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Tricky Business (2003)

Tricky Business (2003)

Book Info

Author
Genre
Rating
3.65 of 5 Votes: 2
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ISBN
0425192741 (ISBN13: 9780425192740)
Language
English
Publisher
berkley

About book Tricky Business (2003)

It’s warped. It pokes outrageous fun at the stupidity in all of us—especially the ‘us’ who live in Florida (not me—those other people), and it uses adult language like I hear it used in the street all the time. It also has all the good stuff we like in a novel: murder, sex, drugs, violence, hijacking, corrupt government officials, inept authorities, and my favorite subject these days, senior citizens on a casino boat. Isn’t that everyone’s favorite subject?The litany bizarre characters is long and stereotypes galore—all doing amazingly inept things. There is a running gag involving news reporters and a hurricane. It is actually laugh out loud funny. I rarely laugh out loud, period—so that is saying a lot. I am one of those cerebral kind of guys who can sit in a movie and internalize everything that is supposed to be funny without ever laughing. This book pulled it out of me. The murder plot was so convoluted, I didn’t care who did what to whom. Everyone was so busy getting everything wrong and doing it in a spectacular way, I thought I was reading my autobiography (except for the senior citizens on a casino boat stuff). This is wit and satire at its best. Dave may have justly won the Pulitzer for his endless columns but the novel cranks him up to manic speed in a way he can’t let fly in his short prose. Atta boy Dave. It’s lunacy at its finest, and a damn good time. Although, when I reach social security age I will not allow myself on a casino boat.

Dave Barry is an American columnist who, I have to say, can be very, very funny. Some Australian papers carry his columns from time to time, you might have seen them around. He is also a mate of Carl Hiaasen, a fellow journalist-turned-novelist. This book is humorous and light, except for a few acts of extreme violence, but not quite as good as the Hiaasen’s I have read to date, nor as good as Janet Evanovich. It is better than R is for Ricochet, though.The plot involves several parties, whose paths intertwine on board a small cruise ship that sails offshore every night so that everyone can gamble relatively legally. The ship is also being used to deliver drugs. This particular night there is a big storm, and some bad guys have a plan and quite a lot of guns. There is also a band, a barmaid and two retirees thrown into the mix. Barry also pokes some well-deserved fun at the inanity of news coverage, where, desperate to drum up a story about the storm, news reporters keep racing to the scene of apparent tragedies only to get killed themselves – thus, they create their own news.If you could only read one more book before you died, this wouldn’t be it. (My personal choice would be Ulysses, because I know it would take me a really, really long time to finish). More the kind of book you’d read on a plane flight, except that you’d probably be more entertained by Carl Hiaasen.

Do You like book Tricky Business (2003)?

I don't know why this scores less than Big Trouble, because Tricky Business is definitely funnier than the latter. Not only that, it's smarter and more imaginative. Unfortunately, the surprise factor of Big Trouble had worn off. Still, the gags are hilarious and if you tell them to your friends, you'll get laugh out loud laughs. Just like Big Trouble, this book is funniest in the first few chapters, after which the plot thickens and the jokes dry up. For such a good book there's quite a few pages dedicated to flatulence and barfing jokes. If you can get past that, then definitely pick up this book to read.
—Luffy Monkey D.

Hi. My name is Diane, and I'm a mystery/crime novel addict. Okay addict might be too much. Mystery and crime novels are my guilty pleasure. (or is that just denial?)I have loved mystery novels ever since I first spotted the gamboge spines of the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew on a bookshelf in my father's office. Or maybe it was when my mother gave me her The Bobbsey Twins' Mystery at School from when she was a girl. I enjoy several other Floridan newspaper columnists-cum-crime novelists, most notably Carl Hiaasen and Tim Dorsey. I also enjoy reading mystery/crime novels in which everything goes sideways, ala Elmore Leonard and Lou Berney. To me, Tricky Business was not up to any of the books I have read by these gentlemen. However, Tricky Business was entertaining and quick to read. Tricky Business was a very serviceable Florida, off-beat, crime novel. Fans of Dave Barry's formerly syndicated column may be shocked at the language, sex, violence, and drugs in this book. Mr. Barry does give 2+ page warning to this effect in BIG BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS . My hardback edition has the most beautiful bright white, 80# text paper (thicker paper) which added to my enjoyment of this book.
—Diane

This was the first fiction novel I have read by Dave Barry, and to be honest with you, I didn't even know he had written any fiction until I stumbled across a bunch of his books at my library. When I saw them, I really had no choice but to check one out. I was a little nervous- I mean, I am a huge fan of Dave Barry's humorous works, and have been since I was just a kid. So I was worried that his fiction might be disappointing.I shouldn't have been. This was the kind of novel that no one but Dave could have possibly written- I mean, I literally laughed out loud on many occasions. More than funny,though, this story was gripping, exciting, fast moving, and even sweet. And through all of it, just fucking hilarious. This man can tell a story.I enjoyed every second of this book, as evidenced by the fact that I just started it yesterday, and finished it this morning. It's like three hundred pages. I'm pretty sure I neglected some of my other responsibilities to keep reading, which should tell you everything you need to know, right there.You go read this book. I need to see if my kids are okay. ( :) )
—Courtney Duncan

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