The Heat IslandsRandy Wayne White |
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 7/31/2011 |
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When a tarpon fishing tournament is held with an $80,000 grand prize waiting, every fishing guide in the Sanibel area joins in. Doc Ford is a marine biologist, but he is also out on the water that day. He is trying to locate tarpon larvae and learn more about the fish. So when a floating body is found, Ford stays with it until the Coast Guard arrive. The others continue on with their fishing. The dead person is the man who owned the marina that sponsored the contest. His assistant steps in to take over - completely. Karl Sutter always has an eye for the main chance, as the saying goes. He is out for himself and doesn't care how he benefits. He quickly rifles his boss' safe, taking the cash and figuring out the paperwork before the man's wife takes them to a lawyer. From there he makes a plan... Dewey Nye is a professional tennis player. She's living on Sanibel Island while she recovers from an arm injury. She and Ford are friends and she pushes him physically. She gets him out running almost every day, plus joins him in swimming and other activities. When things start getting creepy around the island, Ford insists she keep the doors locked in her isolated house. Jeth Nicoles is one of the best fishing guides in Sanibel. Yet he misses the tournament. Ford has noticed that Nicoles has been absent quite a bit recently. He claims he has a sick relative, but Ford wonders. A few days before the tournament, Nicoles had had an argument with the now dead man. He is arrested for murder based on that. He goes along willingly, not concerned what happens to himself. Heat Islands has a number of story lines going. Unfortunately the story gets muddled because of that. There is a shady land deal, a possibly crooked politician, a murderer, an East European rebel, and a woman who wants a baby all mixed in. Randy Wayne White is still developing Doc Ford's character in this book and again, it doesn't come out well. The reader realizes that Ford has a past with a covert government agency yet those skills don't come into play in Heat Islands. His friend Tomlinson is a stronger character than Ford is in this book. This book was written early in the series. If this is the first of the series you've read, try another. I don't recommend starting the series with Heat Islands even though it pretty much redeems itself by the end. Notice: Graphic violence, Strong indecent language, Suggestive dialogue or situations |
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The Series:
Sanibel Flats |
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