Carmen Mola

Carmen Mola is the pen name of three Spanish male writers: Jorge Díaz (born 1963), Antonio Mercero (born 1966), and Agustín Martínez (born 1975). The pseudonym, suggesting a female author, was used for a successful crime series before being revealed at the Premio Planeta ceremony in 2021, generating significant public controversy. The Carmen Mola crime series, beginning with La novia gitana (The Gypsy Bride, 2018), follows a detective investigating brutal crimes in Madrid. The series became highly successful in Spain, praised for its dark, visceral tone and its engagement with Spanish social issues. The collective pseudonym became one of the most successful crime series in Spanish publishing. La Bestia (The Beast), their 2021 Premio Planeta winner, is a historical thriller set in 19th-century Madrid during a cholera epidemic, following a detective hunting a serial killer. The revelation at the ceremony that Carmen Mola was in fact three men sparked intense debate about gender representation in the crime genre and the use of female pseudonyms. Regardless of the controversy, La Bestia is a gripping and well-crafted historical thriller, and the Carmen Mola series has been widely translated internationally.