Rating: 
Summary: fluffy Key West crime story; smiles but no laughs...
Review: 'Virgin Heat' is certainly not one of Laurence Shames's better works. Of course it has the funky Key West setting, as do all his books, and a host of kooky characters. But the story, while initially engaging, falls flat long before the end.In 'Virgin Heat' we have the (virgin) daughter of a mobster chasing after a long lost love in Key West. Her man, unfortunately, is under a witness protection program for telling truths which put her father in the slammer for ten years. Daddy is out of jail, daughter wants her man, ... and so on. While there are humorous moments I felt the author got terribly repetitious on pointing out Key West weirdness, especially the very strong gay element. Perhaps I should have been shocked by the thought of nude gay men hanging around a motel pool, and so the author harps on this point dozens of times? Well I found it to be rather ... uninteresting, unfunny, and anything but shocking. Bottom line: passable fluff for a beach read. But very missable.
Rating:
Summary: fluffy Key West crime story; smiles but no laughs...
Review: 'Virgin Heat' is certainly not one of Laurence Shames's better works. Of course it has the funky Key West setting, as do all his books, and a host of kooky characters. But the story, while initially engaging, falls flat long before the end. In 'Virgin Heat' we have the (virgin) daughter of a mobster chasing after a long lost love in Key West. Her man, unfortunately, is under a witness protection program for telling truths which put her father in the slammer for ten years. Daddy is out of jail, daughter wants her man, ... and so on. While there are humorous moments I felt the author got terribly repetitious on pointing out Key West weirdness, especially the very strong gay element. Perhaps I should have been shocked by the thought of nude gay men hanging around a motel pool, and so the author harps on this point dozens of times? Well I found it to be rather ... uninteresting, unfunny, and anything but shocking. Bottom line: passable fluff for a beach read. But very missable.
Rating: 
Summary: What Happened to Bert the Shirt?
Review: After reading (and loving!!!) Florida Straits, Sunburn, Welcome to Paradise, and Tropical Depression, I was looking forward to more of Laurence Shames books. But he disappointed me, big time, he left Bert the Shirt, Sandra & Joey and the other wonderful characters and went on to write more violent, harsh stories minus all the warm characters he had created earlier. I don't know what happened to Laurence Shames - it's as if someone else took over the writing.
Rating:
Summary: What Happened to Bert the Shirt?
Review: After reading (and loving!!!) Florida Straits, Sunburn, Welcome to Paradise, and Tropical Depression, I was looking forward to more of Laurence Shames books. But he disappointed me, big time, he left Bert the Shirt, Sandra & Joey and the other wonderful characters and went on to write more violent, harsh stories minus all the warm characters he had created earlier. I don't know what happened to Laurence Shames - it's as if someone else took over the writing.
Rating: 
Summary: Hilarious mob family muddles through a family crisis
Review: How does a slightly dysfunctional mob family from New York deal with the sudden and unexplained disappearance of the adult daughter of the boss? Fantastic (and almost unbelievable) as the various pieces of this quite entertaining tale might be, they fall into place with hilarious effect, and somehow seem to make perfect sense. Though this novel is more story than plot, the story is told very well. Characterizations are keenly shaped. The dialogue is strong and carries the story well. Shames has an evocative eye for detail, too. This book carried me along with sustained and increasing interest, many laughs, and a satisfying climax and denouement that left me with a smile for days.
Rating: 
Summary: Smart, But With Heart
Review: I loved this book; the voice was original, the characters engaging, the language wonderful. It's satirical without being snide, and it is a great balancing act of humor and realism. He captures the crazy essence of Key West. I'll read more by this author in hopes he can keep up to this standard.
Rating:
Summary: Adjective-drenched Drivel
Review: Slogged through 12 or 15 pages of this adjective-drenched drivel. Got to the line where he describes a guy's crooked pinky finger as "independent" and i had to quit. This is truly awful.
Rating:
Summary: Adjective-drenched Drivel
Review: Slogged through 12 or 15 pages of this adjective-drenched drivel. Got to the line where he describes a guy's crooked pinky finger as "independent" and i had to quit. This is truly awful.
Rating:
Summary: Adjective-drenched Drivel
Review: Slogged through 12 or 15 pages of this adjective-drenched drivel. Got to the line where he describes a guy's crooked pinky finger as "independent" and i had to quit. This is truly awful.
Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: The reviews were good but I should have waited for the reviews from amazon.com readers. Their collective wisdom is usually quite accurate. The book never got off the ground. Good characters and plot.
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