The Maltese Iguana : a novel / Tim Dorsey.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Serge A. Storms is back on the road in the latest zany Florida caper from the "wickedly funny" (Entertainment Weekly) Tim Dorsey.

After a long and arduous COVID-19 quarantine, Serge A. Storms is fully vaccinated and ready to hit the road. Along with his condo neighbors, he cooks up a wild plan to celebrate in true Serge fashion: each week, they rent a shuttle van and head out for funky Florida road trips and some serious revelry.

Meanwhile, a CIA revenge operation down in Honduras goes very, very wrong. The local liaison hired to help with the mission is the only witness to the disaster, and the CIA quickly sets a black ops contractor on his trail to eliminate him.

Forced to flee his home country, the witness lands in Miami with a new identity and passport. But the CIA is still on his tail, pushing him further and further south to the Florida Keys, where he runs into Serge's convoy. With Florida's most lovable serial killer involved, the real party is about to get started...

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

At the start of bestseller Dorsey's antic 26th novel featuring vigilante serial killer Serge A. Storms (after 2022's Mermaid Confidential), the Covid lockdown causes panic among the residents of Pelican Bay, a condominium complex in the Florida Keys where Serge and his stoner pal, Coleman, have been taking a break from their wilder shenanigans. This being Florida, life soon gets back to what passes for normal in the Sunshine State. In Honduras, a mishandled CIA operation leads to the death of the wrong man, and an honest police officer, Yandy Falcón, who witnesses the debacle, realizes he must flee the country to save his life. Yandy winds up in South Florida, where he eventually comes under the protective wing of Serge, who has been having fun leading Serge's Florida Keys Underbelly Spy Tours. At the spectacular climax, Serge drives a tour bus onto an abandoned bridge where an action movie is being filmed, followed by a host of bad guys on Yandy's trail. As usual, the comic set pieces overshadow the plot, which can be hard to follow at times, but no matter. Dorsey reliably delivers the gonzo goods. Agent: Nat Sobel, Sobel Weber Assoc.

Booklist Review

It's a match made in heaven: Serge A. Storms, the devoted Florida history buff and cheerful serial killer, and the COVID-19 pandemic. But that's not all: there's also a failed CIA operation in another country, a witness who flees to America, and a showdown in the Florida Keys. As usual, Dorsey's rapid-fire prose is a perfect match for Serge's energetic, scattershot behavior, and Serge continues to be one of contemporary fiction's most unique characters: a killer with a goofy sense of humor, a moralist with a shaky grasp on reality, a guy who believes people can be persuaded to be good (if, that is, they survive the process of his persuading them). This is the twenty-sixth book in the series, and it's as fresh and funny as the first, 1999's Florida Roadkill. Some readers might be a little bothered by Dorsey's use of the recent pandemic in a comedic context, but most will surely enjoy seeing Serge deal with anti-maskers, toilet-paper hoarders, and the like.

Kirkus Book Review

Quintessential Florida man Serge Storms rocks the post-Covid world. Where better to ride out the tedium of the pandemic lockdown than a condominium in Islamorada, halfway down the Florida Keys? With assistance from both Alexa and Siri, who compete vigorously for the boys' attention, Serge and his perennial wingman, Coleman, collect enough consumer goods to keep them amused for at least 24 hours of isolation. Once that's over, they go back to what they do best: careening wildly through the streets in Serge's Ford '73 Galaxie, going after scalpers who charge insane amounts for toilet paper. Coleman uses his newly purchased bong, a handsome job embossed with a glass iguana, to teach his condo neighbors how to consume their newly acquired medical marijuana more efficiently, while Serge returns to hosting bus tours of little-known Florida roadside attractions. Meanwhile, a covert operation in Honduras goes disastrously wrong, leaving police officer Yandy Falcón and reporter Reevis Tome in the lurch. While the two make their separate ways north to Miami, Dorsey bides his time as readers wait eagerly for their inevitable meet-up with Serge. Their collision will be shocking but in no way surprising to seasoned fans of this zany franchise. A global health crisis is just one more day in the life of Dorsey's resilient hero. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.