bizarre tale of corruption and intrigue on the professional bass fishing circuit. Clever tale, some outlandish grossness.

I think as a reader, for the most part you either enjoy Hiaasen's style or you don't. I will admit that I liked this one better than another of his that a read a few months ago, but for me it still falls into the almost-too-ridiculous-to-be-funny category. And granted, that's Hiaasen's style & that's what a lot of his fans enjoy about him, but I find his stories just a little too cheesy. It takes a vivid imagination to picture some of the scenes in this book (the literal head of a pitbull attached to the arm of one of the "bad guys", just to name one), but I'm sure some readers would get a kick out this. I enjoy humor, but this is a little too over-the-edge for me. ( )

I find it hard to review this book. It is not, nor was it intended to be, great literature. I read and quite enjoyed an American crime novel (this is not some form of racism, it is simply that I prefer English crime stories as the settings and social structure are more well known to me). So, why don't I give it more than three stars and a much more positive review?
I guess that it is, at least in part, my age, but I do not approve of the modern technique of trying to shock with gruesome detail. The excuse oft used is that a string of expletives is merely art imitating life. I believe that art has more influence that that for which it is given credence. Culture often leads people. In this country, I am convinced that East Enders has taught a generation how to be metropolitan and you just have to visit Norfolk (the county in which I am currently living) and hear American gangster rap regurgitated in the local accent, to realize just how preposterous this trend can become.
To return from this rant to this tome, I could have managed without the description of Skink losing his eye and Curl's escapade with the dog's head. For me, this is humour taken too far; but then again, as my son so regularly reminds me, I am an old fuddy duddy. ( )

Early Hiassen: This is the second book written by Mr. Hiaasen (after "Tourist Season"), and it is quite interesting to see him begin to develop as a writer of biting, yet humorous, prose concerning Florida and those who would despoil it. His characters are well-defined, with all of their virtues and vices set out for the reader to "see". The action moves a bit slowly, but this isn't one of those thriller books that go down the tracks like an express train, rather it's a local, stopping at every little station down the tracks. I seem to recall from my reading of other books by Mr. Hiaasen that some of the characters from this book reappear in others he has written. That's always good, for I developed a great affection for the "good guys" in this book, and I am pleased that Mr. Hiaasen must have felt the same, to bring them back for an encore or two.

Ah – here’s where we first meet Skink. He’s great. Basically it boils down to a preacher who has a bass fishing show on his Christian Outdoor Channel and he gets the idea to create some “lakes” with condos and sell them, using a big-money bass tournament as advertising. The snag is that the lakes are built over an old landfill and they are so polluted that the fish die. He’s desperate for money because he sank some of his own into this ill-fated project. When his prize bass fisherman host turns up dead, he just goes out and hires the competition.

The fisherman was killed by his rival in the sport who wanted him dead because he was convinced he was cheating. RJ Decker was set up to take the fall. He hired RJ to investigate the cheating all the while setting him up. Even the guy’s sister was in on it. Fortunately, he met Skink. Skink decided to rig the contest himself and had coincidentally semi-trained a huge bass that would be sure to win. He transported her to the lakes, not realizing they were poisonous.

When at the end of the book, the asshole who set up Decker got wind of this and tried to go after her himself, she tugged him over board and he fell into the propeller of his own bass boat. Jim Tile ends up helping RJ with the police and Skink went chasing madly after his bass. We left him joyously running naked through the Florida swamp, pleading with his fish to live. I think she did.

Not quite as over the top as some of his novels, but very funny and has great dialogue and the bad guys get what’s coming to them in a most delicious and satisfying way. ( )