Larger than life hijinks abound in Swamp Story, the zany thriller from Dave Barry (Best. State. Ever.; Lunatics, with Alan Zweibel). Jesse thought it made sense to move to the Everglades with her would-be reality television star boyfriend and their baby at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, but a couple of years later, neither the isolated cabin surrounded by snakes, nor the relationship, is looking so good anymore. A hidden cache of gold bars she discovers could give her a chance to start over without throwing herself on her parents' mercy. But she'll need to claim it first, without any of the ruthless men who know she found it tracking her to the rest.
Meanwhile, Phil, an unemployed reporter who spends his days drinking three-for-the-price-of-one Moscow mules, goes viral in a video, in which he is struck with a golf club while wearing a Dora the Explorer costume head. This gives Ken at Bortle Brothers Bait and Beer an idea for how to return his failing store to its former tourist-trap glory. One TikTok craze later, and they can't keep "Everglades Melon Monster" shirts on the shelves; tourists are flooding the area; and giant snakes, local newscasters, and the secretary of the interior are all swept up in a hilarious caper that could only happen in Florida. Fans of Barry and Carl Hiaasen will be on the edge of their seats--except when they're rolling on the floor. --Kristen Allen-Vogel, information services librarian at Dayton Metro Library