Grand Cayman Slam
| Grand Cayman Slam |
| Dusky MacMorgan [7] |
| Randy Striker |
| USA (1982) |
Dusky MacMorgan's old buddy Captain Wes O'Davis has been set up for a
murder rap by a gang of kidnappers whose latest victim is the son of Sir
Conan James and Lady James, British aristocracy with powerful
connections. The ransom note gives them three days to pay up, or the boy
dies. But now that Dusky MacMorgan is involved, that gives the
kidnappers only three days to live.
Table of Contents
PRAISE FOR RANDY WAYNE WHITE AND HIS NOVELS
“What James Lee Burke has done for Louisiana, Tony Hillerman for the Southwest, John Sandford for Minnesota, and Joe R. Lansdale for east Texas, Randy Wayne White does for his own little acre.”
—
Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
“White takes us places that no other Florida mystery writer can hope to find.”
—Carl Hiaasen
“White brings vivid imagination to his fight scenes. Think Mickey Spillane meets
The Matrix
.”
The Matrix
.”
—
People
People
“A major new talent . . . hits the ground running . . . a virtually perfect piece of work. He’s the best new writer we’ve encountered since Carl Hiaasen.”
—
The Denver Post
The Denver Post
“White is the rightful heir to joining John D. MacDonald, Carl Hiaasen, James Hall, Geoffrey Norman. . . . His precise prose is as fresh and pungent as a salty breeze.”
—
The Tampa Tribune
The Tampa Tribune
“White doesn’t just use Florida as a backdrop, but he also makes the smell, sound, and physicality of the state leap off the page.”
—
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
“This satisfying madcap fare could go seismic on the regional bestseller lists.”
—
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
“He describes southwestern Florida so well it’s easy to smell the salt tang in the air and feel the cool Gulf breeze.”
—
Mansfield News Journal
Mansfield News Journal
SIGNET
Published by New American Library, a division of
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Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,
Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,
Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124,
Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi - 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632,
New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,
Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, May 1982
First Printing (Author Introduction), April 2009
First Printing (Author Introduction), April 2009
REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADAWithout limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.
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eISBN : 978-1-101-53057-3
For the Duke . . . and Trav
Introduction
In the winter of 1980, I received a surprising phone call from an editor at Signet Books—surprising because, as a Florida fishing guide, the only time New Yorkers called me was to charter my boat. And if any of my clients were editors, they were savvy enough not to admit it.
The editor said she’d read a story by me in
Outside Magazine
and was impressed. Did I have time to talk?
Outside Magazine
and was impressed. Did I have time to talk?
As a mediocre high school jock, my idols were writers, not ball players. I had a dream job as a light-tackle guide, yet I was still obsessed with my own dream of writing for a living. For years, before and after charters, I’d worked hard at the craft. Selling a story to
Outside,
one of the country’s finest publications, was a huge break. I was about to finish a novel, but this was the first time New York had called.
Outside,
one of the country’s finest publications, was a huge break. I was about to finish a novel, but this was the first time New York had called.
Yes, I had time to talk.
The editor, whose name was Joanie, told me Signet wanted to launch a paperback thriller series that featured a recurring he-man hero. “We want at least four writers on the project because we want to keep the books coming, publishing one right after the other, to create momentum.”
Four writers producing books with the same character?
“Characters,” Joanie corrected. “Once we get going, the cast will become standard.”
Signet already had a template for the hero. He was a Vietnam vet turned Key West fishing guide, she said, talking as if the man existed. He was surfer-boy blond, and he’d been friends with Hemingway.
I am not a literary historian, but all my instincts told me the timetable seemed problematic. I said nothing.
“He has a shark scar,” Joanie added, “and he’s freakishly strong. Like a man who lifts weights all the time.”
The guys I knew who lifted weights were also freakishly clumsy, so . . . maybe the hero, while visiting a local aquarium, tripped during feeding time?
My brain was already problem-solving.
“He lives in Key West,” she said, “so, of course, he has to be an expert on the area. That’s why I’m calling. You live in Key West, and I liked your magazine story a lot. It seems like a natural fit.”
Actually, I fished out of Sanibel Island, on Florida’s Gulf Coast, a six-hour drive from Sloppy Joe’s, but this was no time for petty details.
“Have you ever been to Key West?” I asked the editor. “Great sunsets.”
Editors, I have since learned, can also be cagey. Joanie didn’t offer me the job. She had already settled on three of the four writers, she said, but if I was willing to submit a few sample chapters on speculation, she’d give me serious consideration.
Money? A contract? That stuff was “all standard,” she told me, and could be discussed later.
“I’ll warn you right now,” she said, “there are a couple of other writers we’re considering, so you need to get at least three chapters to me within a month. Then I’ll let you know.”
I hung up the phone, stunned by my good fortune. My first son, Lee, had been born only a few months earlier. My much-adored wife, Debra, and I were desperate for money because the weather that winter had been miserable for fishing. But it was
perfect
for writing.
perfect
for writing.
I went to my desk, determined not to let my young family down.
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