
Title: Swamp Story
Genre: Novel, Dark Humor
Author: Dave Barry
Source: Free for review from the publisher
Publisher: Simon and Schuster, May 2, 2023
Pages: 320
Rating: 4.5
Sexy Rating: 0
Violence Rating: 5
Description from Amazon:
Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times bestselling author and actual Florida Man Dave Barry returns with a Florida caper full of oddballs and more twists and turns than a snake slithering away from a gator.
Jesse Braddock is trapped in a tiny cabin deep in the Everglades with her infant daughter and her ex-boyfriend, a wannabe reality TV star who turned out to be a lot prettier on the outside than on the inside. Broke and desperate for a way out, Jesse stumbles across a long-lost treasure, which could solve all her problems—if she can figure out how to keep it. The problem is, some very bad men are also looking for the treasure, and they know Jesse has it.
Meanwhile, Ken Bortle of Bortle Brothers Bait and Beer has hatched a scheme to lure tourists to his failing store by making viral videos of the “Everglades Melon Monster.” The Monster is in fact an unemployed alcoholic newspaperman named Phil wearing a Dora the Explorer costume head. Incredibly, this plan actually works, inspiring a horde of TikTokers to swarm into the swamp in search of the monster at the same time villains are on the hunt for Jesse’s treasure. Amid this mayhem, a presidential hopeful arrives in the Everglades to start his campaign. Needless to say, it does not go as planned. In fact, nothing in this story goes as planned. This is, after all, Florida.
**
Are you laughing after reading that description? I laughed my way through this entire book. This is dark humor with really evil bad guys but we just feel that Jesse and baby Willa will be okay. Poor Jesse, she has no one to help her so baby Willa goes everywhere with Jesse in her baby carrier even running from the bad guys. Yes, this book is very over-the-top and the author asks us to suspend our disbelief over and over. However, I couldn’t help but have an achy smile face while I read the entire book. I especially like how the author wrapped up ALL the loose ends. Delightful!