Skin Tight
(Libby/OverDrive eBook, Kindle)

Carl Hiassen and Tom Robbins write books punctuated with the sound of laughter bubbling up from within you. Implausible situations with oddball characters make their ingenious books more fun than folly. -- Tara Bannon Williamson

For a kinder, gentler comic caper, try Laurence Shames's books, which feature bumbling gangsters mixing it up with eccentric retirees in sunny Key West. Amusing oddballs and loutish lowlifes in farcical situations abound, yet are handled with a light, lyrical touch that allows for wistful evocations of Florida's natural beauty. -- Shauna Griffin

Aalborg and Hiaasen offer the reader fast-paced high-stakes adventures with unique settings against the backdrop of nature, unexpected twists, tautly suspenseful plots with romantic subplots, strong women who proactively work against injustice, environmental issues, a demonstrably offbeat sense of humor, and biting sociopolitical commentary. -- Lynne Welch

Patricia Cornwell's Judy Hammer mysteries feature a strong professional female lead and have a lighter tone -- readers of these mysteries may find Carl Hiassen a good match, and vice versa. -- Katherine Johnson

Fans of Carl Hiaasen's humorous fiction will enjoy the work of Kurt Vonnegut. Both authors create wonderfully weird characters who rarely act in their best interests. Their stories are funny, offbeat, and darkly humorous. Hiaasen focuses on environmental issues while Vonnegut has written about environmental destruction, politics, war, and culture. -- Alicia Cavitt

Readers who appreciate Hiaasen's edginess will enjoy Tim Dorsey's noir thrillers recounting the maniacal misadventures of anti-hero Serge Storms, a psychopath fixated on a suitcase full of money and intrigued by local history. Dorsey, however, escalates the pace, the violence, and the demented humor, while including dollops of diverting Florida lore. -- Shauna Griffin

These authors write irreverently madcap adventures from the perspective of unfortunate characters who finally get their chance to succeed. A strong sense of place, pointed social commentary, and unexpected plot twists keep the reader guessing till the very end. -- Lynne Welch

Randy Wayne White shares Hiaasen's concern for the environment, ironic worldview, and taste for bizarre characters and situations. His loose-knit plots vary hard-hitting action with social commentary and stunning descriptions of Florida's rich oceanic environs, as well as of the denizens of her criminal underworld. -- Shauna Griffin

Those in accord with Hiaasen's uncompromising, spirited attacks on ecological recklessness will certainly appreciate Edward Abbey. Seething with barbed wit, his incendiary capers have inspired and amused a generation of militant environmentalists, establishing eco-fiction as a viable genre. -- Shauna Griffin

If raunch doesn't disturb you, take it up a notch with Harry Crews, whose wildly improbable stories showcase relentless, mordantly funny freakshows and bizarre and desperate misfits. Violent, grotesque, surreal, and definitely not for the squeamish, the prolific Crews takes black humor to new heights, and depths. -- Shauna Griffin

These two authors both write darkly humorous, satirical capers about bumbling criminals. Both mix farce with memorable casts, but Marc Lecard's novels contain rather more violence and are generally darker and grislier than Carl Hiaasen's. -- Shauna Griffin

Readers who enjoy the offbeat humor and strong sense of place in Carl Hiaasen's novels may want to try Rick Gavin, though he sets his novels in the Mississippi Delta, not Florida. -- Shauna Griffin