The Queen of Florida

“Bercuson’s addictive debut tackles ambivalent motherhood, corrupt cops, and rampant greed under the harsh Florida sunshine… For noir fans, there’s a lot to like.” — Publishers Weekly
“What a great debut! I enjoyed it immensely: idiosyncratic and assured, detached and violent, humorous and brutal. From the strip malls to children’s playgrounds, from gated communities to tent encampments, from beach clubs to low-rent insurance offices, The Queen of Florida captures the Sunshine State in all its technicolor contradictions. Jeff Bercuson’s Delray Beach is located somewhere between Paul Auster’s New York and Elmore Leonard’s Miami. I look forward to many more novels from this bright new talent.” — Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson, author of the Patrick Bird Mystery Series
“In the sun-soaked underbelly of Florida, lowlifes and schemers collide in a wild, relentlessly unpredictable crime caper. Fans of Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey, and Elmore Leonard, take notice: debut novelist Jeff Bercuson has arrived with a voice that’s both clipped and utterly original. This bizarre, laugh-out-loud tale spins from bad to worse, cementing a fresh, audacious new talent in crime fiction.” — Dietrich Kalteis, author of Dirty Little War
“A darkly funny, sun-drenched crime romp with a ruthless retired widow at its center, a sharp eye for Florida sleaze, and a wonderfully twisted premise about what happens when a lifetime of sacrifice curdles into appetite. Ideal for readers who enjoy satirical noir, messy family drama, morally compromised protagonists, and crime fiction where paradise is only beautiful until you look too closely.” — Thriller Magazine
“Canadian author Jeff Bercuson’s debut, The Queen of Florida, will appeal to those who enjoy their noir gritty … Jeff Bercuson’s take on Florida is similar to that of Carl Hiaasen, whose quirky characters were sometimes versions of people he’d written about as a journalist in the state. Bercuson’s are entirely fictional, but with a mixed bag like this, you know that you’re in for a treat.” — Crime Fiction Lover

Jeff Bercuson was born and raised in Toronto, where he lives with his wife and two children and teaches in the School of English and Liberal Studies at Seneca Polytechnic. For the longest time, he wanted to be a philosopher, and he wrote two books trying to prove that he was one. Then he realized that we get much closer to the truth by making up stories. The Queen of Florida is his first novel.

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