Mangrove Lightning

Doc Ford and Tomlinson get involved with a generation-crossing madman who murdered smuggled Chinese workers in the Everglades in the last century. It’s as convoluted as it sounds. There’s also a present-day Bahamian kiddie porn connection. And Hannah Smith, a fishing guide and Ford’s love interest with her own series of novels, makes an appearance. She’s pregnant.

The best part is a small segment involving Tootsie Barlow, an old-time fishing guide. Of course he’s murdered later.

Here’s a quote about, well, something: “Excuses were for those willing to concede that weakness was their strongest ally.”

It’s nice to read about Florida, nature, and fish sometimes. Randy Wayne White does that well.

This is my first introduction to this series. At first I struggled with this book. In fact, after just a few chapters I thought about giving up on this book. Yet, I told myself to give it at least a few more chapters. I am glad that I did. There was potential in what I read but it was subtle. I think that had I had that established relationship with Doc Ford, I would have been more engaged in the story. Yet, he does seem to be an interesting character. Maybe in the future I might go back and start from the beginning.

Ok, so back to the book. There were like two storylines happening in this book. However, the one that somewhat got my attention was the one involving Mr. Bird. The mystery surrounding the hundred year old murder was docile. show more Now, if this book had been just about a madman terrorizing the islands of Florida than I would have been more engaged in the story. Because in those scenes the intensity was higher. I may not have loved this book but I did not hate it either. show less

This is the 24th in the prolific Doc Ford series written by White. I've read a few of his other books; if this had been the first one, I probably would have never read another. Perhaps fans of his will enjoy the story, but I found it to be a bit of a jumble. There is a subplot second story that never really seems to go anywhere, just adding to the muddle. While I did enjoy some of the history of the southwest Florida area, this was not a pleasant story and a bit too misogynist and fragmented for me.

Doc Ford and his colleague Tomlinson are investigating an old case of the disappearance of a deputy sheriff and his family the day before the sheriff is to testify in an important smuggling case. This leads them to the Florida Everglades and a very mysterious family of kidnappers and murders who have never been found guilty of much as their victims and witnesses disappear.

I am not very impressed with Doc Ford as a detective as he seems to be working for too many agencies and ignores some of the people he is to protect without seemingly too upset by his mistakes. This leads to the death of at least one woman and the beating of the woman he loves.

The chapters often end with a crisis that is not resolved in the text. Some time later you show more gather the incident was resolved but it was not in the text. A frustrating read. The inclusion of creatures with powers from beyond also turns me off.

There are so many other well written detective novels with reasonable plots about real people that I won't be picking up another of White's novels. Did not learn much about Florida in this novel either. show less

Synopsis: "While marine biologist “Doc” Ford pretends to be in Fort Lauderdale attending a convention for amateur naturalists, he’s actually about to wreak justice on a member of a porn ring headquartered in the Bahamas. At the same time, his friend Tomlinson, Buddhist priest and contemporary hippie, embarks on an odd and frightening adventure.

“Tootsie” Barnes, a retired fishing guide, comes to Tomlinson with an unbelievable and horrifying story. During Prohibition, a deputy and his entire family disappeared, never to be seen again. The guess is that their bodies were tossed into a large lake called Chino Hole, for the gators to dispose of. One of Tootsie’s moonshine-running relatives was involved. More recently, several of show more Tootsie’s closer kin have died in odd accidents, and he believes karma has finally decided to collect its debts.

Having read Albert’s Barlow’s journal recounting the crime, Tomlinson scouts out the terrain on Marco Island, specifically Chino Hole, a place containing fish that shouldn’t be there. There’s also a deserted village where Chinese laborers lived, people smuggled in from Cuba to work a railroad no longer existing.

Tomlinson has an idea someone wants to force Barnes off his land so the government can claim it, something they can’t do as long as a family member maintains legal residence.

In the midst of his reconnaissance, Tomlinson gets a warning from an unseen sources, the kind he’s gotten before and the kind he doesn’t want.

“There were many times he’d conjured a bipolar exchange with the creature inside his brain, an evil twin who delighted in mayhem.”

Sometimes he doesn’t listen to the warning; this time he does, but forewarned isn’t necessarily forearmed.

In the meantime, Tootsie’s niece, Grace, disappears. The teenager, keeping company with a questionable character who may or may not be related to the Lambeths, owners of the biggest mangrove lightning—the Florida term for moonshine—operation on Marco Island, had recently offered to live on her uncle’s place on his property so Barnes could leave the island.

When Doc returns from his “convention,” he and Tomlinson begin their investigation in earnest, to discover how saltwater fish got into a freshwater lake . . . who’s trying to convince Tootsie his ancestors crimes are finally coming home to roost, and who, or what, has Gracie. There’s also a connection to Hannah Smith, Ford’s ex, who’s innocently drawn into the circle of violence because she befriended Gracie.

What follows is a blending of the supernatural, a great deal of little known Florida history, and a fight with a killer whose murderous heritage convinces him he’s possessed by a bloodthirsty spirit."
Review: There's a lot going on in this book, but the story is captivating and more than a little spooky. This is more about Tomlinson's interactions than Doc's. show less

A complex story that involves rape, torture, and murder. This is the first Doc Ford book I've read and I'll be seeking out others.

Mystery in the mangroves

Some craziness here with Tomlinson channeling the past and a monstrous man channeling an evil ancestor.
Ightening in more ways than one.
J did find myself confused by uncertainties from time to time but most come clear.