Customer Reviews

Deep Shadow (Doc Ford)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I am a long time fan of the Doc Ford series by Randy Wayne White. Unfortunately, the last time I caught sight of him was in "Dark Light". Although not the typical Doc Ford tale, it was none the less interesting and showed a fasinating side of Doc and some of the Dinkin's Bay residents. "Hunter's Moon" was somewhat entertaining, but totally and completely implausible. Moreover, it seemed some flat, vacant secret agent man had replaced Doc, turning the whole book into a never ending action sequence with an ending too far-fetched and lame for words. "Black Widow" was so lacking in a cohesive plot I could not finish the book. A first for me with a RWW book.

When I read the synopsis for "Dead Silence" I believed that the Doc Ford I knew and loved had left the series for good. I saved my money and time, and began looking for another series that was as thoughtful and entertaining as the Doc Ford series had been. No such series existed.

I am thrilled to report that Doc Ford has returned to the series with this new installment. It has everything I loved about the earlier books and some interesting information on the so called bottomless lakes,underground rivers and sink-holes which are present in Florida. Add to that the discovery of an aircraft which departed Cuba and disappeared between Key West and Tampa and you have the beginning of a return to form for Doc.

First,let me say that I am a big Randy Wayne White fan. I eagerly wait for his next book to come
out. However I found this on lacking. It was a good yarn but not much of a story. Centering
about Doc Ford, his Friend Tomlinson, a lake in the middle of florida, A creature from the black
lagoon that wanted to eat them and a couple of bad guys with an IQ of 80 between themselves.
RWW seemed to fill in a lot of pauses in action with bacground history about the characters that
was not necessary and long before the book ended I knew what the outcome would be. No surprises
in this book. I hope your next book is a better one Randy

Having been a fan of the Doc Ford series for years, I was excited to get my hands on the latest installment. I was greatly disappointed by the time I was four chapters in, and the disappointment continues throughout the book. The vast majority of the story takes place along the shore or beneath the surface of a sink hole lake somewhere near Orlando. Unfortunately, this book lacks the character development of both antagonists and protagonists that one has come to expect from Randy Wayne White. White, who is known for his vivid and captivating descriptions of the Florida lifestyle, culture, and locations, simply falls flat in this book. Well over two thirds of the book take place along a linear timeline in and around the lake. What is even more surprising is that White spends a tedious amount of time trying to establish the dire straits that his friends Tomlinson and Will are in when trapped by an underwater landslide and then seems to forget that sense of urgency ( they only have 15 minutes worth of air lefft )over the next several CHAPTERS. The book lacks the character development, story line, or use of the qualities of Doc Ford that once made these books a "first buy". Bottom line for this story... this book does not fit into the Doc Ford series, and if you are a fan.. wait for this one to come out on the sale rack!!

this book was slighly better than his other most recent works but not as good as the first several doc ford books. kinda slow.

I lived in Pine Island and love reading all the Doc Ford novels- went out and got this for my uncle but read it first- boring!! It just dragged- I actually skimmed through most of the book- it seems that Randy Wayne is just pumping them out now- I love reading about the islands as he describes, the unique individuals- but please- an adolescent Indian boy from OK who was in foster care- where did he learn to dive???? The Nile Monitor has been a big story in Cape Coral and the west coast- but this was almost too easy for White. PLEASE- take a break if the flow isn't there- get back to the drinks, boats, sunsets and undercover work!

I remember when Randy Wayne White published wonderful essays in the original Outside magazine and his first few Doc Ford novels were worth reading but this book really doesn't measure up no matter how much I want it to. Maybe Randy Wayne White should consider writing a book about the natural history of Florida because those portions that discuss cenotes, seahorses, Florida landscapes, for example, are really quite interesting. I keep trying to read his books because I remember what a good writer he used to be.

I have loved most of his books and awaited the new ones with impatience. It seems that he was more interested in filling pages in this book and has not created the excitement and overwhelming interest that was in his previous ones. Many many superfluous paragraphs that made me just skim through them, many pages. How many of us are really that interested in the minute details of diving? Maybe he just needs a long vacation. I cannot recommend this latest offer to anyone.

I'm a big fan of White's Doc Ford series and have read every one of his books and was very disappointed by this one. I read the Doc Ford series for its combination of island culture, boating, fishing and women but this book had none of that. And the hero never did anything heroic or action-oriented. Was this just an experiment in writing a classic suspense novel in which not much happens? It took a lot of skimming to get through this one.

This is my favorite Doc Ford novel, perhaps. Full of tension, right from the start. Definitely a departure from the typical novel from Randy, which i thought was really cool. I was totally engaged from the first page on. I want to say more, but i don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't read it. Let's just say - it's different from most of the Ford books, in a good way, and it literally never stops. The writing is incredibly descriptive, and the plot really captivates the reader. Awesome fun, couldn't put it down, just great dialogue, great plot, great action. One of the all-time great's, for me.

This is not one of Mr. White's best books. The storyline is weak without much development. A big disappointment to someone who has loved his writing.