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An obvious YA novel, Skink’s hero is actually 14-year-old Richard Sloan, whose cousin Malley disappears with a man she met online. Stumbling across the homeless, unconventional vigilante, Skink, a former Florida governor, the two head across Florida to find Malley.

So we have an adventure that includes man-eating alligators, a damsel in distress that sometimes you wonder if she should be rescued, an environmental activist who causes great harm to people for even mild transgressions, clueless parents and online predators.

The book is funny, earnest in its environmental advocacy, has suspenseful moments, and clearly targets YA readers with its writing style. All this with lessons in personal courage, the need to protect our natural habitats and dynamic relationships.