Will I love Tourist Season?

Carl was a journalist I got to know during my days roaming the state for The Tampa Tribune and later, the St. Petersburg Times.

A Miami Herald columnist, Carl pretty much invented the modern Florida novel, with his dark and often hilarious first book, Tourist Season. Like many of his other books, this razor-sharp satire is stocked with colorful characters dealing with a state being consumed by greed, corrupt leadership, and overdevelopment. 

For me, Hiaasen hit his stride by the time he wrote this fourth book. His outrageous low-life characters are so finely drawn, and so incredibly creepy, that I had to keep reading to see what they’d do next. Also, his books illuminate the seamy, nutty underside of Florida. His books couldn’t possibly be set anywhere else.

Once again, the humor is truly funny, over the top, and funny. I’ve read imitators of his style and plots, and they all fall short. He’s the real deal when it comes to Florida craziness.

As someone who has lived for several decades in a resort area that relies exclusively on tourists to survive, it was no shock that I was all over Carl Hiaasen’s book like white is to rice. I loved how biting humor could shine a light on the dark side of tourism and the impact it had on the locals.

Hiaasen’s debut book is a fast-paced masterpiece that focuses on protecting the Sunshine State from greedy, corrupt characters. I found myself in the unique role of rooting for Eco-terrorists, trying to scare builders away from further developing South Florida by murdering… show more.

No one does Florida-Funny like Carl Hiaasen.

A long-time columnist for the Miami Herald, Hiaasen has written theme-based novels about the foibles of Florida living—the politics, the sugar industry, the plastic surgery industry, the lottery. I imagine him banging out these novels with sardonic ire, seething at what has happened to his beloved Florida. But his rants are so funny readers need to stop from choking and hold onto to their hats.

I’ve read all of his books, and Tourist Season is one of my favorites, hooking me on page one with that mysterious limb found on the beach, page… show more.

Everybody has a South Florida story they’ll tell about the wilds of Miami. Carl Hiaasen outdoes most of them. Body parts are washing up on the shores of Dade County Is it a hungry crocodile? Maybe not. Some of the body parts are in a suitcase and a lot of the players may not be playing it straight.