Alex Segura's Latest Murder-Mystery Novel Stars Cuban-American Protagonist

Rarely, if ever, does a nerdy Cuban-American, comic book-loving girl from Miami pick up a book and see herself reflected on the pages. A complex, wholly real character like that isn't commonplace in literature.

Enter author Alex Segura.

The Miami-born and bred Cuban-American has always sought to write about stories and characters that he finds relatable. His latest novel, Secret Identity, follows a young girl named Carmen Valdez as she navigates New York City and attempts to solve a murder in order to claim the rights to a comic book character she created.

Oh, and she's a Cuban immigrant from Miami.

Segura begins his story by introducing a young Carmen, who wakes up to the sounds of her parents arguing. And right there, within the first pages of the book, is that sweet, romantic language many of us Miamians are oh-so-familiar with: Spanish.

There's a conversation playing out in Spanglish, and the main character of the story refers to her parents as Mami and Papi. A rarity.

"When I first started writing books, I really wanted to write about people like me," the author says. "There's always going to be a Miami element to everything that I write, an element of being Cuban-American.

"We speak Spanish, these are the foods we eat, this is how we live our lives," Segura adds matter-of-factly, "and it's just something that is naturally a part of the book."

The rest of the storyline follows Carmen as she moves from Miami to NYC to pursue her dream of working in comics. She gets an entry-level position at a third-rate publisher called Triumph Comics, where she's soon presented with an opportunity to help develop the first-ever female superhero for the publisher. She agrees to take the gig and do the work anonymously. The character is a huge hit. But the one person who knows about her contributions is murdered.

"Carmen has to solve the murder of her friend to not only figure out what happened to him but to reclaim this character that is running away from her," Segura explains.

What happens next is rich with mystery, deceit, and, of course, a colorful dive into the world of comics as could only be told by a comic-book lover who's worked in the industry for over a decade. Segura not only understands the world of comics from both an insider and an observer's perspective, but he's a fine storyteller.

His first job in the medium was with DC Comics. He later worked for Archie Comics, where he was copresident until last year, when he joined Oni Press. In addition to his novels, he’s written comic books, short stories, and has even worked on podcasts.

Much like his Cuban-American protagonist, Segura grew up in Miami with immigrant parents and later moved to New York City to pursue his love of comics.

"It can be very lonely to move to a new city without the comforts of home, and I think that's really relatable. A lot of people can relate to that. That's where Carmen's story and mine run a little parallel," Segura says, then pauses. "But obviously there was no murder when I moved to New York."

Secret Identity takes place in 1975 New York City, when the comic book industry was at its nadir, according to Segura.

"It felt like a dying industry [at the time]," he says. "So I wanted to show that contrast and how people reading it today will realize that there was a time when comics were not as prevalent as they are now."

Throughout the 354-page novel, readers will see excerpts from the fictional comic book created by Carmen and her colleagues. The sequences also evolve as the story progresses, and the comic book character changes hands at Triumph. Not only will you see tonal differences, says Segura, but the sketches are very much true to the time.

Artist Sandy Jarrell drew the panels in the style of comics from the 1970s, and once he was done, Taylor Esposito did the lettering. The result feels real and historical despite being a story within a story.

Now 42, Segura rose to prominence with his Pete Fernandez detective series nearly a decade ago. The titular character, Fernandez, also happens to be a Cuban-American, and the story takes place in Miami. The novels started as a side project for the comic book professional and eventually developed into a five-book series.

Segura describes creating Pete Fernandez as this fully formed character walking in through a door in his mind. One day he was just there. And the next, he was on paper. It was a surreal experience he fully expected to never have again.

"But with Carmen, it was the same thing: She just showed up."

He describes Carmen as an amalgamation of people he knows, friends in Miami and New York City, and someone very different from Pete. There's a sort of fondness in his voice as he speaks about Carmen. He admires this strong female lead and proudly speaks of her as one would of a friend.

"I knew that after the Pete books, I was going to write Secret Identity," Segura says. "It's kind of the book I've wanted to write for the longest time."

The story brings together all of Segura's loves: comic books, noir, and mystery. And even his hometown of Miami and his current city of New York.

"Secret Identity feels like a love letter to the two things I really love, in terms of fiction and comics and mystery novel," he says. "It's a very personal book because it's taken things from different experiences I've had. It's very much a part of me."

When asked if there are plans for future installments of Secret Identity or a Carmen Valdes series, Segura takes a beat. "We'll see what happens."

Secret Identity. By Alex Segura. Flatiron Books. 2022. 354 pages. Hardcover, $29. Order online where books are sold, or visit alexsegura.com.