1947, Miami, Florida: “A novel of the men who chart the big winds and of their women who wait” (book cover). Hurricanes provide decisive action and create dramatic climaxes to nefarious plots. Herman Wouk kicked off the hurricane-suspense genre with Slattery’s Hurricane in 1947 putting World War II pilots in the cockpits of the early hurricane reconnaissance missions flown by Navy pilots. When a major hurricane threatens Palm Beach, Will Slattery’s plans for easy wealth as a private plane chauffeur to a shady businessman are tossed aside as he plunges into the eye of a hurricane. Torrid passions and narcotics smuggling undoubtedly helped to attract Hollywood into making the 1949 film starring Richard Widmark and Veronica Lake. ( )