A history of a very popular beach destination near Sarasota on the Gulf coast of Florida. Reviewing the past century of Siesta Key development in the context of Florida's ancient and recent emergence, this book explains how one small Gulf coast barrier island has become world famous as “#1 Beach in the USA." Beginning with Amerindian settlers, the “First Floridians," all of the seminal pioneers and a steady stream of pivotal leaders are described with emphasis on their families, motivations, and challenges. Both historical triumphs and tragedies are covered to provide a balanced perspective. Lastly, the current and future threats are analyzed in detail, including the environmental controversies with nearby keys, the menace of increasing red tide, and the risks of rising sea levels associated with global warming.

Take a trip to exotic South Florida with this dark, funny book that established Carl Hiaasen as one of the top mystery writers in the game.The first sign of trouble is a Shriner's fez washed up on a Miami beach. The next is a suitcase containing the almost-legless body of the local chamber of commerce president found floating in a canal...The locals are desperate to keep the murders under wraps and the tourist money flowing. But it will take a reporter-turned–private eye to make sense of a caper that mixes football players, politicians, and one very hungry crocodile in this classic mystery that GQ called “one of the top ten destination reads of all time.”

One hundred years ago, Florida was a wilderness of swamp and beach, dense forest and abundant wild game. Undiscovered, except for a few pioneer sportsmen and hearty farmers and ranchers, the state was still a frontier. True, a few towns flourished on the fishing and the Caribbean trade, but it was generally a sleepy place, far removed from the later boom of the 1920s. \nHere is a collection of original articles and stories of the old Florida, of hunters and Indians, the development of the sportsman's paradise, the vast canvas of nature prior to the coming of the condominium. \nIllustrated with rare drawings, photographs and engravings, this book will recreate a paradise that can never be again.

Andrew Yancy-late of the Miami Police and soon-to-be-late of the Monroe County sheriff's office-has a human arm in his freezer. There's a logical (Hiaasenian) explanation for that, but not for how and why it parted from its shadowy owner. Yancy thinks the boating-accident/shark-luncheon explanation is full of holes, and if he can prove murder, the sheriff might rescue him from his grisly Health Inspector gig (it's not called the roach patrol for nothing). But first-this being Hiaasen country-Yancy must negotiate an obstacle course of wildly unpredictable events with a crew of even more wildly unpredictable characters, including his just-ex lover, a hot-blooded fugitive from Kansas; the twitchy widow of the frozen arm; two avariciously optimistic real-estate speculators; the Bahamian voodoo witch known as the Dragon Queen, whose suitors are blinded unto death by her peculiar charms; Yancy's new true love, a kinky coroner; and the eponymous bad monkey-who just may be one of Carl Hiaasen's greatest characters.

The fast-paced and gripping true account of the extraordinary construction and spectacular demise of the Key West Railroad—one of the greatest engineering feats ever undertaken, destroyed in one fell swoop by the strongest storm ever to hit U.S. shores. In 1904, the brilliant and driven entrepreneur Henry Flagler, partner to John D. Rockefeller, dreamed of a railway connecting the island of Key West to the Florida mainland, crossing a staggering 153 miles of open ocean—an engineering challenge beyond even that of the Panama Canal. Many considered the project impossible, but build it they did. The railroad stood as a magnificent achievement for more than twenty-two years, heralded as “the Eighth Wonder of the World,” until its total destruction in 1935's deadly storm of the century. In Last Train to Paradise, Standiford celebrates this crowning achievement of Gilded Age ambition, bringing to life a sweeping tale of the powerful forces of human ingenuity colliding with the even greater forces of nature’s wrath.

Ken Thompson served as Sarasota's city manager from 1950 to 1988, making him the longest-serving manager in United States history. During these years, Sarasota experienced a population explosion and an unprecedented modernization of city services. The city moved from a sleepy little town to an independent city with an identifiable economy. This period of growth gave residents a vastly improved bayfront that included Island Park and the Marina Jack development and saw the creation of the current city hall and the Van Wetzel Theater. In thirty-eight years, Sarasota moved from the Circus City to the multifaceted city it is today. Follow well-known Sarasota historian Jeff LaHurd as he recounts the sometimes controversial era of Sarasota's greatest growth.

The Groveland Four: The Sad Saga of a LegalLynching is the shocking,but true story of prejudice, violence, corruption, courage and redemption thatmade international headlines. Gary Corsair's account is based on exhuastiveresearch into one of the most notorious Civil Rights cases of all time, a casethat began when a 17-year-old Florida girl reported being kidnapped and rapedby four Negro men on July 16, 1949.Here for the first time anywhere, are the vivid memories of those who livedthe nightmares of blood-thirsty mobs, police brutality, lying witnesses, KuKlux Klan terrorists, manufactured evidence, and murder by the very men swornto uphold the law. The Groveland Four: The Sad Saga of a Legal Lynchingis the product of exclusive interviews with the only surviving defendant,relatives of the men who died for a crime they swore they didn't commit, andothers with first-hand knowledge of the events that have polarized Lake County,Florida, for 50-plus years. Corsair also gained access to legal files untouchedfor 50 years that reveal rare insights into the men who fought to save thedefendants and cast serious doubts on the gulity verdicts rendered by all-whitejuries.

Now in trade paperback, Pulitzer Prize winner Edna Buchanan’s classic nonfiction masterpiece detailing events from her eighteen years writing for The Miami Herald. Nobody covered love and lunacy, life and death on Miami’s mean streets better than legendary Miami Herald police reporter Edna Buchanan. Winner of a 1986 Pulitzer Prize, Edna has seen it all, including more than 5,000 corpses. Many of them had familiar faces.Edna Buchanan doesn’t write about cops—she writes about people: the father who murdered his comatose toddler in her hospital crib; fifteen-year-old Charles Cobb—a lethal killer; Gary Robinson, who "died hungry"; the Haitian who was knitted to death in a Hialeah factory; and the naked man who threw his girlfriend’s severed head at a young cop who threw it back.

Find adventure along the beautiful, yet mysterious waters of the Oonawassee River! There's excitement around every bend when 12-year-old cousins Addie and Tanner visit their Uncle Henry's riverside bait shop. Follow the duo as they delve into the heart of Florida and its culture, learn to crab and pole-fish, encounter alligators, and discover the courage they never knew they had. Full of treasured family values and the special bonds of friendship, this winner of the Ben Franklin and Teacher's Choice awards is a must-have for all young readers.

Christopher Knowlton, author of Cattle Kingdom and former Fortune writer, takes an in-depth look at the spectacular Florida land boom of the 1920s and shows how it led directly to the Great Depression.The 1920s in Florida was a time of incredible excess, immense wealth, and precipitous collapse. The decade there produced the largest human migration in American history, far exceeding the settlement of the West, as millions flocked to the grand hotels and the new cities that rose rapidly from the teeming wetlands. The boom spawned a new subdivision civilization—and the most egregious large-scale assault on the environment in the name of “progress.” Nowhere was the glitz and froth of the Roaring Twenties more excessive than in Florida. Here was Vegas before there was a Vegas: gambling was condoned and so was drinking, since prohibition was not enforced. Tycoons, crooks, and celebrities arrived en masse to promote or exploit this new and dazzling American frontier in the sunshine. Yet, the import and deep impact of these historical events have never been explored thoroughly until now.In Bubble in the Sun Christopher Knowlton examines the grand artistic and entrepreneurial visions behind Coral Gables, Boca Raton, Miami Beach, and other storied sites, as well as the darker side of the frenzy. For while giant fortunes were being made and lost and the nightlife raged more raucously than anywhere else, the pure beauty of the Everglades suffered wanton ruination and the workers, mostly black, who built and maintained the boom, endured grievous abuses. Knowlton breathes dynamic life into the forces that made and wrecked Florida during the decade: the real estate moguls Carl Fisher, George Merrick, and Addison Mizner, and the once-in-a-century hurricane whose aftermath triggered the stock market crash. This essential account is a revelatory—and riveting—history of an era that still affects our country today.

Think you're a smuggler? With that box of Cuban cigars or those unclaimed duty-free souvenirs from last summer's trip to Paris? Untaxed and untraced commerce-call it contraband-is a trillion-dollar-per-year global business. New technologies to discover and curb smuggling are met by equally well-equipped perpetrators, determined to stay below the radar.With its long coastline, hundreds of remote landing strips and airports clogged with sun-seeking tourists, Florida is a superhighway of smuggling. It is easy to move illegal goods like weapons, drugs, slaves, exotic birds and flowers; all while avoiding the best efforts of U.S. and international customs authorities.Who does this smuggling? Well one Florida governor and the wife of another, for starters. Hardscrabble commercial fishermen, Spanish explorers, Mafia mobsters, crew chiefs for fruit pickers, respected attorneys, just about everybody in Florida is a smuggler.Smuggling touches every major episode in Florida's history; it's discovery and settlement, the Seminole Wars, and the Civil War were shaped by smugglers. The state's repeated land booms-including today's-are heavily influenced by smuggler profits. Today's business economy is warped by the manipulation of smugglers laundering their profits.Stan Zimmerman means neither to vilify nor glorify these entrepreneurs. Nor does he intend to leave any stoned unturned or suitcase unopened. With stories of drug runners and prostitute pushers along side the exploits and follies of Florida's elite, we are able to see why throughout its long history, Florida has always been a true "smuggler's paradise."

Cuban-American reporter Britt Montero tracks a brutal rapist and investigates a baffling series of violent murders. By the author of Contents Under Pressure.

Serge A. Storms embarks on a tour to meet his long-lost relatives in this latest madcap entry in the bestselling series from Florida’s “compulsively irreverent and shockingly funny” (Boston Globe) Tim Dorsey.\\nDevoted Floridaphile Serge Storms is a lover of history, so he’s decided to investigate his own using one of those DNA services from late-night TV. Excited to construct a family tree, he and Coleman hit the road to meet his kin. Along the way, he plans to introduce Coleman to the Sunshine State’s beautiful parks where he can brush up on his flora, fauna, and wildlife, and more importantly, collect the missing stamps for his park passport book.\nBut as the old saying goes, the apple doesn’t fall far . . . Serge is thrilled to discover he may be related to a notorious serial killer who’s terrorized the state for twenty years and never been caught. Which one of his newfound relatives will be the one to help him hunt down this deranged maniac? Serge doesn’t know that a dogged investigator from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is also hot on the trail.\nThen Serge meets a park ranger who’s also longing to make a family re-connection. But all is not as it appears on the surface, and Serge’s newfound friendship in the mysterious swamps of Florida may lead to deadly results.\nFinding his own relatives has made Serge understand the importance of family. Of course he’ll do anything to help . . .

NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • A hilarious novel of social and political intrigue, set against the glittering backdrop of Florida’s gold coast, from the author of Skinny Dip and Razor Girl\\n“If you could use some wild escapism right now, Hiaasen is your guy.” —The New York Times\\nWITH A NEW EPILOGUE\\nAt the height of Palm Beach’s charity ball season, Kiki Pew Fitzsimmons, a prominent member of geriatric high society, suddenly vanishes during a swank gala. Kiki Pew was a founding member of the Potussies, a group of women dedicated to supporting the President, who spends half the year at the “Winter White House” just down the road. Meanwhile, Angie Armstrong, wildlife wrangler extraordinaire, is called to the island to deal with a monster-sized Burmese python that has taken residency in a tree. But the President is focused on the disappearance of Kiki Pew. Never one to miss an opportunity to play to his base, he immediately declares her a victim of rampaging immigrant hordes. This, it turns out, is far from the truth, which now lies in the middle of the road, where a bizarre discovery brings the First Lady’s motorcade to a grinding halt. Irreverent, ingenious, and uproariously entertaining, Squeeze Me perfectly captures the absurdity of our times.\\nAmazon.com Review\\nEditors' pick: One of the joys of Hiaasen is how he uses silly, broad humor to distract from the sly, sharp humor dotted throughout."—Vannessa Cronin, Amazon Editor

John Nicholas Ringling's years in Sarasota spanned the final quarter-century of his life. On Florida's west coast, as the Ringling's Circus became "the greatest show on earth," he collected Baroque paintings, European decorative art, and Italian statuary, built the ostentatious mansion Ca'd'Zan, developed and marketed most of the barrier islands around Sarasota Bay, and became the focus of a confusing pastiche of acclaim, misconception, and suspicion. Sarasota's Ringling Museum is his priceless cultural legacy to the people of Florida and the world of art--an inheritance at risk for the ten years that Ringling's estate was in probate. The author of this first intensive look at Ringling's presence in Sarasota sets the man against the backdrop of Florida from World War I through the land boom and the turbulent twenties into the depression years and Ringling's lapse into obscurity. Illustrated with nearly fifty black-and-white photographs, many never before published, this is the chronicle of a man, as the foreword claims, "who was not afraid to think or live on a grand scale, who knew what he wanted from life, and from art."

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “A delightfully lighthearted caper . . . [a] fast-moving, entertaining tale.”—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette A gang of thieves stage a daring heist from a vault deep below Princeton University’s Firestone Library. Their loot is priceless, impossible to resist. Bruce Cable owns a popular bookstore in the sleepy resort town of Santa Rosa on Camino Island in Florida. He makes his real money, though, as a prominent dealer in rare books. Very few people know that he occasionally dabbles in unsavory ventures. Mercer Mann is a young novelist with a severe case of writer’s block who has recently been laid off from her teaching position. She is approached by an elegant, mysterious woman working for an even more mysterious company. A generous monetary offer convinces Mercer to go undercover and infiltrate Cable’s circle of literary friends, to get close to the ringleader, to discover his secrets. But soon Mercer learns far too much, and there’s trouble in paradise—as only John Grisham can deliver it.Praise for Camino Island “A happy lark [that] provides the pleasure of a leisurely jaunt periodically jolted into high gear, just for the fun and speed of it.”—The New York Times Book Review “Sheer catnip . . . [Grisham] reveals an amiable, sardonic edge here that makes Camino Island a most agreeable summer destination.”—USA Today “Fans will thrill with the classic chase and satisfying ending; and book lovers will wallow in ecstasy.”—The Florida Times-Union

“The Racketeer is guilty of only one thing: keeping us engaged until the very last page.”—USA Today#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER In the history of the United States, only four active federal judges have been murdered. Judge Raymond Fawcett has just become number five. His body is found in his remote lakeside cabin. There is no sign of forced entry or struggle. Just two dead bodies: Judge Fawcett and his young secretary. And one large, state-of-the-art, extremely secure safe, opened and emptied. One man, a former attorney, knows who killed Judge Fawcett, and why. But that man, Malcolm Bannister, is currently residing in the Federal Prison Camp near Frostburg, Maryland. Though serving time, Malcolm has an ace up his sleeve. He has information the FBI would love to know. Malcolm would love to tell them. But everything has a price—and the man known as the Racketeer wasn’t born yesterday.Praise for The Racketeer “Exhilarating . . . surprising . . . ingenious.”—Janet Maslin, The New York Times “A satisfying, deeply engrossing thriller in which different forms of justice are ultimately served.”—The Washington Post “Fast-paced . . . with enough startling plot twists—and changes of scenery, from Miami to Montego Bay and beyond—to surprise even the most suspicious reader.”—The Wall Street Journal “Tautly plotted.”—Entertainment Weekly

Longlisted for the National Book Award and a Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the YearOver the centuries, Florida has been many things: an unconquered realm protected by geography, a wilderness that ruined Spanish conquistadors, god’s waiting room,” and a place to start over. Depopulated after the extermination of its original native population, today it’s home to nineteen million. The site of vicious racial violence, including massacres, slavery, and the roll-back of Reconstruction, Florida is now one of our most diverse states, a dynamic multicultural place with an essential role in 21st-century America.In Finding Florida, journalist T.D. Allman reclaims the remarkable history of Florida from the state’s mythologizers, apologists, and boosters. Allman traces the discovery, exploration, and settlement of Florida, its transformation from a swamp to paradise.” Palm Beach, Key West, Miami, Tampa, and Orlando boomed, fortunes were won and lost, land was stolen and flipped, and millions arrived. The product of a decade of research and writing, Finding Florida is a highly original, stylish, and masterful work, the first modern comprehensive history of this fascinating place.

Longlisted for the National Book Award and a Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the YearOver the centuries, Florida has been many things: an unconquered realm protected by geography, a wilderness that ruined Spanish conquistadors, god’s waiting room,” and a place to start over. Depopulated after the extermination of its original native population, today it’s home to nineteen million. The site of vicious racial violence, including massacres, slavery, and the roll-back of Reconstruction, Florida is now one of our most diverse states, a dynamic multicultural place with an essential role in 21st-century America.In Finding Florida, journalist T.D. Allman reclaims the remarkable history of Florida from the state’s mythologizers, apologists, and boosters. Allman traces the discovery, exploration, and settlement of Florida, its transformation from a swamp to paradise.” Palm Beach, Key West, Miami, Tampa, and Orlando boomed, fortunes were won and lost, land was stolen and flipped, and millions arrived. The product of a decade of research and writing, Finding Florida is a highly original, stylish, and masterful work, the first modern comprehensive history of this fascinating place.

Sanibel Flats is a fast-paced reissue of the first Doc Ford Novel from New York Times bestselling author Randy Wayne White.\nIts cool gulf breezes lured him from a life of danger. Its dark undercurrents threatened to destroy him…\nAfter ten years of living life on the edge, it was hard for ex--CIA agent Doc Ford to get that addiction to danger out of his system. But spending each day in Florida, watching the sun melt into Dinkins Bay and the moon rise over the mangrove trees, cooking dinner for his beautiful neighbor, and dispensing advice to the locals over a cold beer lulled him into letting his guard down. Then Rafe Hollins appeared. How could Doc refuse his old friend’s request―even if it would put him back on the firing line…and change forever the life he’d built here on Sanibel Island?\nThis edition of the book is the deluxe, tall rack mass market paperback.

Sarasota, Florida was not always the thriving urban community that residents know today. This popular tourist destination on the Gulf Coast began its course of modern development with the Homestead Act of 1862 and a promise to the inhabitants of Scotland that the land awaiting them in Florida was one of "milk and honey where gold grew on trees." Little did the first settlers know that within a hundred years the deserted land they then called home would transform itself not only into a bustling real estate and tourism hub, but also into a charming community with a personality all its own. \nFrom the 1920s to the 1960s, the Gulf Coast town was described as "a community where no one was a stranger." In the 1920s, however, a clairvoyant full-page ad in the Sarasota Herald predicted, "Sarasota's Growth Cannot Be Stopped." Indeed it couldn't. Sarasota soon became nationally known for its connection to the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, its famous art museum, and its celebration of modern architecture. \nA long time resident of Sarasota, Florida, Jeff LaHurd's ninth published work is his most comprehensive account of Sarasota's history to date. In this precise exploration of the city's history, LaHurd masterfully chronicles the lives lived and the fluctuating growth of Sarasota.

A New York Times bestseller -- a brilliantly funny exploration of the Sunshine State from the man who knows it best: Pulitzer Prize winner Dave Barry. We never know what will happen next in Florida. We know only that, any minute now, something will. Every few months, Dave Barry gets a call from some media person wanting to know, "What the hell is wrong with Florida?" Somehow, the state's acquired an image as a subtropical festival of stupid, and as a loyal Floridian, Dave begs to differ. Join him as he goes in hunt of the legendary Skunk Ape; hobnobs with the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs; and visits Cassadaga, the psychic capital of the world, to have his dog's aura read (apparently, she's "very spiritual"). Hitch a ride for the non-stop thrills of alligator-wrestling ("the gators display the same fighting spirit as a Barcalounger"), the hair-raising spectacle of a clothing-optional bar in Key West, and the manly manliness of the Machine Gun Experience in Miami. It's the most hilarious book yet from "the funniest damn writer in the whole country" (Carl Hiaasen, and he should know). By the end, you'll have to admit that whatever else you might think about Florida--you can never say it's boring.

A full year's worth of the strangest, most outlandish antics of one of the Internet's true titans: Florida Man! Plus, for the first time ever . . . the equally bizarre, equally outrageous Florida Woman! Go to Google and type in your birth date and the words "Florida Man." Weird, right? Well, you haven't seen anything yet! That's just one day in the life of a Florida Man.  Originally a beloved Internet game made possible by Florida's Sunshine Laws, "Florida Man" has now become a phrase unto itself, a shorthand expression used online to capture the antics of Florida's residents, who somehow seem to find themselves in bizarre situations regularly. Now, Florida Man is here to collect the 366 greatest, most unusual adventures of both Florida Man and Florida Woman, sorted day-by-day from January 1 through December 31st. (Plus, special leap-year headlines for those readers who just can't get enough mayhem during the regular year!) Florida Man features headlines such as:  "Florida Man Throws Alligator Into Wendy's Drive-Thru Window" "Florida Man Shoots Self, Realizes it Three Days Later" "How Trump Became a Florida Man" plus, corresponding Florida Woman headlines like "Florida woman attacked by 'aggressive' otter says 'severe bites' left her temporarily unable to walk" This collection of classic Florida weirdness will astound and amuse even the most jaded, world-weary reader. Just don't go trying any of Florida Man's--or Florida Woman's--ideas for yourself!

Dexter Series Jeff Lindsay Collection 8 Books Set includes titles in this collection :- Dexter Is Dead, Final Cut, Double Dexter, Dexter is Delicious, Dexter by Design, Dexter in the dark, Dearly devoted Dexter, Darkly Dreaming Dexter. Description:- Dexter is Dead Dexter Morgan has burned the candle at both ends for many years. Blood spatter analyst . . . husband . . . father . . . serial killer. And now, for the first time, his world has truly collapsed. Dexter is arrested on charges of murder. He has lost everything - including his wife, his kids, and the loyalty of his sister. Dexter's Final Cut Hollywood gets more than it bargained for when television's hottest stars descend on the Miami Police Department for 'research'. Mega-star Robert Chase is famous for losing himself in his characters and he becomes fixated on Dexter Morgan, the blood spatter analyst with a sweet tooth for doughnuts and a seemingly average life. Double Dexter A witness. Such a simple concept - and yet for Dexter Morgan, a perfectly well-disguised serial killer, the possibility of a witness is terrifying. As an upstanding blood-spatter analyst for the Miami Police, Dexter has always managed to keep the darker side of his life out of the spotlight. An expert at finding truly bad people - murderers who've long escaped justice - Dexter has long been giving them his own special brand of attention. Dexter is Delicious Everything's changing for our friendly neighbourhood serial killer. As if getting married wasn't enough to complete his nice-guy persona, Dexter is now the proud father of a baby girl. Dexter by Design Being a blood spatter analyst who hates the sight of blood has always made Dexter's work for the Miami PD tough. But it means he's very neat when it comes to his out-of-hours hobby: murder.

“Powerful…clever…astonishing…a delicious read.” —Detroit Free Press\nRum Punch is classic Elmore Leonard—the electrifying thriller that served as the basis for the acclaimed film Jackie Brown by director Quentin Tarantino, starring Pam Grier, Robert DeNiro, and Samuel L. Jackson. Leonard’s story of a not-altogether-blameless flight attendant on the run from her vicious gun-running sometime employer who sees her as a troublesome loose end, Rum Punch is “the King Daddy of crime writers” (Seattle Times) at his sharpest and most ingeniously entertaining. In fact, People magazine calls it, “Leonard’s best work. He brilliantly reaffirms his right to the title of America’s finest crime fiction writer.” Enjoy this sensational noir winner from the creator of the character of U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens, lately of TV’s hit series Justified, and see why the great Elmore Leonard stands tall in the company of America’s most legendary crime fiction masters: John D. MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, et al.

Florida Historical Society Charlton Tebeau AwardWith an eye for the illogical and a flair for the irreverent, journalist Mark Lane aims his sharp wit at one of the most intriguing duties of the Florida legislature―signing state symbols into law. In Roaring Reptiles, Bountiful Citrus, and Neon Pies, he spotlights nineteen things that have been proposed and/or appointed to officially define Florida.Lane guides readers through the often-comic historical events that led to the selection of Florida’s official fruit, tree, gem, bird, song, and other items ranging from the well known to the obscure, packing in personal stories and laugh-out-loud moments along the way. Did you know the state slogan was almost “the alligator state”? Or that a mailbox in the shape of the state marine mammal can tell you a lot about a person? Readers will also discover that the bill proposing the state soil caused a crisis in the Senate and that the state play―written in the peculiar genre of symphonic outdoor drama―puts a heroic spin on the grisly European conquest of St. Augustine.“Full of the kind of unnecessary commentary that might cause trouble,” as Lane describes it, this book is also written with affection toward the wide diversity of lives and experiences that make up the state he calls home. He shows that deciding the things that represent us at any given moment is far trickier than it appears. Especially in Florida, a state aptly symbolized by “a lot of contradictions baked into a Key lime pie.”

For anyone who loves the old Florida and still has hope for the new\n"Should be required reading for everyone who calls Florida home."--Miami Herald\n"There is a richness and sadness in this book. . . . A museum of Florida's choicest people, places and monuments."--Palm Beach Post\n"Ever wonder what's the best way to eat a rattlesnake? Puzzled over the origin of the term 'Florida Cracker'? Have an interest in alligator wrestling or catfish? Al Burt has some answers for you."--Forum\n"Burt's writing shows a Florida that is vanishing before our eyes. [He] reveals the strange, quirky, charming face of the Sunshine State by writing about catfishermen on Lake Okeechobee, by relating the stories of Florida cowboys who drove free-range cattle across the state and by describing the hardships of a couple who abandoned south Florida for an organic farm in the Panhandle."--Weekly Planet\n"Burt grabs the spirit of the Florida that once was, tantalizes us, makes us nostalgic and weaves a bit of oral history as we travel with him. . . . It's as warm as a front-porch gathering on a July evening or a grandma's hug, as fresh as a fall breeze through the pinewoods or across an undeveloped coastal dune."--Gainesville Sun\n"Drawing upon his long career as a roving Florida journalist, Burt uses a series of vivid biographical profiles to explore the full range of 'crackerdom,' from the good old boys and 'pork chopper' politicians of the Panhandle to the native Conchs of Key West. Perhaps most impressive, he brings these endangered subcultures to life without resorting to sensationalist caricature or lapsing into nostalgic revery. Cracker Florida, which surely has suffered more than its share of condescension and misunderstanding, has finally found its laureate."--from the Foreword

Before there was Raylan, there was Sisco... U.S. Marshal Karen Sisco is on the hunt for world-class gentleman felon Jack Foley in Out of Sight, New York Times bestselling author Elmore Leonard’s sexy thriller that moves from Miami to the Motor City.\nBased on Miami, Florida's Gold Coast, U.S. Marshal Karen Sisco isn’t about to let a expert criminal like Jack Foley successfully bust out of Florida's Glades Prison. But there’s a major score waiting for him in Detroit, and a shotgun-wielding marshal isn’t going to stop Foley from getting it.\nNeither counted on sharing a cramped car trunk—or on a sizzling chemistry that’s working overtime. As soon as Sisco escapes, Foley is already missing her.\nSisco can’t forget Foley either—and she isn’t about to let him go. Too bad the next time their paths cross, it’s going to be about business, not pleasure.

“Just the thing for a cold winter’s night between episodes.” —The Washington Post Book World “Fans of the show will undoubtedly enjoy the chance to read Jane’s book in real life.” —Entertainment WeeklyIt’s been a lifetime (and three seasons) in the making, but Jane Gloriana Villanueva is finally ready to make her much-anticipated literary debut!Jane the Virgin, the Golden Globe, AFI, and Peabody Award–winning The CW dramedy, has followed Jane’s telenovela-esque life—from her accidental artificial insemination and virgin birth to the infant kidnapping and murderous games of the villainous Sin Rostro to an enthralling who-will-she-choose love triangle. With these tumultuous events as inspiration, Jane’s breathtaking first novel adapts her story for a truly epic romance that captures the hope and the heartbreak that have made the television drama so beloved.Snow Falling is a sweeping historical romance set in 1902 Miami—a time of railroad tycoons, hotel booms, and exciting expansion for the Magic City. Working at the lavish Regal Sol hotel and newly engaged to Pinkerton Detective Martin Cadden, Josephine Galena Valencia has big dreams for her future. Then, a figure from her past reemerges to change her life forever: the hotel’s dapper owner, railroad tycoon Rake Solvino.The captivating robber baron sets her heart aflame once more, leading to a champagne-fueled night together. But when their indiscretion results in an unexpected complication, Josephine struggles to decide whether her heart truly belongs with heroic Martin or dashing Rake.Meanwhile, in an effort to capture an elusive crime lord terrorizing the city, Detective Cadden scours the back alleys of the Magic City, tracking the nefarious villain to the Regal Sol and discovering a surprising connection to the Solvino family.However, just when it looks like Josephine’s true heart’s desire is clear, danger strikes. Will her dreams for the future dissolve like so much falling snow or might Josephine finally get the happy ever after she’s been dreaming of for so long?

"The Tropic of Cracker will . . . end the debate once and for all, of whether the term ‘Cracker’ is derogatory or a source of great pride. Al Burt has a masterpiece here."--Sandra Bogan, Florida Audubon Society\nFrom the preface:"The Tropic of Cracker survives in myth, memory, and love of natural Florida. It exists more in the mind than in geography, more in the memory than in the sight, more in attitude than in the encounter. . . . This book tells you about one man’s vision of a state struggling to remain true to itself. It mixes new essays with a span of earlier ones written during nearly a quarter century of roving the state as a columnist for the Miami Herald. All of them, in sum, help illuminate and explain the Tropic of Cracker."--Al Burt\nThe crack of the old-time cow hunter’s whip gave the native Floridian a nickname, but Al Burt’s Tropic of Cracker is a state of mind shared by those who love "what remains of the Florida that needed no blueprint or balance sheet for its creation, that was here before there was a can opener or a commercial or a real-estate agent." In his years of roving the state as a Miami Herald columnist, Al Burt mapped Florida’s Tropic of Cracker, not with lines of latitude and longitude but with stories. The Crackers Burt tells of are men and women from Apalachicola to the Everglades, from Tallahassee to the Keys. They lived in the late 1800s, and they live today--along the Ocklawaha and in the floodplains of Lake Okeechobee. They were cow hunters, Conchs, and alligator men. They grew oranges, sugarcane, and muscadine grapes. They made moonshine. They drove mules, ate fried mullet, and told yarns in a Cracker creole about Florida’s panthers, snakes, alligators, and hurricanes. There are luminaries among them--Zora Neale Hurston, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Virgil Hawkins, John DeGrove, Harry Crews--but mostly they are just regular folk who mark the borders of the elusive and magical Tropic of Cracker. For anyone who loves the old Florida and still has hope for the new one, Tropic of Cracker is the state’s truest road map and Al Burt its most eloquent cartographer.\nAl Burt worked as a journalist for 45 years, the last 22 at the Miami Herald. The recipient of numerous journalism awards, he has been a freelance contributor to many magazines, including The Nation and Historic Preservation, and is the author of several books, among them Florida: A Place in the Sun (1974), Becalmed in the Mullet Latitudes (1984), and Al Burt’s Florida (UPF, 1997), which was awarded the 1998 Patrick D. Smith Florida Literature Book Award. In his honor, the 1,000 Friends of Florida established the annual Al Burt Award for Florida journalism.

Product Description \nStephanie Plum returns to hunt down a new kind of criminal operating out of Trenton in the 28th book in the wildly popular series by #1 New York Times bestselling author Janet Evanovich. \\nWhen Stephanie Plum is woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of footsteps in her apartment, she wishes she didn’t keep her gun in the cookie jar in her kitchen. And when she finds out the intruder is fellow apprehension agent Diesel, six feet of hard muscle and bad attitude who she hasn’t seen in more than two years, she still thinks the gun might come in handy.\\nTurns out Diesel and Stephanie are on the trail of the same fugitive: Oswald Wednesday, an international computer hacker as brilliant as he is ruthless. Stephanie may not be the most technologically savvy sleuth, but she more than makes up for that with her dogged determination, her understanding of human nature, and her willingness to do just about anything to bring a fugitive to justice. Unsure if Diesel is her partner or her competition in this case, she’ll need to watch her back every step of the way as she sets the stage to draw Wednesday out from behind his computer and into the real world.\n Review \n “Plum remains sassy, outspoken, brave, and definitely one-of-a-kind… a hilariously madcap, action-packed caper filled with crazy twists and some nail-biting suspense. [\nGame On] finds the irrepressible Stephanie and cohorts in absolutely top form.” —\nBooklist (starred review)\\n“Serves up a handful of out-loud laughs, a bunch of chuckles and a constant hum of pleasantness." —\nToronto Star\n About the Author \nOver the last twenty-five years, #1 \nNew York Times bestselling author Janet Evanovich has written a staggering twenty-eight novels in the Stephanie Plum series. In addition to the Plum novels, Janet has coauthored the \nNew York Times bestselling Fox and O’Hare series, the Knight and Moon series, the Lizzy and Diesel series, the Alexandra Barnaby novels, and the graphic novel, \nTroublemaker (with her daughter, Alex Evanovich).\n Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. \nChapter One\\nCHAPTER ONE\nThe clock on my bedside table said it was 2:00 a.m. Lights were off in my small apartment and my bedroom was totally dark. Something pulled me out of sleep and now I was in bed, awake and terrified. I was listening to someone moving around in my living room. My gun was in the brown bear cookie jar in the kitchen. My cell phone was charging in the bathroom. I kept a two-pound Maglite next to my clock, and at the moment it was the closest I could come to a weapon.\\nMy name is Stephanie Plum and I’m a bail bonds enforcement agent. It’s the sort of job that might require self-defense skills like kung fu and eye gouging, but I’m not proficient in either. I coerced my cousin Vinnie into hiring me during a time of desperate unemployment and to date I haven’t migrated on to a better job.\\nI heard the intruder walk into my bedroom and drop something heavy onto the floor. I fought through the panic, clicked my flashlight on, and pinned the beam to a face. I recognized the man and went breathless for several beats before getting my heart under control.\\n“Diesel?”\\n“Yeah. You want to drop the beam a little, so I don’t go blind.”\\nDiesel is over six feet of hard muscle and bad attitude. He has sun-bleached hair that’s thick and unruly, talents that are difficult to explain, and a job that’s similar to mine but on an international level. Hell, for all I knew he worked at an intergalactic level.\\n“You scared the beejeezus out of me,” I said. “What are you doing here?”\\n“I got dropped off here. I’ve got a job in Trenton. Lucky me. That’s sarcasm in case you didn’t figure it out. I’m beat. It was a long trip.”\\n“Where did you come from?”\\nHe kicked his shoes off. “Bangkok.” He stripped off his T-shirt and dropped his jeans.\\nI sat up in bed. “What are you doing?”\\n“I’m going to bed. Move over.”\\n“No. No, no, no, no. You ar

The Everglades was once reviled as a liquid wasteland, and Americans dreamed of draining it. Now it is revered as a national treasure, and Americans have launched the largest environmental project in history to try to save it.The Swamp is the stunning story of the destruction and possible resurrection of the Everglades, the saga of man's abuse of nature in southern Florida and his unprecedented efforts to make amends. Michael Grunwald, a prize-winning national reporter for The Washington Post, takes readers on a riveting journey from the Ice Ages to the present, illuminating the natural, social and political history of one of America's most beguiling but least understood patches of land.The Everglades was America's last frontier, a wild country long after the West was won. Grunwald chronicles how a series of visionaries tried to drain and “reclaim” it, and how Mother Nature refused to bend to their will; in the most harrowing tale, a 1928 hurricane drowned 2,500 people in the Everglades. But the Army Corps of Engineers finally tamed the beast with levees and canals, converting half the Everglades into sprawling suburbs and sugar plantations. And though the southern Everglades was preserved as a national park, it soon deteriorated into an ecological mess. The River of Grass stopped flowing, and 90 percent of its wading birds vanished.Now America wants its swamp back. Grunwald shows how a new breed of visionaries transformed Everglades politics, producing the $8 billion rescue plan. That plan is already the blueprint for a new worldwide era of ecosystem restoration. And this book is a cautionary tale for that era. Through gripping narrative and dogged reporting, Grunwald shows how the Everglades is still threatened by the same hubris, greed and well-intentioned folly that led to its decline.

A journey beyond fears and stereotypes The memes. ?Because Florida? jokes. ?Florida Man? stories. Tyler Gillespie was once embarrassed to call Florida home, concocting fantasies he?d been born somewhere else. In The Thing about Florida, Gillespie faces his Florida denial and takes readers on an exuberant search for the state behind the caricatures, cutting through the media storm with curiosity and humor. Gillespie?s journey leads him into unexpected places such as halfway houses, gator pits, rattlesnake rooms, and clothing-optional campgrounds, where he meets eclectic and unconventional Floridians. He interviews storm chasers, Civil War reenactors, cattle ranchers, drag queens, python hunters, and pet smugglers. His conversations delve into serious issues such as addiction, Florida?s racist past, and care options for the state?s LGBTQ senior citizens. With perspective and empathy derived from his background as a gay man raised Southern Baptist, Gillespie shows how important it is to understand the diversity and complexity of Florida today. ?It?s dangerous to meet our fears with fear,? he says as he confronts his own as well as the state?s monsters?invasive species, hurricanes, environmental destruction. He reminds us that Florida?s people and problems are vital parts of the nation?s future. A fresh and engaging voice, Gillespie captivates with a snappy pace, sly wit, and crisp observations. As he weaves his childhood memories and personal experiences alongside the stories of the individuals he encounters, Gillespie reconciles with his home state. He finds Florida?s humanity, a beautiful mix of hopes, dreams, and second chances.

Winner • Pulitzer Prize for History Winner • Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction Finalist • National Book Critics Circle Award (Nonfiction) A New York Times Notable Book of the Year Named one of the Best Books of the Year by the Washington Post, NPR, Library Journal, and gCaptainBooklist Editors’ Choice (History) Longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence\nIn this “cri de coeur about the Gulf’s environmental ruin” (New York Times), “Davis has written a beautiful homage to a neglected sea” (front page, New York Times Book Review). Hailed as a “nonfiction epic . . . in the tradition of Jared Diamond’s best-seller Collapse, and Simon Winchester’s Atlantic” (Dallas Morning News), Jack E. Davis’s The Gulf is “by turns informative, lyrical, inspiring and chilling for anyone who cares about the future of ‘America’s Sea’ ” (Wall Street Journal). Illuminating America’s political and economic relationship with the environment from the age of the conquistadors to the present, Davis demonstrates how the Gulf’s fruitful ecosystems and exceptional beauty empowered a growing nation. Filled with vivid, untold stories from the sportfish that launched Gulfside vacationing to Hollywood’s role in the country’s first offshore oil wells, this “vast and welltold story shows how we made the Gulf . . . [into] a ‘national sacrifice zone’ ” (Bill McKibben). The first and only study of its kind, The Gulf offers “a unique and illuminating history of the American Southern coast and sea as it should be written” (Edward O. Wilson). 26 illustrations

From the Junior League of Sarasota comes the organization's fourth cookbook-a celebration of transforming fresh ingredients into fabulous dishes.\n Simply Sarasota: From Fresh to Fabulous incorporates the best of the community's crops and creativity. Inside this book, you will find more than 200 fresh, healthy recipes inspired by Sarasota and her islands, submitted by members of the Junior League of Sarasota, residents, and award-winning local chefs.\n This cookbook is full of artful appetizers, soulful soups, savory seafood, and, of course, delectable desserts. Simply Sarasota: From Fresh to Fabulous also spotlights local destinations and healthy activities, which are the perfect complements to fresh eating. Also included are insights into how the Junior League of Sarasota has impacted the community since 1957-from building wheelchair-accessible parks to teaching families how to make easy, affordable, nutritious meals.\n Simply Sarasota: From Fresh to Fabulous is your key ingredient to a healthy, sustainable lifestyle in Sarasota or wherever you may find yourself!

In this inimitable, beloved classic—graceful, lucid and lyrical—Anne Morrow Lindbergh shares her meditations on youth and age; love and marriage; peace, solitude and contentment as she set them down during a brief vacation by the sea. Drawing inspiration from the shells on the shore, Lindbergh’s musings on the shape of a woman’s life bring new understanding to both men and women at any stage of life. A mother of five, an acclaimed writer and a pioneering aviator, Lindbergh casts an unsentimental eye on the trappings of modernity that threaten to overwhelm us: the time-saving gadgets that complicate rather than simplify, the multiple commitments that take us from our families. And by recording her thoughts during a brief escape from everyday demands, she helps readers find a space for contemplation and creativity within their own lives. With great wisdom and insight Lindbergh describes the shifting shapes of relationships and marriage, presenting a vision of life as it is lived in an enduring and evolving partnership. A groundbreaking, best-selling work when it was originally published in 1955, Gift from the Sea continues to be discovered by new generations of readers. With a new introduction by Lindbergh’s daughter Reeve, this fiftieth-anniversary edition will give those who are revisiting the book and those who are coming upon it for the first time fresh insight into the life of this remarkable woman. The sea and the beach are elements that have been woven throughout Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s life. She spent her childhood summers with her family on a Maine island. After her marriage to Charles Lindbergh in 1929, she accompanied him on his survey flights around the North Atlantic to launch the first transoceanic airlines. The Lindberghs eventually established a permanent home on the Connecticut coast, where they lived quietly, wrote books and raised their family. After the children left home for lives of their own, the Lindberghs traveled extensively to Africa and the Pacific for environmental research. For several years they lived on the island of Maui in Hawaii, where Charles Lindbergh died in 1974. Anne Morrow Lindbergh spent her final years in her Connecticut home, continuing her writing projects and enjoying visits from her children and grand-children. She died on February 7, 2001, at the age of ninety-four. Reeve Lindbergh is the author of many books for both adults and children, including the memoirs Under a Wing and No More Words.

Whoo, tarpon, snook, barracuda! Florida's saltwaters have always been the best places in the world to catch these and many other feisty game fishes. Now, Boris Arnov, avid Florida fisherman and fishing school proproetor, has written a unique guide to tell you when, where, and how to catch more than 35 varieties of sport fish. Here you'll find the best bait, the best season, the best techniques, and the very best places to make the catch.

Named an Anticipated Read of 2024 by Entertainment Weekly and a Best Historical Fiction novel of 2024 by BookBub.As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s atmospheric new novel.With the Great War finally behind them, many Americans flock to South Florida with their sights set on making a fortune. When wealthy industrialist Robert Barnes and his wife, Anna, build Marbrisa, a glamorous estate on Biscayne Bay, they become the toast of the newly burgeoning society. Anna and Robert appear to have it all, but in a town like Miami, appearances can be deceiving, and one scandal can change everything.Years later following the tragic death of her parents in Havana, Carmen Acosta journeys to Marbrisa, the grand home of her estranged older sister, Carolina, and her husband, Asher Wyatt. On the surface, the gilded estate looks like paradise, but Carmen quickly learns that nothing at Marbrisa is as it seems. The house has a treacherous legacy, and Carmen’s own life is soon in jeopardy . . . unless she can unravel the secrets buried beneath the mansion’s facade and stop history from repeating itself.

Completely updated yet again, the latest edition of Canoeing & Kayaking Florida is the most comprehensive guide to the best of Florida’s unique streams, springs, creeks, and rivers. Engaging and concise, yet filled with carefully selected details vital to any successful Florida paddling adventure, Canoeing & Kayaking Florida spares readers encyclopedic fluff in favor of practical, no-nonsense information. With expanded regional maps and revised river maps, Canoeing & Kayaking Florida is simply the best and most informative Florida paddling guide available.Several new paddling destinations have been added to this latest edition, including waterways like Shingle Creek, where a swift stream swishes through a cypress forest. Then there’s quiet coastal Shell Creek and the mighty Apalachicola River, a big water destination with big sandbars, big hills, and a fast current compared to more intimate Florida waterways. Still other new streams await your arrival.For over 30 years, Canoeing & Kayaking Florida has provided the essential information needed to paddle the waterways of Florida. Paddling has grown steadily in Florida due in part to this excellent guidebook, the establishment of paddling clubs, the positioning of outfitters on rivers, and population growth. The rise in the use of recreational kayaks has also led to the rebirth of paddling’s popularity. Let Canoeing & Kayaking Florida be your guide to the paddling possibilities in the Sunshine State.

NAMED ONE OF 2019’S BEST BEACH READS BY Oprah Magazine • New York Post • PopSugar • The Globe and MailFEATURED IN Us Weekly • Parade • Hollywood Reporter • Chatelaine“Marissa Stapley’s writing is a gift.”—Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author of The Orphan’s TaleThe Harmony Resort promises hope for struggling marriages. Run by celebrity power couple Drs. Miles and Grace Markell, the “last resort” offers a chance for partners to repair their relationships in a luxurious setting on the gorgeous Mayan Riviera.Johanna and Ben have a marriage that looks perfect on the surface, but in reality, they don’t know each other at all. Shell and Colin fight constantly: after all, Colin is a workaholic, and Shell always comes second to his job as an executive at a powerful mining company. But what has really torn them apart is too devastating to talk about. When both couples begin Harmony’s intensive therapy program, it becomes clear that Harmony is not all it seems—and neither are Miles and Grace themselves. What are they hiding, and what price will these couples pay for finding out?As a deadly tropical storm descends on the coast, trapping the hosts and the guests on the resort, secrets are revealed, loyalties are tested and not one single person—or their marriage—will remain unchanged by what follows.

Manatee County's history is filled with tales of Native American battles, shipwrecks and the expeditions of Hernando de Soto. It's no surprise that spirits still linger on these sunny shores. Anna Maria Island's first permanent resident still returns to the island more than one hundred years later to flirt with the female tourists. A convict hanged in the county courthouse in 1907 is sometimes heard singing on the courthouse grounds. In the 1970s, the specter of a blond woman was seen hitchhiking along the old Skyway Bridge, only to vanish once she'd been picked up. Join author and paranormal investigator Liz Reed on a tour of Manatee County's most haunted locales.

A PBS Great American Read Top 100 Pick“A deeply soulful novel that comprehends love and cruelty, and separates the big people from the small of heart, without ever losing sympathy for those unfortunates who don’t know how to live properly.” —Zadie SmithOne of the most important and enduring books of the twentieth century, Their Eyes Were Watching God brings to life a Southern love story with the wit and pathos found only in the writing of Zora Neale Hurston. Out of print for almost thirty years—due largely to initial audiences’ rejection of its strong black female protagonist—Hurston’s classic has since its 1978 reissue become perhaps the most widely read and highly acclaimed novel in the canon of African-American literature.

Myths and Mysteries of Florida reveals the dark and ominous cloud of mysteries and myths that hovers over the Sunshine State. This book offers residents, travelers, history buffs, and ghost hunters a refreshingingly lively collection of stories about Florida's unsolved murders, legendary villains, lingering ghosts, terrifying myths, and haunted places.

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES' BEST ROMANCES OF THE YEAR!"One of the most perfect books I’ve read this year."—New York TimesA USA Today Bestseller!An Amazon's Best Romances of August!One of the New York Public Library's Best Books of 2023!She has a to-do list a mile long and falling for her coworker isn't on it—yet somehow he’s become her top priority in this romantic comedy from the national bestselling author of Love in the Time of Serial Killers.Lauren Fox is the bookkeeper for Cold World, a tourist destination that's always a winter wonderland despite being located in humid Orlando, Florida. Sure, it’s ranked way below any of the trademarked amusement parks and maybe foot traffic could be better. But it’s a fun place to work, even if “fun” isn’t exactly Lauren’s middle name.Her coworker Asa Williamson, on the other hand, is all about finding ways to enliven his days at Cold World—whether that means organizing the Secret Santa or teasing Lauren. When the owner asks Lauren and Asa to propose something (anything, really) to raise more revenue, their rivalry heats up as they compete to come up with the best idea. But the situation is more dire than they thought, and it might take these polar opposites working together to save the day. If Asa thought Lauren didn't know how to enjoy herself, he's surprised by how much he enjoys spending time together. And if Lauren thought Asa wasn't serious about anything, she's surprised by how seriously he seems to take her.As Lauren and Asa work to save their beloved wintery spot, they realize the real attraction might be the heat generating between them.

Discover the haunts of northern Florida in this second volume in the series dedicated to uncovering the uncanny in the Sunshine State. Explore abandoned hospitals, ancient springs, and modern apartment complexes from Ocala to Jacksonville, from Lake City to Tallahassee. Encounter playful spirits and frightening specters and learn their tales of lost love and watery tombs, of lives cut tragically short and souls lingering through eternity. And unearth stories of darker phenomena that have yet to be explained. . . . Plus, take an exciting tour through ancient St. Augustine, America's oldest city—and perhaps its most haunted, too. See the ghosts of Spanish soldiers in a centuries-old fort; watch for the light of a spirited bootlegging widow on the roof of a quaint inn; and feel the presence of Henry Flagler (and his unhappy lovers) in the school that bears his name. Delve into the unknown with Greg Jenkins as he examines the history, legend, and paranormal rationale behind strange occurrences in many of north Florida's haunted locations. Get a fresh look at some of the state's most infamous specters and learn never-before-heard tales of the strange and the supernatural as you take a trip through Haunted Florida. The first volume of Florida's Ghostly Legends and Haunted Folklore, covering south and central Florida, is also available.Next in series > >See all of the books in this series

This Newbery Honor winner and #1 New York Times bestseller is a beloved modern classic. Hoot features a new kid and his new bully, alligators, some burrowing owls, a renegade eco-avenger, and several extremely poisonous snakes.Everybody loves Mother Paula's pancakes. Everybody, that is, except the colony of cute but endangered owls that live on the building site of the new restaurant. Can the awkward new kid and his feral friend prank the pancake people out of town? Or is the owls' fate cemented in pancake batter?Welcome to Carl Hiaasen's Florida—where the creatures are wild and the people are wilder!

Miami Cocktails is an elegant collection of over 100 recipes inspired by the Magic City. Famous for its tropical climate and vibrant nightlife, Miami has been a go-to destination since the railroad could deliver travelers there from all over the United States. Today, the Magic City has become an international beacon for art enthusiasts, fashionistas, foodies, and nightlife aficionados, making for one of the country's most dynamic cocktail scenes. Miami Cocktails takes you inside the city's best bars and introduces you to bartenders and mixologists conjuring up drinks that reflect the myriad influences shaping the city today. Featuring over 100 recipes that honor and reinvent classics and make the best of all the fresh, year-round local produce, this book is the ideal cocktail enthusiast's guide to drinking like a local, whether you're making a trip to Miami or staying at home and simply wishing you were there.    Gabriel Urrutia is an award-winning veteran of the spirits industry, filling every role from mixologist to consultant. His coverage of the Miami cocktail scene is featured in Edible South Florida and on the popular Spirited Miami blog, which he founded.

FINALIST FOR THE 2018 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER OF THE 2019 STORY PRIZEONE OF NPR'S BEST BOOKS OF 2018The universally acclaimed return of the New York Times bestselling author of Fates and Furies."Haunting and arresting." (New York Times Book Review)"Outstanding." (The Boston Globe)"Marvelous." (The Economist)"Gorgeously weird and limber." (The New Yorker)"Easily the year's best story collection." (Vogue)"Groff's gifts as a writer just keep soaring higher and higher.” (NPR’s Fresh Air)Florida is a "superlative" book (Boston Globe), "frequently funny" (San Francisco Chronicle), "brooding, inventive and often moving" (NPR Fresh Air) --as Groff is recognized as "Florida's unofficial poet laureate, as Joan Didion was for California." (Washington Post) In her thrilling new book, Lauren Groff brings the reader into a physical world that is at once domestic and wild—a place where the hazards of the natural world lie waiting to pounce, yet the greatest threats and mysteries are still of an emotional, psychological nature. A family retreat can be derailed by a prowling panther, or by a sexual secret. Among those navigating this place are a resourceful pair of abandoned sisters; a lonely boy, grown up; a restless, childless couple, a searching, homeless woman; and an unforgettable, recurring character—a steely and conflicted wife and mother. The stories in this collection span characters, towns, decades, even centuries, but Florida—its landscape, climate, history, and state of mind—becomes its gravitational center: an energy, a mood, as much as a place of residence. Groff transports the reader, then jolts us alert with a crackle of wit, a wave of sadness, a flash of cruelty, as she writes about loneliness, rage, family, and the passage of time. With shocking accuracy and effect, she pinpoints the moments and decisions and connections behind human pleasure and pain, hope and despair, love and fury—the moments that make us alive. Startling, precise, and affecting, Florida is a magnificent achievement.

The Basis for a New Showtime® Original Series Starring Michael C. HallMeet Dexter Morgan, a polite wolf in sheep’s clothing. He’s handsome and charming, but something in his past has made him abide by a different set of rules. He’s a serial killer whose one golden rule makes him immensely likeable: he only kills bad people. And his job as a blood splatter expert for the Miami police department puts him in the perfect position to identify his victims. But when a series of brutal murders bearing a striking similarity to his own style start turning up, Dexter is caught between being flattered and being frightened–of himself or some other fiend.

A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM ALEX GARLAND, STARRING NATALIE PORTMAN AND OSCAR ISAACThe Southern Reach Trilogy begins with Annihilation, the Nebula Award-winning novel that "reads as if Verne or Wellsian adventurers exploring a mysterious island had warped through into a Kafkaesque nightmare world" (Kim Stanley Robinson).Area X has been cut off from the rest of the continent for decades. Nature has reclaimed the last vestiges of human civilization. The first expedition returned with reports of a pristine, Edenic landscape; the second expedition ended in mass suicide; the third expedition in a hail of gunfire as its members turned on one another. The members of the eleventh expedition returned as shadows of their former selves, and within weeks, all had died of cancer. In Annihilation, the first volume of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, we join the twelfth expedition.The group is made up of four women: an anthropologist; a surveyor; a psychologist, the de facto leader; and our narrator, a biologist. Their mission is to map the terrain, record all observations of their surroundings and of one another, and, above all, avoid being contaminated by Area X itself.They arrive expecting the unexpected, and Area X delivers―they discover a massive topographic anomaly and life forms that surpass understanding―but it's the surprises that came across the border with them and the secrets the expedition members are keeping from one another that change everything.

Product Description \nMeg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries, returns to Little Bridge Island with a new story about a children’s book author with a case of writer’s block and an arrogant novelist who have to set aside their differences as they get through a weekend long book festival that just might change everything—including their feelings for each other.\nDon’t Judge a Book by Its Author...\nWelcome to Little Bridge, one of the smallest, most beautiful islands in the Florida Keys.\nJo Wright always swore she’d never step foot on Little Bridge Island—not as long as her nemesis, bestselling author Will Price, is living there.\nThen Jo’s given an offer she can’t refuse: an all-expense paid trip to speak and sign at the island’s first ever book festival.\nEven though arrogant Will is the last person Jo wants to see, she could really use the festival’s more-than-generous speaking fee. She’s suffering from a crippling case of writer’s block on the next installment of her bestselling children’s series, and her father needs financial help as well.\nThen Jo hears that Will is off-island on the set of the film of his next book. Hallelujah!\nBut when she arrives on Little Bridge, Jo is in for a shock: Will is not only at the book festival, but seems genuinely sorry for his past actions—and more than willing not only to make amends, but prove to Jo that he’s a changed man. \nThings seem to be looking up—until disaster strikes, causing Jo to wonder: Do any of us ever really know anyone?\n Review \n“I’d read a cereal box if it was written by Meg Cabot.” -- Julia Quinn\\n“\nNo Words will have anyone in the writing industry chuckling at the insider references while delighting anyone who enjoys reading — and wants to find redemption for snide comments said in the past.” -- Zibby Owens for GMA.com\\n“Effervescent … witty prose, an entertaining cast of diverse characters, and a romance that’s enchanting.” --\nPublishers Weekly\\n“This third trip to Little Bridge—following\nNo Judgments (2019) and\nNo Offense (2020)—puts Cabot’s trademark wit and vibrant characters on full display. … The charming small-town setting, intriguing hate-to-love romance, and authentic look behind the scenes of a literary get-together make for a winning combination. This frothy, made-for-summer read earns its place poolside.” --\nKirkus Reviews\\n“The prolific Meg Cabot is an expert in matters of the heart, having written love stories between characters from middle school to middle age... Cabot is a whiz at writing dialogue that’s both charming and believable, and she riffs on her years of experience in the publishing industry in snarky, silly ways that will bring readers plenty of laughs alongside this love story.” --\nBookPage\\n“A perfect beach read!” -- The Nerd Daily\\n“Meg Cabot is chick-lit royalty.” --\nNewsweek\\n“Beloved author Meg Cabot is known for her stories filled with heartfelt charm … and her newest novel follows suit!” -- Woman's World\\n“As in Cabot’s previous adult romances (e.g.,\nThe Boy Is Back), our heroine’s wit and humor and determination to stay the course shines through in this breezy story that is a pure delight to read.” --\nLibrary Journal\\n"Meg Cabot keeps the girls eating … With a sunny island backdrop populated with loveable characters, this is the perfect sexy spring/summer read to lose yourself in, with a sweet good-hearted protagonist and a dependably swoon-worthy love interest who you just *know* smells good." -- Bolu Babalola, international bestselling author of \nLove in Color\n About the Author \nMeg Cabot’s many books for both adults and tweens/teens have included multiple global and #1 New York Times bestsellers, selling over twenty-five million copies worldwide. Her Princess Diaries series has been published in more than 38 countries and was made into several hit films by Disney. Meg is still waiting for her real parents, the king and queen, to restore her to her rightful throne. She currently l

Cuban-American cooking show star Miriam Quiñones-Smith becomes a seasoned sleuth in Raquel V. Reyes's Caribbean Kitchen Mystery debut, a savory treat for fans of Mia P. Manansala.\\nFood anthropologist Miriam Quiñones-Smith's move from New York to Coral Shores, Miami, puts her academic career on hold to stay at home with her young son. Adding to her funk is an opinionated mother-in-law and a husband rekindling a friendship with his ex. Gracias to her best friend, Alma, she gets a short-term job as a Caribbean cooking expert on a Spanish-language morning TV show. But when the newly minted star attends a Women's Club luncheon, a socialite sitting at her table suddenly falls face-first into the chicken salad, never to nibble again.\\nWhen a second woman dies soon after, suspicions coalesce around a controversial Cuban herbalist, Dr. Fuentes--especially after the morning show's host collapses while interviewing him. Detective Pullman is not happy to find Miriam at every turn. After he catches her breaking into the doctor's apothecary, he enlists her help as eyes and ears to the places he can't access, namely the Spanish-speaking community and the tawny Coral Shores social scene.\\nAs the ingredients to the deadly scheme begin blending together, Miriam is on the verge of learning how and why the women died. But her snooping may turn out to be a recipe for her own murder.

This summer, escape to the Shores­--a Southern lake town full of elegance and glamour in a story about family traditions, friendship, and a love that can't be denied--for readers of Sunny Hostin's Summer on Sag Harbor Chareese "Reese" Devlin spent every summer of her childhood in the lake town of Mount Dora, Florida, where her days were filled with fun in the sun. Reese never realized that the idyllic haven hid a deep divide between the town's haves and have-nots. Not until the summer she turned seventeen and fell for Duncan McNeal, a boy who lacked the pedigree so valued by her parents and their equally well-connected friends. After her family squashed the budding romance, Reese refused to return to the place she lost her heart. Now, ten years later, she's back to attend her sister's debutante ball and must come to terms with all she's missed. But the biggest surprise of all is that Duncan is now a successful real estate developer in Mount Dora--and time hasn't weakened the connection between them. Behind the multimillion-dollar homes of the Shores lay old grudges and secrets capable of collapsing any family legacy. As the summer progresses, Reese must fix the sins of the past by facing the lines between truth and deception, tradition and breaking free, and family expectations and self-discovery.