Mystery · Memoir · Peru
Stories of suspicion, satire, and survival.
Mystery novels and a nonfiction memoir from author Cristina Matta — written in the long shadow of an 8.1 magnitude earthquake.
Hello, reader
Hi, I’m Cristina.
Award-winning mystery author and survivor of the 2007 Peru earthquake. I write across the mystery spectrum — sharp, satirical detective fiction and suspenseful, emotionally layered crime novels — plus the nonfiction memoir that started it all.
The Books
Three series. Three ways in.
01 · Interactive Whodunits
Crack the Case Books
Short, interactive mysteries with multiple endings — outrageous plots and a snark-loaded detective.
02 · Psychological Suspense
Cracked Andes Chronicles
Psychological suspense set in Peru. A trilogy about trauma and corruption, beginning with Tremor in the Hills.
03 · Memoir & Analysis
Never Shaken
Traditionally published nonfiction memoir of survival, women’s power, and humanitarian-aid analysis.
Watch
Never Shaken — on screen.
Two short videos: the big reveal, and the journey from fiction to truth.
Part 1 — Never Shaken: The Big Reveal
Part 2 — From Fiction to Truth
Read along
Two blogs. Two ways in.
Two ongoing blogs — one in the voice of a fictional detective, one rooted in real Peru. Bookmark whichever pulls you in.
From the Blog
Latest notes.
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The Three Questions Only Suspects Ask
Witnesses ask one kind of question. Suspects ask three. Civilians, when interviewed, want to know two things: are you almost done, and are they themselves…
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How a Satirical Detective Novel Actually Begins
People ask me where Ned came from. The honest answer is: a Tuesday in 2018, when I was three pages into something serious and I…
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The Day After: What Survival Actually Feels Like
The day after the earthquake — I mean the literal next morning, the one where you wake up and the air still smells like dust…
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Five Things Detectives Lie About (And Why It’s Almost Charming)
Look — I’ve been at this long enough that I’ve started keeping a list. Not of crimes. Of my own habitual little fictions. The lies…