Mangrove Squeeze

About This Audiobook

Laurence Shames delivers a Florida noir that’s less swampy menace and more sun-bleached absurdity, and it’s all the more intoxicating for it. *Mangrove Squeeze* follows Suki Sperakis, a sharp-witted advertising rep in the Keys, as she stumbles into a murder that unravels Miami’s glossy facade. Shames’ prose crackles with the wit of a veteran ad man—think Carl Hiaasen’s breezy cynicism meets Elmore Leonard’s knack for snappy dialogue—while the plot twists like a mangrove root, tangling ambition, greed, and a body count higher than a bar tab in Key West. The setting isn’t just a backdrop; it’s a character, with the humid air thick enough to chew, the neon signs flickering like dying fireflies, and the ocean’s deceptive calm masking something far darker beneath. This isn’t a mystery where everyone’s a saint; it’s a world where even the victims are a little shady, and the heroes are just the least terrible option.

Richard Ferrone’s narration is the cherry on top—a performance that sizzles with the laid-back swagger of a guy who’s seen one too many con artists in flip-flops. His delivery of Suki’s dry one-liners lands like a palm frond slapping a tourist in the face, and he nails the tonal shifts, from breezy small-talk to the creeping dread of a body in the trunk. The pacing is tight enough to keep you from dozing off in the sun, even when the plot hints at a little too much screwball energy. If you’ve ever wanted a crime novel where the real mystery isn’t whodunit but how anyone stays sane in paradise, this is your audiobook.