Squeeze Me
A novel
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4.2 • 57 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • A hilarious novel of social and political intrigue, set against the glittering backdrop of Florida’s gold coast, from the author of Skinny Dip and Razor Girl
“If you could use some wild escapism right now, Hiaasen is your guy.” —The New York Times
WITH A NEW EPILOGUE
At the height of Palm Beach’s charity ball season, Kiki Pew Fitzsimmons, a prominent member of geriatric high society, suddenly vanishes during a swank gala. Kiki Pew was a founding member of the Potussies, a group of women dedicated to supporting the President, who spends half the year at the “Winter White House” just down the road. Meanwhile, Angie Armstrong, wildlife wrangler extraordinaire, is called to the island to deal with a monster-sized Burmese python that has taken residency in a tree. But the President is focused on the disappearance of Kiki Pew. Never one to miss an opportunity to play to his base, he immediately declares her a victim of rampaging immigrant hordes. This, it turns out, is far from the truth, which now lies in the middle of the road, where a bizarre discovery brings the First Lady’s motorcade to a grinding halt. Irreverent, ingenious, and uproariously entertaining, Squeeze Me perfectly captures the absurdity of our times.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Looking for a smart, juicy crime thriller that also makes you laugh out loud? That would be best-selling author Carl Hiaasen’s latest romp, which is set in wealthy Palm Beach and features a giant Burmese python who may or may have not swallowed a popular Republican socialite during a charity gala. The book’s heroine, Angie Armstrong, is a wild-animal wrangler and the one person in town who seems to be able to connect the dots between Hiaasen’s corrupt cast, which includes high-society types, lowlifes, government officials—and a philandering, comically narcissistic president and his disgusted wife. All of these unsavory characters are implicated in a series of related crimes and misdemeanors. As Angie uncovers a bumbling web of evil and skulduggery, Hiaasen keeps us chuckling with glee.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
At the start of this heavy-handed satire from bestseller Hiaasen (Razor Girl), wealthy 72-year-old Kiki Pew Fitzsimmons, a member of the POTUS Pussies, "a group of Palm Beach women who proclaimed brassy loyalty to the new, crude-spoken commander-in-chief," disappears from a charity event for the local chapter of a foundation "committed to defeating Irritable Bowel Syndrome." Kiki Pew's fate isn't a mystery for long. The event manager calls in animal capture specialist Angie Armstrong after a large python with a distended belly is found in a tree on the grounds. After beheading the snake, Angie stores the carcass without checking what's inside the reptile. Crooks soon steal the dead python, from which they remove Kiki Pew's body and bury it in cement. The Secret Service becomes involved after the thieves fail to secure the python's body in the trunk of their car, and it falls into the path of a vehicle transporting the first lady. The unnamed American president, meanwhile, is a clueless idiot, enabled in his ignorance by his staff. Hiaasen doesn't put subtlety at a premium. Those looking for light distraction from current events may be amused.
