Bad Monkey

By: Carl Hiaasen

Narrated by: Arte Johnson

Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

A wickedly funny novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Squeeze Me in which the greedy, the corrupt, and the degraders of what’s left of pristine Florida—now, of the Bahamas as well—get their comeuppance.

“[A] comedic marvel … [Hiaasen] hasn’t written a novel this funny since Skinny Dip.”—The New York Times

Andrew Yancy—late of the Miami Police and soon-to-be-late of the Monroe County sheriff’s office—has a human arm in his freezer. There’s a logical (Hiaasenian) explanation for that, but not for how and why it parted from its shadowy owner. Yancy thinks the boating-accident/shark-luncheon explanation is full of holes, and if he can prove murder, the sheriff might rescue him from his grisly Health Inspector gig (it’s not called the roach patrol for nothing). But first—this being Hiaasen country—Yancy must negotiate an obstacle course of wildly unpredictable events with a crew of even more wildly unpredictable characters, including his just-ex lover, a hot-blooded fugitive from Kansas; the twitchy widow of the frozen arm; two avariciously optimistic real-estate speculators; the Bahamian voodoo witch known as the Dragon Queen, whose suitors are blinded unto death by her peculiar charms; Yancy’s new true love, a kinky coroner; and the eponymous bad monkey, who with hilarious aplomb earns his place among Carl Hiaasen’s greatest characters.

©2013 Carl Hiaasen (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“[A] comedic marvel ... [Hiaasen] hasn’t written a novel this funny since Skinny Dip.... Beautifully constructed.” (Janet Maslin, The New York Times)

“No one writes about Florida with a more wicked sense of humor than Hiaasen.” (Jocelyn McClurg, USA Today)

“[A] rollicking misadventure in the colorful annals of greed and corruption in South Florida.... Hiaasen has a peculiar genius for inventing grotesque creatures ... that spring from the darkest impulses of the id. But he also writes great heroes.” (Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times)

Another Hiaasen Winner

What made the experience of listening to Bad Monkey the most enjoyable?

The vivid descriptions of the where we were, the weather, and the development of the characters.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Bad Monkey?

Knowing that Hiaasen had written another Florida adventure.

One of my favorites

Fantastic. I love this book, I've read it at least 3 times and now I can listen to it on the subway. I love all of hiaasen's book, but this is my favorite. Awesome. It's the tits.

TRULY HILARIOUS WITH A GREAT READER

Would you consider the audio edition of Bad Monkey to be better than the print version?

Arte Johnson is such a terrific reader, he adds a real dimension to the novel.

An adequate warm-up for Razor Girl

This book, and its narration are "OK". In my view, the real reason to read it is as a prequel to Razor Girl, which is phenomenal.

Best of Hiassen

This is one of my favorite books. Very funny, and the narrator is great. I’d like to have a beer with him. He’s very sarcastic, which goes well with the author and story

Worst narration I’ve heard

The story was entertaining but Artie Johnson was a terrible narrator. I have trouble following the story.

Bad monkey

Artie Johnson did a great job reading and the book is a typical outlandish, fun Hiassen one.

I laughed through every chapter!

It’s just great comedy. Lots of action, romance, great characters, irony… wrapped around humanity!

Artie Johnson was great at narration. In fact, the only reason I didn’t give him a 5 - and it’s probably not fair- is comparing him to George Wilson!

Funny murder mystery

I wish for a sequel . I want the characters to grow and have more adventures.

Flame-out fail

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

So far, classic Hiassen, but I will never find out how it ends, because the reader is deplorably inept! I simply cannot continue listening to this book as all I do is cringe at how Arte Johnson is butchering the story, it's characters, and tempo. This probably would have been a hilarious book with even a mediocre reader. Arte Johnson is one of the worst.

Would you be willing to try another one of Arte Johnson’s performances?

No, I would never try anything else by Arte Johnson. To the contrary, seeing his name as the reader would make me stay away.