Smoke Out

Book by Date S V

Florida politics are always good for a laugh, as plenty of caper writers from Carl Hiaasen to Laurence Shames can attest. S.V. Date aspires to that pantheon, but if Smokeout is his best effort, he has a way to go before he's included in that number. If this is satire, it doesn't go far or farcical enough, although it manages more than the requisite amount of snickering at small-time politicos and influence peddlers who owe their souls, such as they are, to powerful corporate interests. In this case, the interest that's handing out the bribes and other largesse is Big Tobacco, in the person of one of the scuzziest CEOs in recent history--a fellow who will stop at nothing, including murder, to arrange the veto of a piece of legislation that could cost his industry gazillions. The lobbyists he's paid off to get the bill killed are equally awful, including one who plants a minicam in the ladies' john just for kicks. There are two white hats in this somewhat jumbled tale--a young woman lobbyist who abandons her ideals for a paycheck but sees the light just in time, and a woman legislator who turns out to be the book's most sympathetic character. The level of sexual innuendo to which every woman in the book is subjected makes one wonder if Date really hates the fair sex or has simply never heard of sexual harassment laws. --Jane Adams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. (Amazon.com Review)

A behind-the-scenes political satire set in Florida's capital.... Date's tale of legislative lobbying and dealmaking has the ring of truth. (St. Petersburg Times) ------ A hoot! (Florida's News Channel) ------ Pantsless legislators. Poison dart guns. Million-dollar bribes. Just another day in the Florida Legislature... (Tampa Tribune) ------ Politics as usual in Tallahassee includes comedy, corruption, bed-hopping, even murder.... A rollicking satire, a Carl Hiaasen-type collection of characters. (Florida, Jacksonville, Times-Union) ------ A worthy companion to the subversive work of Carl Hiaasen. (Chicago Tribune) ------ S.V. Date takes a rude, shrewd scythe to Florida...and politics. (Houston Chronicle) ------ Reminiscent of...the comic caper novels of Donald Westlake. (Charlotte Observer) (US Press)

In this edgy, ripped-from-the-headlines novel, there's a crucial vote on Big Tobacco coming up in the Florida legislature, and the outcome will decide whether or not tobacco companies can be legally sued for damages. At the center of this legislative hurricane is State Senator Dolly Nichols, whose principled stand on individual rights has always prompted a pro-tobacco voting record. But that's not good enough for Bartholomew Simons, president and CEO of Roper-Joyner Holdings (RJH), who wants to make sure that his tobacco company in particular comes out the winner. He also needs to save his own buttDthere's an incriminating memo circulating with his name on it, and he wants it destroyed. The search for the memo is played out against an orgy of arm-twisting, backstabbing, blackmailing and backroom lobbying, involving a cast of media hustlers, a female lobbyist with Playboy pictures in her past and libidinous legislators. A baker's dozen of subplots converge in a wild and woolly finale that teeters on the edge of farce. But thanks to Date's animated characters, who are quirky without being cartoonish, and impeccable narrative timing, the fast-moving plot never veers out of control. ---------------------------- For most readers, Date's novel will be a rollicking satire of what happens when Big Tobacco wants an antismoking bill repealed at any cost. For those who've spent time working around state capitols, it may read more like nonfiction. Florida Governor Bolling Waites has managed to pass a bill giving smokers the right to sue cigarette makers for their subsequent illnesses. The tobacco companies, represented by RJH Tobacco's CEO Bartholomew Simons, have mobilized to override the governor's veto of the law's repeal. Simons is the foulest CEO in years to leave a slime trail across the printed page. He got his job by murdering his predecessor. He's had whistleblowers killed, and he's bribed or blackmailed nearly every influential legislator in Florida. The exception is senate president-designate Dolly Nichols, that rarest of birds, an honest politician. As the override vote approaches and the felonies pile up on both sides of the issue, Date shows the depth of knowledge and cynicism he developed as a journalist covering Tallahassee. Outstanding. (Publishers Weekly --- Booklist)