Title: Wet Dreams
Author: Douglas Danielson
Publisher: Tsunami Press
ISBN: 1439240590
Pages: 198, Paperback
Genre: Mystery
Reviewed by: Barbara Miller, Pacific Book Review
Book Review
Untie the dock lines, cast off and jump aboard Douglas Danielson’s book, entitled, Wet Dreams, also the name of a posh 70 foot Hatteras yacht adorned with babes and booze, partying just off the coast of L.A. at Catalina Island. The reader’s voyage will take one upon turbulent waters of a young lady missing from her “filthy rich” daddy, as Jake Mortensen and Buddy Wright seek to find out the answers to the questions of her whereabouts. Along the way, the story tacks against the wind as Buddy receives a death threat from what seems to be an ex-Vietnam-vet. Station a cop character at the bow with a memorable name, Virgil Klean. Add the undercurrent of Jake’s attractive and explosive exotic Chinese-American girlfriend, Toey Wong, losing her cool doubting her relationship unjustifiably. What you get is a mystery novel of extraordinary entertainment buoyancy floating in your mind. Remembering, as some of the characters are also true surfers, all landlubbing matters cease when the awesome curls are breaking and “surf’s up.”Stuffed with vernacular from the boating world, Douglas Danielson writes in a very relaxed, conversational style, as if you were having lunch with him at a Yacht Club and he was telling you the story first hand. His depth of knowledge about the intricacies of sea-fearing vessels, and his familiarity with the lifestyle and people that command the wheelhouse and sleep in its staterooms, goes fathoms beyond what might be known to an average reader. The skill of Doug Danielson’s writing is demonstrated when he takes this information, which is of keen interest to him, and makes it easily assimilated and definitely very enjoyable to others as well. His book takes a steady course building on some of his interesting characters from his earlier work, Shore Loser, however Wet Dreams stands on its own sea-legs as being a ship-shape novel.
The years of experiences and knowledge Doug Danielson has amassed in the boating industry shines through in his work, giving his characters a rather wise and expert analytical quality. Knowing more about boating details then assumably any reader, he respects the intelligence of his audience by filling in the sentence structures to become very educational. In essence, I’ve learned quite a bit about yachting from reading the descriptions Douglas Danielson wonderfully entwines within his story. Aside from boating lingo, his use of scene structure is also quite admirable, enabling an uncanny efficiency in descriptions resulting in the reader’s clear imaging.
Wet Dreams would make a great movie. The picturesque settings of luxury yachts, the scantily clad sun-tanned eye candy characters, and the casual shorts and T-shirt lifestyle of Jake and Buddy no doubt would be enjoyable viewing. Also, filming just off the coast of L.A. would be fun for the cast & crew. The only detail I see would possibly need to change is the title from “Wet Dreams,” as people might get the wrong idea when driving past the marquee of the movie theatre, not knowing it’s just the name of a yacht. At least on the cover of the book is a photo of a surfer ripping through the pipe being chased by an avalanche wave, as any surfer knows, dream waves, Wet Dreams.
