Tiger Shrimp Tango (Serge Storms Series #17)

by Tim Dorsey

Overview

Thanks to the growth of the Internet, America finds itself plagued by a noxious epidemic of ruthless scam artists. Where do they all come from? If you guessed 110 percent of them are spawned in Florida, you win the cigar. . . .

When a new digital scheme goes horribly awry—causing innocents to die and a young woman to go missing—only one person can set things right: obsessive Florida trivia buff and reluctant serial killer Serge Storms. Aided by his perpetually addled sidekick, Coleman, and latter-day noir private eye Mahoney, Serge launches a crusade to rid his beloved state of predators and save the girl. But Serge's mission is hampered by one pesky little detail: he's being tracked by a hit man dispatched from his murky past. And all bets are off when Serge learns the same assassin is responsible for killing the love of his life years ago. It's not long before the two begin tracking each other around Florida in a frenzied Möbius loop.

It's a dance only one can survive—it's the Tiger Shrimp Tango!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062092823
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	08/05/2014
Series:	Serge Storms Series , #17
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	368,470
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Tim Dorsey was a reporter and editor for the Tampa Tribune from 1987 to 1999, and is the author of fifteen novels: The Riptide Ultra-Glide, Pineapple Grenade, When Elves Attack, Electric Barracuda, Gator A-Go-Go, Nuclear Jellyfish, Atomic Lobster, Hurricane Punch, The Big Bamboo, Torpedo Juice, Cadillac Beach, The Stingray Shuffle, Triggerfish Twist, Orange Crush, Hammerhead Ranch Motel, and Florida Roadkill. He lives in Tampa, Florida.

Editorial Reviews

One would have to be unbalanced to write this book, afflicted to read it, and delusional to understand it. Naturally, I loved almost every word of it.” — Bookreporter.com

“Tim Dorsey balances the right blend of crime, mystery, humor and zaniness to a very special and engaging effect.” — ReviewingTheEvidence.com

“Another quirky plot that will make you laugh out loud... All of Tim Dorsey’s books have been a delight, but I think this one is at the head of the pack.” — BookLoons.com

“Wild; lovingly violent; and very, very clever.” — MyrtleBeachOnline.com

A fun book to read. The workings of Serge’s mind is a wondrous thing. — The Oklahoman

From the Publisher

One would have to be unbalanced to write this book, afflicted to read it, and delusional to understand it. Naturally, I loved almost every word of it.

Bookreporter.com

A fun book to read. The workings of Serge’s mind is a wondrous thing.

The Oklahoman

Wild; lovingly violent; and very, very clever.

MyrtleBeachOnline.com

Another quirky plot that will make you laugh out loud... All of Tim Dorsey’s books have been a delight, but I think this one is at the head of the pack.

BookLoons.com

Tim Dorsey balances the right blend of crime, mystery, humor and zaniness to a very special and engaging effect.

ReviewingTheEvidence.com

05/12/2014
Bestseller Dorsey delivers another joyously funny Florida vacation with his madcap 17th adventure featuring manic serial killer and Florida trivia expert Serge Storms (after 2013's The Riptide Ultra-Glide). Serge is feeling the need to recharge his "idea reservoir for unique ways to dispatch” the deserving scalawags that make Florida the "scam capital of the nation.” Accompanied by his inveterate companion, the always stoned Coleman, and assisted by private eye Mahoney, whose patter is a terrible send-up of Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, Serge out scams the scammers. Serge bounces around the state visiting such landmarks as the home of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Legoland, and the Tupperware Museum, offering up his own commentary but never forgetting about the transgressors. Among them are dating bandits, a burglary crew, and hole-in-one insurance operators. Vengeance is delivered in outrageously inventive ways, as innocent materials (e.g., Mentos) are converted into deadly devices. Dorsey's rapid-style delivery and vicious lampoons lance varied targets such as Sarah Palin, the Tea Party, the Occupiers, and trendy restaurants, all within just a few pages. Agent: Nat Sobel, Sobel Weber. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

09/15/2013
Florida booster and serial killer Serge Storms goes on an outrageous road trip to rescue a young woman who has disappeared after a particularly noxious scam. With a 75,000-copy first printing.

Library Journal

2014-02-06
A rare burst of focus sets Serge Storms (Riptide Ultra-Glide, 2013, etc.) straight on the path of a band of South Florida scam artists. With its fertile fields of kitschy history, South Florida is a grifter's dream. In a land that boasts roadside attractions like Gatorland and the Tupperware Confidence Center, nothing seems beyond belief. Still, Florida native South Philly Sal likes to start small. First it's Gustave and Sasha, his gigolo and gigolette, decoying suckers into trendy bistros that serve molecular cuisine while Sal's operatives burgle their bungalows. Then there's Uncle Cid, who sells the same Corvette over and over, only to steal it back from under the noses of the poor schlubs who just signed the papers. Sal's henchman, Omar, and his diminutive henchwoman, Piper, fleece thousands posing as a cancer-afflicted boy and a father who can't afford his son's treatment. And Sal mixes larceny with a little old-fashioned mischief, phoning hotel patrons en masse with fake poison-gas threats and rifling their room as they stream naked onto the street covered in fire-extinguisher foam. Naturally, these hijinks irk the vigilante in Serge, who goes after the perpetrators with the help of his stoned-out pal, Coleman, and an assortment of homebrewed chemical combinations Mr. Wizard never told you about. Dorsey's 17th is as antic as ever, but his straight-arrow plotting deprives readers of the fun of figuring out just what the hell is going on.

Kirkus Reviews