While cruising in his small boat through the maze of Florida's coastal rivers, young Skeet Waters comes across a dead manatee. Close examination reveals that the manatee was shot through the head. However, when Skeet and a deputy sheriff return to the scene of the crime, they discover that the manatee has disappeared. Skeet is determined to solve the crime, but he takes a break in his efforts to go fly-fishing for tarpon with Dirty Dan, a legendary local guide. Eventually, Skeet discovers that Dirty Dan is responsible for the manatee's death and disappearance. With the help of his funny and free-spirited grandmother, Skeet also learns that administrating true justice is not always simple or easy. DeFelice delivers a fast-paced mystery with a strong sense of place. Her lengthy description of the subtleties of tarpon fishing will grab young lovers of outdoor adventures. These elements, along with strong characters and an effective first-person narration, create an exciting whole, sure to hook readers.

Skeet Waters does a lot of growing up over a short spring break. He catches his first tarpon with a fly, he struggles with his parents' separation, and he discovers a murdered manatee. In solving the murder mystery, he learns he must look beyond physical evidence. A cheesy epilogue takes the spark out of this fiction.

Skeet's spring break starts on an ominous note when he discovers a manatee with a bullet through its head—and the gentle sea mammal's body disappears before he can show it to the authorities. That, and overhearing his mother on the phone rejecting reconciliation with his laid-back fishing-guide father, nearly overwhelms Skeet's delight at landing his first tarpon. DeFelice keenly evokes the feel of a Gulf fishing town—the glimpses of tourists, the sense of water stretching up rivers and coves, the simple pleasure Skeet feels in his familiar surroundings. Skeet's dawning realization about the identity of the manatee's killer is filled with the right amount of tension—counterpoint to the family issues he's grappling to understand—and the reader's empathy will be engaged as Skeet discovers that things aren't always what they seem. (Fiction. 9-12)

Gr 5-7-It's spring vacation, and Skeet Waters, 11, wants to spend his time fishing in his boat just off the coast of his Florida home. Instead, his day begins with him overhearing his mother telling his father to move out for good. Things go from bad to worse when Skeet finds a manatee floating in the water, dead from a gunshot wound. He goes back to shore to get the sheriff, and when they return to the spot, the animal is gone. The boy makes finding the missing body and bringing the killer to justice his mission. Meanwhile, his father's buddy, Dirty Dan, takes Skeet out fishing for tarpon and drinks Jack Daniels all day. When Skeet discovers a gun in a storage bin, he begins to suspect that Dan is the culprit and confronts him. The man confesses that his special-needs son accidentally shot the animal. DeFelice offers a realistic adventure story that is fast paced and full of drama. Skeet faces many difficult problems throughout the book, each with serious consequences, and his first-person narrative rings true. The characters are multifaceted and well developed, and the story should prompt readers to think about cause and effect.-Alison Grant, West Bloomfield Township Public Library, MI Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.