Ten Thousand Islands by Randy Wayne White

BEST BOOK IVE READ IN AWHILE
A reviewer, A reviewer, 05/13/2002

THIS IS THE FIRST BOOK OF HIS THAT IVE READ. USUALLY IT TAKES ME ONE TO TWO WEEKS TO READ A BOOK. I FINISHED THIS BOOK IN THREE DAYS. I COULDNT PUT IT DOWN!!!

You've Just Made a Great Discovery!
A reviewer (lilbookend@aol.com), general manager of a film company, 06/09/2000

Friends kept telling me about Randy Wayne White, but I thought: Just another thriller writer. Why bother? How wrong I was! White is one of the rarest of writers. Reading his books is like meeting a long lost friend. Immediately, you know you are in safe hands and in for a great ride. I read all whites novels in the last six months ( he's addicitive) but his newest, TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS is one of his best. Maybe THE best. Nearly two decades ago, on Marco Island,FL, a brilliant 14-year old girl dug up an Indian grave and found a golden medallion once worn by the king of pre-Colombian Florida. A few months later, she's found dead, hanging from a tree. Now, 15-years later, someone's dug-up the grave and it's up to Ford and buddy Tomlinson to find out why. Based on a true story, the tale that follows is a brilliant and sometimes hilarious narrative. I laughed and wiped away tears -- very true. Tomlinson steals the show as usual, but Ford is also elevated: He does psychedelic mushrooms and briefly re-meets his true soul mate -- two solitary islands among ten thousand in this touching, metaphorical tale. The real star, as usual, however, is the strange place called Florida and no one is better than White when it comes

White is on target again
A reviewer (Csagebear@gateway.net), A reviewer, 06/08/2000

Ten Thousand Islands, Randy White's 7th entry in his Doc Ford series may be his best effort to date. The novel reads as a fast paced thriller but it has much more depth and sub-context than your average summer read. This book is a lesson in Florida history as it reveales how the Calusa indians lived along what is now Florida's Gulf Coast. In addition to the history lesson the reader also receives accurate insights into the fragile environment of the fictional home of Doc Ford, Dinkins Bay, and the very real environmentally threatened Charolette Harbor of the Sanible, Ft Myers area that White has adopted as his home. Showing his growth as a writer White wraps an intriguing murder mystery into his history lesson and environmental essay.With waves crashing and hurricane force winds bearing down on Ford as he is involved in a high speed boat chase the book reaches a climatic end that perfectily ties the Calusa's history together with the modern characters that are involved in solving the fifteen year old murder of a young girl that is the central character in the mystery. Ford discovers that he has a connection with the deceased girl as he works to solve her murder that is somehow involved in the illegal trade of digging for indian artifacts. His Harvard educated hippie side-kick Tomlinson, reaches new depths as he plots a scheme to introduce Ford to hallucinogenic mushrooms and it is also revealed that Tomlinson was involved with a group that was responsible for the death of one of Fords friends thirty years ago. In this novel White brings new emotional depth to Fords character and other residents of Dinkens Bay. A true test of littary skill as these colorful characters had been so well developed in the previose Doc Ford mysteries. Ten Thousand Islands is a great read and leaves you craving for more tales of the amalgamation of souls that reside in Dinkens Bay.

One of his best
Ted O'Brien (rlenska86@aol.com), a bookseller in New Orleans., 05/11/2000

Randy White's newest Doc Ford novel is a combination of the best qualities of his previous titles. Those who enjoyed the experimentation of The Man Who Invented Florida, and the straightforward style of Captiva, will be rewarded with a novel that combines the best of both elements. Without giving away the plot, this outing concerns an unscrupulous politican, a dangerous hurricane, and the beauty of the Ten Thousand Islands area of Southwest Florida and Key Largo. The most important element, however, is the Calusa artifact that has caused this sequence of events to be set in motion. The history of the artifact, and the Calusa Indians, is rendered in a way that is not only informative but enjoyable. The narrative is straightforward, the dialogue is crisp, and the characters are some of White's sharpest. Those who love Doc Ford are sure to enjoy this title, as well as those who are new to the series. Highly recommended; if you are a White fan don't miss it. If you're not, then get it anyway, you

Doc Ford at his best
A reviewer (harstan@ix.netcom.com), A reviewer, 04/10/2000

Doc Ford is a classic cynic who has seen the darkest sections of hell on earth before returning to America to remake himself. He works in Dinkin’s Bay Sanibel Island, Florida as a marine biologist. Though he lives a structured life, trouble always visits him.

A friend asks Doc to help a woman whose child’s grave was opened many years after the girl died. The daughter was special since she had the ability to find valuable, often historical, artifacts in places where no one would normally look. When she was found dead with a rope around her neck, the official opinion was suicide. She was buried with two very valuable artifacts, which is believed why someone desecrated her grave. Doc, feeling an unexplainable connection to the girl, vows to learn the full truth about Dorothy in life, death, and after-death.

Randy Wayne White guides his audience to a beautiful, primal part of Florida rarely visited by tourists. The anti-hero Doc, in his seventh appearance, is a quixotic mix of spiritual goodness and violent virility that is difficult to understand but enjoyable to observe. The adventure is exciting and frightening, as the plot seems so real that it is happening to the reader. Thus, the story line and its star turn TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS into an unforgettable work that will require Mr. White to write an eighth Ford tale.

Harriet Klausner