Shark River (Hardcover)

The attempted kidnapping is witnessed by a visiting Bahamian lady named Ransom who tells Ford she is the daughter of his late uncle Tucker Gatrell and a sizeable inheritance in stolen gold coins awaits both of them if they can decipher Tucker's complicated instructions. Doc's hippie friend Tomlinson assists in the hunt for the hidden treasure.

I agree with some of the reviewers who have expressed disappointment in SHARK RIVER. It does not strike me as being quite on a par with THE MANGROVE COAST and NORTH OF HAVANA or some of the other entries in the Doc Ford series. It is, however, still good enough, especially if you like Florida and you are a fan of John D. MacDonald or even Ross Thomas with his tales of foreign intrigue. Randy White's Doc Ford books remind me of certain elements I used to enjoy in stories by both MacDonald and Thomas although it does seem impossible to discover truly satisfying replacements for either one of these deceased authors.

Until now, we've never really known that much about Ford's past. He worked for some super-secret government organization, but at various points in the series he's said various things to various people, and it hasn't always jibed completely with itself. He was being evasive, that much is obvious now, after this book, in which we learn a great deal about him and the organization, and incidentally about his best buddy, Tomlinson.

The plot only tangentally involves these things, however. Ford's in the Bahamas, and intervenes to thwart a kidnapping. The criminals are after a powerful man's daughter, and when they don't get her, they decide to see if they can get revenge. Meanwhile Ford gets entangled with a Bahamian woman who's the daughter of Ford's ne'erdowell uncle, Tucker Gatrell, and that gets complicated, because Tucker left behind a typically complicated legacy, and she's obsessed with finding it, if only Ford will help her.

The book sags in the middle somewhat, and the plot sort of wanders off for a while. It's all entertaining, but it's not very tightly constructed, and frankly it got a bit boring for me. The inside information as to what Ford was doing for the super-secret government organization, however, is more a part of the series than a part of the book, and in that sense it was interesting.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, and would recommend it, especially to fans of Travis McGee. Perhaps, though, you should read some of the other books in the series first, if you're just starting out.

However I can only give this book 4 stars. The story dragged a bit in the middle - White takes off on some tangents that are not immeadiatly related to the story line, which was a bit distracting. And while the writing was typically lucid, there were moments when it was a little flat. In spite of this, readers can expect the same thrilling action and unique characters one expects from White. You will not be disappointed by this one.