5 best novels set in Florida
Welcome to a world where the sun often shines too bright, where mangroves whisper their secrets to the oranges near the swamplands, where the pulse of the city beats with an electric rhythm all its own. Novels set in Florida are as vibrant and diverse as the state itself, their narratives as enchantingly rich and complex as the local ecosystem. Riding the rollercoaster of thrillers, meandering through historic sagas, or plunging into the lush mysteries - stories set amidst this tropical oasis, under its palm-fringed canopy - are a genre unto themselves.
Their Eyes Were Watching God
By Zora Neale Hurston
How it fits the "novels set in Florida" vibe: A wafting fragrance of Florida's rural life, this novel lays beauty and hardship of southern black experience in an Edenic town named Eatonville.
Publisher: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Page Count: 240
Published Date: 1998-12-01
A Land Remembered
By Patrick D. Smith
How it fits the "novels set in Florida" vibe: As if the sandy beaches of Florida morphed into pages, this novel twins readers with three generations of the MacIvey family, narrating their life in the 19th century Florida wilderness.
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Page Count: 404
Published Date: 2012-09-20
Tourist Season
By Carl Hiaasen
How it fits the "novels set in Florida" vibe: An excavation into Florida's peculiar underbelly, as a group of eco-terrorists aim to scare the tourists away in this Hiaasen's debut novel.
Publisher: Penguin
Page Count: 274
Published Date: 2016-11-01
Swamplandia!
By Karen Russell
How it fits the "novels set in Florida" vibe: A dive into Florida's swampy terrains and the mystical alligator wrestling, indie theme park by an economically constrained family.
5 / 5 Stars on Google Books
Publisher: Vintage
Page Count: 418
Published Date: 2011-07-26
The Yearling
By Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
How it fits the "novels set in Florida" vibe: A heart-rending narrative that deals with the harshness of life in the Florida backwoods while focusing on the relationship between a young boy and his pet fawn.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Page Count: 452
Published Date: 1985