Skinny Dip (2004)

Skinny Dip is a caper novel by Carl Hiaasen first published in 2004. It is his 11th work of fiction for adult readers. It is his fifth book featuring the character known as "Skink" and his second novel including the character Mick Stranahan, a former detective. It involves a murder plot and a subsequent attempt to exact revenge against the backdrop of a threat to Florida's Everglades National Park.

Plot introduction

Set in South Florida in the course of April 2003, it is about a woman, Joey Perrone, who takes revenge on her cheating husband after he has tried to murder her. It is also one of Hiaasen's more topical novels, since the plot also revolves around the ongoing restoration of the Everglades to a natural habitat.

Explanation of the novel's title

A skinny-dipper is someone who swims in the nude, thus showing all their skin. Skinny Dip refers to the fact that when Joey Perrone is thrown overboard the impact when hitting the surface of the water tears off all her clothes so that on the following morning her rescuer finds her not only completely exhausted but also stark naked. Also, throughout the novel people find themselves in embarrassing situations due to their – occasionally inexplicable – nakedness.

Plot summary

Charles Regis "Chaz" Perrone is a young marine biologist who has devoted his life solely to the lazy pursuit of a hedonistic existence. His insatiable greed drives him to collude with Samuel Johnson "Red" Hammernut, a crooked farm tycoon who owns large vegetable fields north of the Florida Everglades, which he relentlessly pollutes with fertilizer run-off. Officially employed by the state authorities to test swamp water for pollutants, Chaz is secretly on Red's payroll, forging the test results and allowing Red to avoid facing any regulatory measures.

One day, Chaz's wife Joey returns home unexpectedly while he is filling in the doctored figures on a chart. As she has never taken any interest in his work, Joey has no idea what Chaz is doing. However, Chaz is so paranoid that he suddenly fears that she might report him and begins to meticulously plan a way to kill her. For their second wedding anniversary, Chaz invites Joey on a cruise and throws her overboard while they are out to sea. Being an experienced swimmer, Joey survives by managing to turn her fall into a dive and swims toward the coast. As her strength gives out, she clings to a floating bale of marijuana for several hours.

The next morning, Joey is rescued by Mick Stranahan, a former investigator with the State Attorney who was forced into early retirement. Mick lives on a small island in Biscayne Bay owned by a successful but aging Mexican novelist. Mick is now in the novelist's pay as a caretaker, leading a solitary life guarding the island. When Joey is presumed dead back on the mainland, Chaz pretends to be a grieving husband. As no witnesses come forward, the authorities accept his suggestion that Joey either had an accident or committed suicide. Karl Rolvaag, a Broward County detective investigating the disappearance, is suspicious of Chaz's mannerisms but can find no motive supporting a suspicion of murder.

Joey is equally baffled and begs Mick not to report that she is still alive. Since she has no idea yet why Chaz tried to kill her, she doubts that she can convince the police that it was anything besides attempted murder. Instead, she decides to drive her husband to confess by exploiting his vanity and paranoia; Mick agrees with the plan. Joey starts by entering their house while Chaz is at work and leaving traces of herself – negligees and a photo of the couple with her face cut out. Chaz is unsettled enough by these clues that he experiences erectile dysfunction, leaving him greatly flustered. Joey happens to be hiding under the bed when Chaz returns unexpectedly with one of his girlfriends and fails to have sex with her.

Worried by Chaz's reports of a home intruder, Red orders one of his employees, an illiterate, heavy-set man called Earl Edward "Tool" O'Toole, to act as Chaz's bodyguard. As Chaz's mental state deteriorates, his job description changes to "babysitter" to prevent Chaz from exposing Red. Tool, a fentanyl addict, visits nursing homes and steals fentanyl skin patches off elderly patients' bodies. During one of these expeditions he meets Maureen, a dying woman he befriends.

Joey and Mick soon develop a sexual relationship and plan more sophisticated acts of revenge. Mick has the idea of pretending to blackmail Chaz by inventing a witness to Joey's murder. Chaz is unnerved when a mysterious phone caller seems to know every detail of Joey's "death," concluding that only Karl could know so much about it. He confronts Karl with his accusation, leading the baffled detective to become even more suspicious of Chaz. Mick also recruits his brother-in-law, a corrupt lawyer, to draft a fake will leaving Joey's entire fortune to Chaz. Delivering this to Chaz and to the police has the double effect of playing on Chaz's greed while energizing the stagnating investigation.

Chaz's judgment deteriorates even further, and he erroneously concludes that his current mistress, Ricca, is the blackmailer's girlfriend and accomplice. At gunpoint, he drives her out to the swamp at Loxahatchee where, in the dark, he fires at her. Though he only manages to wing her in the leg, Ricca plunges into the water and seemingly drowns. Unbeknownst to Chaz, she survives and is rescued by a Vietnam veteran who lives in the Everglades. Both Mick and Karl, working independently, trace the bill of sale for Chaz's expensive Hummer to one of Red's companies, and patient investigation leads them to discover the Everglades scam.