Hammerhead Ranch Motel
by Tim Dorsey

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Book Summary Information

• ISBN13: 9780380732340
• Condition: New
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Book Reviews of Hammerhead Ranch Motel

Book Review: "South Florida Crazy" meets "South Florida Mediocre". . .
Summary: 2 Stars

Let me list my complaints, one by one:

Giving characters humorous names and nicknames and putting them in absurdly zany situations does not make a book funny. There is no real plot continuity, only a series of "let's see how crazy I can make this one" events.

Not to keep harping on how superior Carl Hiaasen is to Tim Dorsey, but Hiaasen's books are truly satire. He is not afraid to systematically take on Florida's leading icons - developers, theme parks and the tourist industry in general, the Lotto and people who play it, cosmetic surgeons, and the drug industry. Each of his books focuses primarily on one of these topics. Tim Dorsey includes each of these in every one of his books, but strictly stereotypically and gratuitously. It almost seems like he feels these are the components one needs for "Florida humor", so the more you throw in, the funnier it is.

The Johnny Vegas subplot is pointless. He has appeared in both of the first two books to absolutely no purpose but to add bulk and sophomoric sexual titillation to the books. If these sections were totally excised, there would be absolutely no loss to the stories.

There's a severe geographic dissociation. Hiaasen sets his stories in Miami and South Florida, where life truly is faster paced and the air really does crackle with an electric sub-current. Dorsey places his in Tampa-St. Pete, a haven for Mid-western transplants, and tries to make it seem like Miami. (Tampa Bay residents, please don't flood my e-mail with nasty rejoinders - I live in the Tampa Bay area my own self and have for 18 years. . .)

As a resident of the Tampa Bay area, where most of the story takes place, I was amused by the references to local streets and landmarks, and I must admit they did catch my interest - the first 50 times or so. Readers from Pittsburgh could care less about how many times characters crossed the Gandy Bridge or drove the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway or went to Davis Island, just as readers in Tampa-St. Pete could care less how many times a character in a book set in Pittsburgh crossed the West End Bridge, drove down the McArdle Roadway, or went to Point Park. Setting is important, but should not be the dominant feature of a book.

The book did have is enjoyable moments, and at no point did I feel compelled to throw it across the room. But this should not be the only positive one derives from a book. Perhaps one day I'll find "Orange Crush" at a garage sale and I may buy it. Until then, I will look to Carl Hiaasen, Laurence Shames, Dave Barry, and the occasional Elmore Leonard placed in Miami for my fix of "South Florida crazy" literature.

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