Part of Doc Ford, book 3
First published 1997
Doc Ford trains his telescope on a woman in a white boat off the Southwest Florida coast. The solitary marine biologist thinks he's conducting routine observation, but this moment will upend everything. His scheming uncle Tucker Gatrell claims he has found the Fountain of Youth. The National Enquirer picks up the story. Law enforcement arrives at Doc Ford's door hunting for three vanished men. Ford must navigate the murky waters of Southwest Florida, where alligators lurk in the shallows, cattle roam wild, and ancient Indian remains lie buried in the earth. Each mystery connects to the next, drawing Ford deeper into a web of secrets and danger. The telescope that revealed the woman in white becomes the instrument that exposes Ford to forces beyond his control. In this landscape where nature and human ambition collide, Ford discovers that solving mysteries means confronting the unexpected consequences of other people's schemes.
Genres: adventure, mystery, contemporary, thriller
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, unexpected-consequences
Setting: Florida, Southwest Florida
Period: Contemporary
304 pages · Mass Market Paperback · St. Martin's Paperbacks