Narcas: the secret rise of women in Latin America's cartels, by Deborah Bonello

With Narcas, VICE News reporter Deborah Bonello has provided readers with a short (160 pages) but fascinating look at some of the women who have risen to the top ranks of some of Latin America's most notorious cartels. Focusing on Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala, Bonello demonstrates how the deep poverty of the region lead so many to enter into the drug trade. Many of these women were highly successful for a period of time, but most of them were arrested eventually; some of them even turned themselves in and collaborated with the DEA to avoid arrest or lengthy prison terms. Bonello's motive for writing the book is to show that there are women in these roles even though they have been largely overlooked by the news or popular media. Much of her writing consists of her impressions based on interviews not only with the women whom she was profiling but also with others in their organization, their neighbors, other reporters and researchers, and law enforcement.