The Stingray Shuffle [Hardcover]

Tim Dorsey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 4, 2003

Serge is back!

Yes, that encyclopedic history buff with boundless energy (but suspect impulse control) returns in his latest quest to make everyone appreciate all things Florida and still have time left for his one-man crime wave.

In this brand-new saga, The Stingray Shuffle, Serge takes on all comers: the Russian mob, the Jamaican mob, the cocaine cartels, and spoiled frat boys. But there must also be time for hobbies, and Serge's newest "interest" is trains: how they developed Florida, where the old historic cars are on display, when to book a trip on Amtrak and share his enthusiasm with the other passengers.

And for the faithful Tim Dorsey readers, here are some long-awaited answers. Ever since the publication of his first four delightfully depraved novels, Florida Roadkill, Hammerhead Ranch Motel, Orange Crush, and Triggerfish Twist audiences everywhere have clamored for details: Where's the briefcase with the $5 million? What happened to the loonies who somehow managed to survive the merry bloodbaths? How did Serge end up with amnesia? And can he meet the increasingly difficult challenge of maintaining his spot atop the wacko pile that is Florida?

The Stingray Shuffle answers all these and more as Serge and friends pinball between stops including Tampa, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Cocoa Beach, and the Keys before setting their sights on New York City.

Which brings up a whole new set of questions: How will Serge survive outside his native state?

Will New York City survive?

Will luck finally shine on Johnny Vegas, the Accidental Virgin?

What about the women's book club, whose members want more excitement in their lives and decide to hook up with a hyper but delightful tour guide from Florida? Does this mean romance is in the air? And will it involve props?

Find out by taking a ride on The Stingray Shuffle.

Alllllllll aboard!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the frenetic tradition of the film It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), train buff and maniacal killer Serge A. Storms and his druggie pal, Lenny, chase a briefcase containing $5 million, which surfaced in Florida Roadkill (1999), in Dorsey's fifth over-the-top crime novel. Others trailing it include Russian hoodlums posing as Latinos, in the employ of the incompetent head of the world's only bankrupt drug cartel. The discombobulated mobsters end up on the NY-Miami supertrain, the Stingray Shuffle. The briefcase eventually lands in deserving hands-but will it remain there? The hurtling plot often gets sidetracked by Dorsey's self-indulgent set pieces and history lessons, leaving the reader out of breath, rather than breathless. Lenny says, "All my friends up north keep asking me, does the freak show ever take a break down there?" Not in Dorsey's Florida.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

In his latest bizarre concoction, Dorsey picks up--sort of--various plot strands from his earlier books, including Florida Roadkill (1999), Hammerhead Ranch Motel (2000), and Orange Crush (2001). There's still the matter, you see, of the briefcase full of cash, and still unresolved are the stories of Serge Storms, the serial killer and history buff; Johnny Vegas, the startlingly handsome virgin; Jethro Maddox, the Hemingway look-alike; and Paul, the Passive-Aggressive Private Eye. Fans of Dorsey's magnificently off-kilter adventures will be thrilled to rejoin these characters and to meet a host of new ones, including Mr. Granda, the leader of a down-and-out drug cartel who is looking to buy a submarine, and Ralph Krunkleton, one of America's very worst novelists, whose novel The Stingray Shuffle features prominently in the goings-on. A brilliantly constructed romp that is part thriller, part farce, and entirely, gloriously, deliriously wacky. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (February 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060520450
• ISBN-13: 978-0060520458
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #380,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tim Dorsey was a reporter and editor for the Tampa Tribune from 1987 to 1999 and is the author of ten previous novels: Florida Roadkill, Hammerhead Ranch Motel, Orange Crush, Triggerfish Twist, The Stingray Shuffle, Cadillac Beach, Torpedo Juice, The Big Bamboo, Hurricane Punch, and Atomic Lobster. He lives in Tampa, Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars not quite carl hiaasen..., February 7, 2003

By 

David W. Straight (knoxville, tennessee United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Stingray Shuffle (Hardcover)

Having just finished Shuffle (after reading Triggerfish Twist),
and now rereading Florida Roadkill, I can say that Dorsey is
better than Hiaasen's weaker novels, but still is a ways from
Hiaasen's best work (Tourist Season, Skin Tight). With Hiaasen's
best work, the characters and events from each novel stick in
mind for years. With Hiaasen's second-tier work, the characters
and events tend to blur together, so at this point I remember
very little about what went on in, say, Sick Puppy. Tim Dorsey's
work comes closer to this latter situation: I can remember some
good bits and pieces, but there's a lot of blurring, even with
Stingray Shuffle, which I just finished last night. That doesn't
bode well.

Like Hiaasen's work, Tim Dorsey's novels are entertaining. filled
with a dark humor and scathing views of some of the less pleasant
aspects of Florida. Dorsey is primarily the Tampa area, in
contrast to Hiaasen's Miami. Both writers have very sharp
and witty episodes with politicians, tourists, businesses that
cater to tourists, the drug-trade side of the state, etc.
Hiaasen's hero-types tend to be reluctant about killing:
Dorsey's Serge Storms (featured in all the novels so far) is an
enthusiast, usually killing in bizarre ways--entertaining in
small quantities, but not quite as appetizing when done several
times in each book. Dorsey is also fond (to the point of
getting a bit tiresome at times) of having Serge Storms digress
at length on historical and cultural details and minutae.
In Stingray Shuffle, he also has some other detail freaks
expounding in the same fashion as Storms--which doesn't help the
novel.

Still and all, it's an entertaining novel, worth reading.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Buy, January 25, 2005

By 

E.R. (P.R.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Stingray Shuffle (Hardcover)

This whole series of books by Tim Dorsey can be described as a twisted and funny study on the dark side in all of human beings. Tim Dorsey manages to take everyday situations and make them incredibly funny. Based in Florida, the series follows the twisted life of Serge Storms (one of the best characters ever created) and all his sick, violent and disturbed adventures. Of course, along the way you will get to meet every kind of character you can imagine.

The interesting thing about this series is that behind all the funny stories, there are tons of social and political criticisms. I have read all the books in the series, and each one keeps getting better. If you are a fan of Quentin Tarantino movies, or South Park cartoons, you will love these books. A must buy.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Three Stooges meets Carl Hiaasen, March 27, 2004

By 

lazza (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Stingray Shuffle (Mass Market Paperback)

'The Stingray Shuffle' by Tim Dorsey is really more of a series of comedy skits than a novel. The so-called plot involves a madcap chase of briefcase containing $5 million in cash. While there are a few gratuitous murders this is hardly be called a crime story. Yet like Carl Hiaasen novels 'The Stingray Shuffle' contains plenty of Florida-isms; locals like me will love the historical references to Henry Flagler, the pioneering railroads of a century ago, etc. Too bad Tim Dorsey doesn't seem to have the satiric wit of Hiaasen. His humour is very childish in comparison.

Bottom line: a very silly yet often funny book. Passable.