| Title | : | Florida Happens: Tales of Mystery, Mayhem, and Suspense from the Sunshine State |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 284 |
| Publication | : | First published September 4, 2018 |
Pristine white sands and palm trees, snowbirds and theme parks, mangroves and manatees, pirates and policemen, from the redneck Riviera to the southernmost point of the United States, Florida has inspired writers and criminals throughout its storied and unique history. When it comes to Florida, no crime is too unusual and no criminal too peculiar to be impossible―Florida is the one state where fiction has to catch up to the headlines, and the contributors to this new collection certainly did not hold back!
A portion of the proceeds from the anthology will go to support Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, a program that provides free books to children from birth to school age regardless of family income. A personal mission of Dolly Parton's, the Imagination Library fosters literacy, a love of reading, and is meant to inspire children to succeed. It is a mission that the leadership of Bouchercon 2018 and the contributors of the anthology share.
Florida Happens: Tales of Mystery, Mayhem, and Suspense from the Sunshine State Reviews
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I saw a play last Sunday called “Skeleton Crew” (It was excellent!) and it in, the lead character Faye, a houseless autoworker facing a layoff, talked about heading to Florida because it’s too cold in Detroit to be a bum, but she could go to Florida and be a “beach bum.” I have often wondered if the “Florida Man” stories are a byproduct of it being the place people run to when life is too difficult. Whether that’s true or not, Florida Happens is a sort of tribute to “Florida Man” (and Woman) in the form of a generous anthology of mystery and thriller short stories.
By generous, rather than the usual dozen stories, there are twenty-one from new and familiar authors. They are also well-chosen. Being Florida, there’s more than the usual nod to elder criminals. After all, what does a mob enforcer do when they retire? Given that Florida elected Rick Scott who oversaw the biggest Medicare fraud in history, there’s more than the usual number of stories where the bad guys win. Floridians reelected Scott after he directed state contracts to companies his wife invested in. The bad guys winning is in the DNA. Florida is also the state that has coughed up some of America’s great satirists, so it’s no surprise that Florida Happens is rich in some mordant humor.
I liked Florida Happens quite a lot. The stories are varied and unexpected. My favorite was “All Accounted for at the Hooray for Hollywood Hotel” which insisted on surprising me at every turn. “A Postcard for the Dead” gave us a bit of historical mystery and classic deduction. “Frozen Iguana” was perfectly surreal, the harsh reality of drug addiction and murder coupled with iguanas falling from the trees thanks to a cold snap. Really! There’s something for everyone, some private investigation, a little bit of cozy, and a lot of noir. If you like mysteries and find Florida’s penchant for exuberant ridiculousness intriguing, you will love this book.
I received an e-gally of FLORIDA HAPPENS: Tales of Mystery, Mayhem, and Suspense from The Sunshine State from the publisher through Edelweiss
FLORIDA HAPPENS at Three Rooms Press
Greg Herren author site in progress
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre... -
A collection of stories set in Florida with its unique flavor. Many are really good. Some of my favorites are "There's an Alligator in my Purse" by Paul D Marks, "The Case of the Missing Pot Roast" by Barb Goffman, "The Fakahatchee Goonch" by Jack Bales.
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I am not much of a short story fan, even mystery short stories. Several were fun.
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As an interesting collection of short stories by authors such as Lawrence Block, John MacDonald and Susanna Calkins. All the stories are set in Florida and involve a variety of interesting characters and plots. Although I found some stories better than others, I would recommend this collection for all mystery fans and give this 4/5 stars.
*A copy of this ebook is the only consideration received in exchange for this review.* -
I loved the stories and how they captured my lovely, beautiful, sultry and mysterious state. However, there were some serious mistakes in some of the stories and I was disappointed that they weren’t captured in the editing process.
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I enjoyed most of these stories, although a few did end quite abruptly. One, though, I did not understand at all.
