Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
189th out of 257 books
—
567 voters
Pineapple Grenade (Serge Storms Mystery #15)
by
Tim Dorsey
Miami has always set the weirdness bar, but Serge Storms is back in action and ready to pole vault over it.
First, there's the media frenzy over the "Hollow Man," a gutless corpse found on the beach. And yet people think it's perfectly normal to find dead sharks in the middle of downtown boulevards--or to spot black mushroom clouds behind the airport. Then there are the rov...more
First, there's the media frenzy over the "Hollow Man," a gutless corpse found on the beach. And yet people think it's perfectly normal to find dead sharks in the middle of downtown boulevards--or to spot black mushroom clouds behind the airport. Then there are the rov...more
Hardcover, 342 pages
Published
January 24th 2012
by William Morrow
(first published 2012)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
982)
"Pineapple Grenade" by Tim Dorsey explains little, not even where lead hero gets funding, granted I gave up after 4 chapters of dropped purposeless open ends. x-rated attempts to link absurd things in strange places; overall like Fredric Brown's "The Frownzly Florgels", where aliens cavort to explain off-beat illustration. Serge, in a T-shirt emblazoned with S, and cape, accompanied by marijuana smoker Coleman, capture one of the criminals robbing tourists around Miami airport. Cut to motel wher...more
Every now and again I pick up a book that I have never heard of by an author I have never heard of and I am usually pleasantly surprised. This time it was Tim Dorsey's Pineapple Grenade (which I later discovered was book 15 of the Serge Storms series). Not knowing anything about the book I went into it with an open mind, which I think helped because the story was disjointed and bizarre, but in a fresh, new, and fantastic way. This book is a true literary gem and I can not wait to read the rest o...more
Serge Storms and his stoner side-kick Coleman become secret agents!Usually Dorsey weaves seemingly unrelated stories into one (albiet absurd) tale. Sometimes it makes you wonder where the story is going. In Pineapple Grenade it is not as bad since most of the stories are about spies, spying, covert ops, the CIA...so there is more continuity. Serge still has time to kill a few deserving criminals, write letters to Sarah Palin, scam a scam artist who's sent an email to Serge asking him to send $10...more
I worry about Tim Dorsey. He seems far too interested in making unique and horrifying ways to kill someone funny ... and deserving. And he's starting to get self-referential, or maybe I just never noticed it before. Pineapple Grenade: A Novel is a rich parody of spy novels, with more twists than a Chubby Checker Convention. The generals of Costa Gorda need to encourage the rebels so that they have a reason to stage a coup in case the elected president becomes too much of a problem. Two cells of...more
I jumped into this series without knowing much about it. The blurb on the jacket made it sound like a fun book so what the heck. I found there was virtually no background provided about the characters such as who they are and their relationship to each other. As a mystery series reader, that filler which may annoy the long time reader, helps the new reader. I found that had I not purchased the book, I would have stopped after about 50 pages and given up. However, I plodded along and make that re...more
PINEAPPLE GRENADE. (2012). Tim Dorsey. ***.
Dorsey is back with another installment featuring Serge Storms, his answer to all the ecological horrors going on in the world – especially those occurring in his native Florida. The focus of this novel is the assemblage of twenty or more heads of state from South and Central American countries for a meeting in Miami. It’s a summit that will discuss issues that will actually skirt any real issues that might exist, while it gives the CIA the opportunity...more
Dorsey is back with another installment featuring Serge Storms, his answer to all the ecological horrors going on in the world – especially those occurring in his native Florida. The focus of this novel is the assemblage of twenty or more heads of state from South and Central American countries for a meeting in Miami. It’s a summit that will discuss issues that will actually skirt any real issues that might exist, while it gives the CIA the opportunity...more
This may be the best Tim Dorsey book yet. The last few Serge Storm tales were getting a bit formulaic, but this one has hit it out of the park (sorry about the overused metaphor). Of course, there is all the insane trivia of Florida and righteous do gooding you expect from Serge, but this one becomes more like a James Bond movie.
The first paragraph starts by saying a prosthetic leg with a Willie Nelson bumper sticker washes up on a Florida beach ... then it gets weird. You have to keep reading.
S...more
The first paragraph starts by saying a prosthetic leg with a Willie Nelson bumper sticker washes up on a Florida beach ... then it gets weird. You have to keep reading.
S...more
Feb 09, 2012
Chris
added it
Dorsey is back up to form with this book. In the first 5 minutes of reading had me giggling and guffawing three or four times.
Serge becomes a spy. He knew he was hired when the guards threw him out the door extra hard. He's so good at it rival factions of CIA agents battle over who can recruit him all while foreign agents have plots and plans of their own.
The only downside to this book was he had to bring is personal politics into it with rants against a couple prominent names. Had he spread ou...more
Serge becomes a spy. He knew he was hired when the guards threw him out the door extra hard. He's so good at it rival factions of CIA agents battle over who can recruit him all while foreign agents have plots and plans of their own.
The only downside to this book was he had to bring is personal politics into it with rants against a couple prominent names. Had he spread ou...more
Serge Storms is a great hilarious character in Florida crime fiction, like Dexter's even more insane brother plopped down in Carl Hiaasen's world. Dorsey is a very funny man, but sometimes with him things get a little too crazy for me, or maybe too scattershot is a better word. This time it's the opposite. One of Dorsey's most disciplined books, the plot (about Miami/Central American arms running and the CIA) mostly makes sense, the time sequence isn't too whack, Coleman's around for comic relie...more
This has to be the first time that I really did NOT like one of the books from this series. While all of these books revel in the confusion that is Serge and Tim Dorsey, it didn't seem to work in this particular book. Most of Tim's book are info-dumps at times and it is up to you to pick out what is going to be important...then you learn it is ALL going to be important, in this book the info-dumps just didn't seem to add up to anything worth getting excited about.
I have to agree with the reviewe...more
Take Spies Like Us and any good James Bond movie, mix with the Marx Brothers - shaken not stirred, of course! -- and you have Pineapple Grenade. This zany thriller is set in Miami, Florida, as two experienced operatives, Serge and his sidekick, Coleman, stumble upon an assassination plot, combined with an arms deal and drug trafficking.
Serge and Coleman do their best to infiltrate the opposition, encountering double agents and ne-er do wells on both sides of the fence. Serge even finds romance w...more
Serge and Coleman do their best to infiltrate the opposition, encountering double agents and ne-er do wells on both sides of the fence. Serge even finds romance w...more
This book was awesome, laugh out loud funny, the main character is super smart and lucky but has several coexisting mental illnesses that render him obsessive, psychopathic, schizophrenic, and frequently homicidal, but Serge Storm serves as the most amazing anti-hero character I ever read and his dumb druged out wingman completes the chaos.
In an adventure to clean out criminals from the streets gets involved in a plot from the CIA to explore the resources of a 3rd world country, Serge infiltrat...more
In an adventure to clean out criminals from the streets gets involved in a plot from the CIA to explore the resources of a 3rd world country, Serge infiltrat...more
With 'Pineapple Grenade', Dorsey returns to form with the formula that has made his Serge series a success. The book is well written, with clever sarcasm, a few laugh-out-loud moments, and some interesting ways to die. Serge finds himself in Miami for a summit of North and South American leaders and saves the head of state of a small 'banana republic' from a carjacking. What follows is the usual collection of Florida history trivia, rambling plot, creative murders, substance abuse and biting sar...more
Not up to par with the best of Tim Dorsey, but I'm still giving it 4 stars for Serge's coffee-fueled stream-of-consciousness riffs, as well as the satire, including skewering Miami, US Politics, the CIA, Citizens United, manipulating terror alert levels for political gain and on and on.
I see a few other reviewers complaining because Dorsey injected his own political beliefs into this book. So I guess that means you don't agree with him? Well toooo bad. Much of what he writes is satire and if on...more
I see a few other reviewers complaining because Dorsey injected his own political beliefs into this book. So I guess that means you don't agree with him? Well toooo bad. Much of what he writes is satire and if on...more
This is Tim Dorsey at his best. Serge Storms at is ummmm worst? Serge has decided to become a spy. No one has hired him but Serge fans know that doesn't make a difference. He accidentally saves the life of a small banana republic's President during a foiled robbery near Miami Airport, who Homeland Security thinks was a botched assassination. Now everyone thinks Serge is a spy but no one can figure out who he is working for. Coleman is high, has no idea what happened but thinks being a spy is coo...more
Serge A. Storms, vigilante and avid Florida historian, is back and killing people in his unique style, which usually involves a trip to the Home Depot. Bored and listless, Serge creates a position for himself as an international spy. With his trusty stoner sidekick Coleman, the bodies quickly pile up. Gun running, espionage, CIA double dealing, and mucho mayhem that only the coffee-guzzling Serge could survive, if not thrive in. Not recommended for people opposed to laughing out loud while readi...more
I know this is a broken record, but I wish GoodReads allowed half-star increments. Giving only four stars to a Tim Dorsey book feels a bit unfair. However, this is a four and a half star read. I fail to give it the full five only because it's not quite among his very best, but it's still very good. This is the 15th installment of the wacky Serge Storms, the one serial killer in all of literature you wish you could befriend. One of the miracles in the world of this type of fiction is how, after 1...more
Take the coolness of Pulp Fiction, add the morality of Dexter, and the knowledge of Noam
Chomsky, and you have Serge A. Storms-- the extremely over caffeinated hero who forgot to take his
meds and just went off his rocker. Add in the perma-partying sidekick Coleman, and you have a
formula for awesomeness!
This book, and every one Tim Dorsey writes, is a roller coaster of a ride inside a tornado
touching down on an alligator farm.
So start chugging coffee and reading Tim Dorsey!
Chomsky, and you have Serge A. Storms-- the extremely over caffeinated hero who forgot to take his
meds and just went off his rocker. Add in the perma-partying sidekick Coleman, and you have a
formula for awesomeness!
This book, and every one Tim Dorsey writes, is a roller coaster of a ride inside a tornado
touching down on an alligator farm.
So start chugging coffee and reading Tim Dorsey!
This is the first book of Tim Dorsey's I have read (almost read--I gave up halfway in.) And it will be the last. Obviously, he is going for a version of the Carl Hiaasen thing. I love Hiaasen, so I can't say I hated this because I don't like the genre. I just couldn't follow the plot, or get interested in any of the characters. And I agree with Dorsey's politics, so that was not the problem. As one of the reviewers said, these books are not for everyone. I'll leave it at that.
I think this is the last Tim Dorsey book for me. I've read 3 or 4 in this series and really tried to like him, but I just don't. I love Carl Hiaasen and his plots and characters can be bizarre, but his look like the Cleavers next to Dorsey's. All connection with reality is lost with Dorsey. Sure, there are some funny scenes (Guardian Mimes) and some decent satire (letter to Sarah Palin), but as a whole it is just too disjointed, unrealistic, and over the top for me. A friend who is a big fan tol...more
Serge Storms, every body's favorite caped vigilante, and his stoner sidekick Cameron get involved in a convoluted arms deal/assassination attempt/CIA covert op. It's Spy vs Spy in South Beach with duelling CIA stations trying to take each other out, Guardian Mimes and Guardian Clowns patrolling the streets - ineffectively - and a high level of general craziness. With several highly inventive ways of dispatching bad guys described in loving detail.
Actual rating: 4½ stars
Storms. Serge A. Storms. Tim Dorsey serves up more maniacal serial-killing, laugh-out-load debauchery with 007-style fanfare in Pineapple Grenade.
Serge and his perpetually stoned sidekick Coleman have cracked into the spy-for-hire business, much to the chagrin of competing government agencies who are very eager to obtain his services before the other can. Serge weaves his way through Miami's underworld community of burned secret agents, government mess-ups, femme fatales,...more
Storms. Serge A. Storms. Tim Dorsey serves up more maniacal serial-killing, laugh-out-load debauchery with 007-style fanfare in Pineapple Grenade.
Serge and his perpetually stoned sidekick Coleman have cracked into the spy-for-hire business, much to the chagrin of competing government agencies who are very eager to obtain his services before the other can. Serge weaves his way through Miami's underworld community of burned secret agents, government mess-ups, femme fatales,...more
As always, Serge A. Storms takes you for a ride. This time, he seems to be taken for a ride as well. And I feel so sorry for him, but he does his best to make it right. Coleman finds a few new friends, which is always a plus. He is so messed up. Glide is an a$$. I still love all the history I am learning about the state I am currently living in. Can't wait for the next book. Thanks for the wonderful stories.
Jul 23, 2012
Mary
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Anyone who likes Tim Dorsey
Recommended to Mary by:
My husband
If you like Tim Dorsey, then this is the book for you. Way more political jabs and jibs than usual. I loved them. He really knows how to be facetious and hits the nail right on the head...The only part I did not care for was murder #1, a little too graphic for me. But the rest is all Serge and Coleman at their best. If you have not read his other books, I would not recommend starting with this one...
So far the book is hillarious. Serge A Storms is a bipolar serial killer with obsessive compulsive tendencies. Most people who walk around the aisles of Home Depot see normal building materials. Not Serge A Storms. He sees various instruments of death. Fortunately, Serge focuses on removing criminals from his home State of Florida.
if you fondly remember John McDonald, still read Carl Hiaason and wish Harlan Coben were a better writer, try something by Tim Dorsey. His characters are nuts and it's hard to figure out what's happening for awhile. The social satire is great and the silly story goes so fast it hardly matters. Try one, you might like it.
I really enjoyed this latest romp with Serge and Coleman and the foray into espionage and the world of double and triple crossings. This is, in my opinion, Dorsey's best effort and well worth the read. Pineapple Grenade is satiric farce that takes on politics, terrorism and the inane idiocy of (phoney) modern life.
I just didn't like this novel as much as his other books. I thought the plot was too convoluted and that there were too many miscellaneous characters. I also feel that the writing didn't have as much originality and flair as his other books. Sure, there were some funny moments, but not as many as in his past efforts.
Serge Storms is a homicidal vigilante and with his sidekick, Coleman they are out to save Miami. This is a comical story that has some disturbing is not unique ways to kill a person. Tom Dorsey’s books are not for everyone. Although funny at times, I did not go hysterical and find Serge’s exploits colorful but not for me.
He has been missing the mark lately for me. Serge was funny but it is the same schtick over and over. And I now have zero tolerance when authors inject their own politics into the narrative. It is distracting and does nothing to move the story forward. Sorry Dorsey, I am going back to Hiaasen for my fun in Florida reading.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Tim Dorsey was born in Indiana, moved to Florida at the age of 1, and grew up in a small town about an hour north of Miami called Riviera Beach. He graduated from Auburn University in 1983. While at Auburn, he was editor of the student newspaper, The Plainsman.
From 1983 to 1987, he was a police and courts reporter for The Alabama Journal, the now-defunct evening newspaper in Montgomery. He joined...more
More about Tim Dorsey...
From 1983 to 1987, he was a police and courts reporter for The Alabama Journal, the now-defunct evening newspaper in Montgomery. He joined...more
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“A prosthetic leg with a Willie Nelson bumper sticker washed ashore on the beach, which meant it was Florida.
Then it got weird.”
—
6 people liked it
Then it got weird.”
“The last door on the second story was the exception. Fresh gold letters:
MAHONEY & ASSOCIATES, PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS.
Mahoney sat inside. The only associate was the fifth of rye residing in his bottom desk drawer.”
—
1 person liked it
More quotes…
MAHONEY & ASSOCIATES, PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS.
Mahoney sat inside. The only associate was the fifth of rye residing in his bottom desk drawer.”
