feels wrong.

Too many people are nervous.
Too many questions go unanswered.
And too many powerful men want Rojo to leave it alone.

Cartagena, 1992.

The city is collapsing under industrial decline, political tension, and the kind of fear that settles into your bones after dark. Nightclubs thrive. Drugs flow easily. Girls disappear. And the people responsible are protected by money, influence, and police badges.

The deeper Rojo digs, the uglier the truth becomes.

Because Lucía did not run away.
Someone knows exactly what happened to her.
And they will do whatever it takes to keep it buried.

Now Rojo is up against a city that profits from silence.

To uncover the truth, he will have to walk into Cartagena’s darkest corners, confront men far more dangerous than street criminals, and risk becoming the next casualty in a case no one wants to be solved.

Because some disappearances are not accidents.

They are warnings.

Will Rojo find Lucía before another girl is lost to the dark?

The Missing Girl of Cartagena

The gripping first novel in the Inspector Rojo Mysteries by Pablo Poveda.

If you love gritty police procedurals, damaged detectives, dark urban noir, missing persons cases, corruption, and relentless suspense, this first-in-series thriller will keep you turning pages late into the night.

Perfect for fans of Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin, Jo Nesbø, and European crime fiction.

THE SETTING — Cartagena at its darkest

This is Spain without the postcard gloss.

In Cartagena, beauty and decay live side by side. The port glitters. The streets rot. Tension simmers beneath every conversation. Smoke, salt, fear, and suspicion cling to the city like a second skin.

Behind closed doors, the vulnerable are bought and sold. In back rooms and neon-lit clubs, powerful men hide in plain sight. And for the girls who disappear, justice is rare.

In this novel, Cartagena is more than a setting.

It is a trap.

MEET THE DETECTIVE — Inspector Francisco Rojo

Rojo is not polished. He is not diplomatic. And he is not interested in making people comfortable.

He is sharp, relentless, streetwise, and impossible to scare for long. He knows how the city works. He knows how corruption spreads. And he knows that the truth usually comes wrapped in lies.

He runs on instinct, cigarettes, bad coffee, and sheer stubbornness.

He pushes too far.
He asks the wrong people the right questions.
And once a case gets under his skin, he does not let go.

Rojo is the kind of detective criminals fear, superiors distrust, and readers do not forget.

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING

“⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Dark, gripping, and impossible to put down. Rojo is a fantastic detective.”

“⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A brutal, atmospheric crime thriller with a setting that feels vivid and dangerous.”

“⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you like hard-edged police mysteries and flawed investigators, read this.”

“⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Fast, gritty, and full of tension. One of those books that keeps pulling you deeper.”

Start reading today and discover the dark side of Cartagena in this unforgettable first case for Inspector Rojo.

Each book in the series can be read as a standalone.