Name: The Mangrove Coast
ISBN: 9780425171943

Randy Wayne White

Florida marine biologist Doc Ford receives a call from the daughter of a dead war buddy whose widow has disappeared in Baja in the company of a man who brings death in his wake

The Mangrove Coast

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Just an OK read. I thought that the plot really dragged for the first 60-75% of the book - not enough to make me abandon it, but enough to make it easy to put down. 

There were a few things that didn't come across as believable, starting with Gail getting involved with a disgusting character like Jackie Merlot in the first place. The author never fully explains how they even got to know each other years before. Also, Doc's willingness to drop everything, put himself in mortal danger, and take off to South America without batting an eye felt like a stretch to me. Doc's relationship 20 years ago with Gail's husband that ended with his death just didn't seem to be strong enough to prompt such a sacrifice so many years later for people he had never met. Also, why Doc would brutally kill Jackie's body guard and then literally watch Jackie walk away makes no sense. The ending, while definitely unexpected, felt very contrived.

The author did do a nice job with describing life in coastal Florida and while I found the Tucker character annoying, the Tomlinson character was well done - a quirky, modern stoner-philosopher.

In reading other reviews, others have noted that this isn't White's best work. It's the first book of his I've read, so I'd be willing to give him another try, hoping the next one will be better.