| Plot Summary of Triggerfish Twist |
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Morrow, May 2002, 24.95, 306 pp.
ISBN: 0060185716
In the Tampa Bay area, after his roommates Sharon and Coleman burn down their townhouse along with a few historical homes while freebasing lint, Serge A. Storms relocates the entire crew to Triggerfish Lane. Meanwhile in the same Triggerfish Lane area, Lance Boyle rents to the shoddiest tenants on the planet. The slumlord wants the more respectable locals to sell cheaply to him.
Shockingly, Serge the historian loves life in the Burbs. He “helps” his neighbors, which requires some kind of conning. His best buddy is Midwest refugee Jim Davenport, a gentle-hearted father of three, who moved his family here because Tampa ranks third as a desirable place to live. However, the magazine Tampa and the Boyle Tampa are not the same. Serge places the Davenports off limits to the local nasties. However, Serge's bodyguard service requires 24-7 when Jim accidentally kills one of the McGraws leading to the rest of the family of thugs seeking vengeance.
The latest Serge tale TRIGGERFISH TWIST is a very humorous look at suburbia through the eyes of a kindhearted urban con man. The story line is wacky, as Serge looks so comfortable outside his element. Except for the Davenports the rest of the cast adds zany depth while the Midwest transfers appear as a typical American family caught in the midst of an asylum that leaves the quintet tugging at the hearts of the reader and Serge when the McGraws seek revenge. Tim Dorsey provides a humorous tale that continues the crazy tradition that along with the 2k election paints Florida with a lunatic terrific fringe.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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"Jim Davenport is an average family man from Indiana, a classic "nice guy" who moves his family down to quaint, suburban Triggerfish Lane in Tampa, Florida to take a job with a consulting firm. But Triggerfish Lane is not the paradise it appears. A local land-grabber is trying to scare away the homeowners by bringing in an assortment of degenerate tenants.
Jim, a pacifist to the core, is fired by his firm after he refuses to allow them to change his report to recommend layoffs.
With the firing, Jim's life begins to spin out of control. A defective airbag in Jim's Suburban kills a carjacker who, it develops, has a quartet of vicious brothers who have just been sprung from jail.
John Milton, a mild-mannered bank-teller, is laidoff and led to believe that Jim recommended it. Suffering a nervous breakdown, the now-homeless Milton plots revenge.
Finally, Serge A. Storms, psychotic thief, spree killer, and Florida history buff, moves into a house down the street from Jim and takes a liking to the "unsung hero of America, a parent," as he and his lackeys Coleman and Sharon plot a kidnap-for-ransom that goes hilariously wrong.
The wild, multi-faceted plot careens around Triggerfish Lane and out into the streets of Tampa, where everything from used-car lots to people who pay by check at convenience stores are mercilessly lampooned by Dorsey's razor-wit before returning to the Davenport home for an Independence Day barbecue that offers a truly explosive finale."
James Craver, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Triggerfish Twist |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 35%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 25%
Tone of story
- Dry-cynical
- very upbeat
Time/era of story:
- 1980's-1999
- present (2000-2010)
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
The crook is....
- stalking/killing innocents
Crime Thriller
Yes
Crime plotlets:
- vigilante getting revenge
- escape/rescue from kidnappers
Mostly a criminal POV story
Yes
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here?
- breaking up gang
- hunted by BAD vigilante getting revenge
If story PRIMARILY about main chr. being hunted...
- hunted by killer/stalker
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- unemployed
- thief/con artist
Age:
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
- soggy whimpering jelly muffin
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
- an organization
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- killer
- mastermind
Eccentric:
Yes
- obsessed
- wild
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
The antagonists are:
- rednecks
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Dumb
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Southeast
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee
- hostile, like Gomer Pyle on steroids
- sinister, like an X-Files Gomer Pyle
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
- moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths?
- 1
- 8 or more
Sex
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
- use of artificial tools
- actual description of sex
Unusual forms of death
- dropped from large heights
- flamed
- perforation--bullets
- blunt clubbing (like seals)
- exploded into bits
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- significantly more descript than dialog
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