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Doc Ford Mystery #1

Sanibel Flats

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Its cool gulf breezes lured him from a life of danger. Its dark undercurrents threatened to destroy him.

After ten years of living life on the edge, it was hard for Doc Ford to get that addiction to danger out of his system. But spending each day watching the sun melt into Dinkins Bay and the moon rise over the mangrove trees, cooking dinner for his beautiful neighbor, and dispensing advice to the locals over a cold beer lulled him into letting his guard down.

Then Rafe Hollins appeared.

How could he refuse his old friend's request-even if it would put him back on the firing line? Even if it would change forever the life he'd built here on Sanibel Island?

307 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

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About the author

Randy Wayne White

98 books1,348 followers
aka Carl Ramm, Randy Striker

Randy Wayne White (born 1950) is an American writer of crime fiction and non-fiction adventure tales. He has written best-selling novels and has received awards for his fiction and a television documentary. He is best known for his series of crime novels featuring the retired NSA agent Doc Ford, a marine biologist living on the Gulf Coast of southern Florida. White has contributed material on a variety of topics to numerous magazines and has lectured across the United States. A resident of Southwest Florida since 1972, he currently lives on Pine Island, Florida, where he is active in South Florida civic affairs and with the restaurant Doc Ford's Sanibel Rum Bar & Grill on nearby Sanibel Island.

Series:
* Doc Ford Mystery

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5 stars
2,101 (26%)
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3 stars
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101 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 657 reviews
Profile Image for carol..
1,625 reviews8,814 followers
June 7, 2022
Ah, the airport thriller. White's entry into the genre is solid, albeit rather peculiar. What can we say? It was the 1990s. A lot of strange things happened then, including White's idea to use a fictional South American country Masagua as part of his setting, as well as two fictional Mayan tribes. One part of my brain ended up poking at it, trying to analyze the 'why.' I could not work out if he thought he was being sensitive by using a fictionalized people, or lazy with characterization. Perhaps lazy, because despite being in Florida, and despite being in Costa Rica and a fictional South American country, White tries to give us some local flavor by using two Spanish words: 'calle,' and 'tienda.' Oh, yes, my gringo friends: 'street' and 'store.' Not particularly relevant either. It's just so peculiar.

But enough about the imaginary culture. What about the  wierd white people culture? White's particular take specializes in the Florida coastal community, homespun locals and Northern white people exploiting the Keys. There's also touches of the crazy conventioneers visiting Florida, the obnoxious low-level businessmen and the women on sexual holiday.

The other specialty White brings to the series is his interest in fish biology. There's little bits about bullhead sharks, squid, and tarpon mixed into the story. Marion Ford is doctor of marine biology, early military, now retired from government work with a few priceless contacts remaining. It's a solid set-up, with just enough tantilizing bits and pieces of backstory that White isn't locked into any one direction with his hero, should the series take off (spoiler: it did).

The beginning is intriguing, but slow. It seems like White is pulling on a lot of threads here, but of course, they are all linked and are able to be unraveled in the end. It begins with an old friend, Rafe, contacting Ford and asking for help recovering his kidnapped son. Avoiding spoilers, it eventually heads in more international-thriller directions. Tomilson, local denzien and man of unexpected talents ends up playing mission sidekick and often, comic relief:

"We might be gone for a while; keep that in mind. Maybe a week, maybe three.”
“Hell, three weeks or three months, I still only got two pairs of pants."

The main character is a bit of a cad, however, which makes it less enjoyable from my perspective. There's actually a bit that takes place in a Costa Rican whorehouse (as White calls it) that I think is supposed to show how the character is not judgemental about the women working there--although he does call it a 'whorehouse'--and anyway, it's not like he needs to pay for sex--he just wants people to know he doesn't have anything against women earning their money that way, of course. (Except that he tries to talk an unhappy white American out of doing it and to go back home). It's all very regressive, but not unusual on the scale of male detectives (thinking of early Elvis Cole in L.A., early Matt Scudder in NYC, early Dave Robicheaux in New Orleans, early Spenser in Boston), so I mention it more as a 'your-tolerance-may-vary' kind of thing, as well as hoping it will improve as White moves into the 21st century.

Overall, I rather enjoyed it, but I'm drawn toward marine biology. Actually, I happen to be drawn to archeology and historical Mayan culture as well, so it was a pity White decided to camoflauge his cultural references. Tomilson ended up being a stand-out character for me, bringing a needed touch of both humor and ethics to the story. As a first book in a series, it has a lot of promis. The writing is generally competent, closer to early Robert B. Parker than late, a cut above Michael Connelly but below Lawrence Block or Robert Crais, if that's any help.
Profile Image for Jim.
Author 7 books2,051 followers
January 10, 2018
The story starts out rather slowly, but it's interesting. Things are happening & Doc Ford is teasingly introduced. As his back story becomes more clear, so does the setting & the problem. Very well done. The excitement & everything built wonderfully. No dumps.

The characters were also great. Not just Doc, but the supporting cast. Tomlinson is a hoot & the women are very well done with more complex roles than most of the men. They're full people with flaws, agendas, & minds of their own.

The setting is great since Doc is into studying the local fauna which makes for some good observations both of them & the scenery.

The story started out great, but I wasn't thrilled how the height of the action was handled. It fell apart there for me a bit, enough that I almost knocked a star off, but it recovered nicely at the end. Great twist.

Well narrated & a lot of fun. I'll definitely read more of this series.
Profile Image for Kathy.
2,719 reviews17 followers
March 9, 2013
I'm embarrassed as a Parrot Head, Florida Keys lover and as someone who's read all the Travis McGee novels that it's taken me this long to start reading Randy Wayne White.

What the heck was I waiting for?

Doc Ford is a retired spook who has moved back home to Sanibel Island, Florida to start a business supplying schools with preserved sea creatures for dissection. Sounds like a decent life and Doc is enjoying until he gets a call from an old high school buddy who's son has been kidnapped by some bad dudes in Central America. Soon, Doc is pulled into a murder case and a search and rescue operation.

I could tell this was written in 1990 because of the lack of cell phones and computers but that didn't affect the story at all. It was full of mystery, danger and some comedy.

I'm off to read the next in the series.
Profile Image for Colleen.
376 reviews19 followers
June 29, 2015
What a disappointing all-around mess. Having recently spent a week on Sanibel Island and eaten many times at Randy Wayne White's restaurant, Doc Ford's, I was excited about reading this book. The story, first and foremost, was borrrrriiiing. I plodded through it, thinking, is this over yet? My next problem is that there wasn't much of a plot. It wasn't compelling and it didn't flow well at all. What little plot there was was also unbelievable. Doc Ford and his goofy sidekick, Tomlinson, can singlehandedly destroy a powerful Latin American guerilla rebel group with the poison of blowfish? Come on! The author rushes through the ending of the book creating lots of lousy and unbelievable excuses for why things happened. Did I happen to mention that everyone ended up rich off the emeralds they accidentally blew out of the ground in Latin America? I guess this is just one big male fantasy, which, being a woman, is probably why I didn't like it!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
571 reviews42 followers
November 17, 2020
Entertaining and really got going at the end. Blindsided me with an unexpected twist when it was all winding down. It’s funny how I enjoy these main male characters so much but know they would absolutely drive me crazy if I was in a relationship with one of them. Maybe I wish I could be like them. Lol. Aloof, do what I want, kind of a loner, living in the tropics on the beach....yep that sounds pretty good 😎
Profile Image for Kathryn Bain.
Author 31 books46 followers
October 21, 2012
This is the second Randy Wayne White book I've read. Again, I feel he overdoes the history and biology lessons. Some people might like that, I don't.

It took until they got to the village before I really got interested in the book. I wanted to know if they got the kid out alive. That's why I gave it a 3 rating.

However, the women only showed up in this book to tell Doc Ford how attractive he was and to have sex with him. They were all very one dimentional. It seemed to be that way with the first book I read as well. All I could think was stop watching the James Bond movies. It was like Doc Ford was supposed to be a scientific James Bond. However, James Bond gets those women by being charming and charismatic. Doc Ford has no charm or charisma, so what is it women see in him besides his looks? I'm not buying that every woman who bumps into Doc Ford all of a sudden wants to bed him. Once he opens his mouth, I think he would turn off most of them.

If Mr. White could create female characters with a bit more substinance and cut down on the school lessons, I would consider reading another book. However, at this point and time, I think I'll stop while I'm ahead.
Profile Image for Howard White.
53 reviews
February 11, 2011
The first of the Doc Ford mystery novels, but not necessarily the best of the, roughly, 15 Ford titles currently in print. Great summer reading (or for that matter, fall, winter, and spring, too). the novels center on the eponymous Doc Ford, marine biologist living on Dinkin's Bay (a thinly disguised Tarpon Bay) on Sanibel Island, Florida. Ford, a retired CIA operative, and a group of supporting characters including, most notably, his friend Tomlinson, spiritualist/recreational drug user ala Carlos Castaneda/and remarkably successful ladies man, become involved a variety of murders, assassinations, political machinations, and general skullduggery against a sometimes glorious subtropical background with bits and pieces of fondly remembered "Old Florida" crackers, Calusas, and crocs (yes, crocodiles do inhabit the far southern tip of Florida). These things are like popcorn. You can't stop with one. Gotta go to work the next day, don't pick up one of White's novels; you'll be reading until 3 am.
62 reviews7 followers
July 28, 2011
I am really enthusisatic about Sanibel Flats and am aleady well into my second Doc Ford adventure as I write this review. Why did no one tell me of Randy Wayne White before? A real combination of the great atmospheric writing of James Lee Burke, the high international adventure of Clive Cussler, and the humor of Carl Hiassen. What a combo! Doc White and his side kick Tomlinson are two of the most endearing fictional characters. Tomlinson, of course, evokes Hiassen's Skink, who is in a class by himself as a novelistic character. And White is careful to tie up the many strands he develops, which is satifying in the genre. I am happy to know that I now have many more of this series to read.
Profile Image for Robert Cohen.
230 reviews10 followers
January 18, 2016
So we went to Sanibel Island and had dinner at Doc Ford’s Rum Bar and Grille. The first thing that catches the eye upon entering is a tall rotating book rack with every novel by Randy Wayne White, who also happens to own the restaurant. I had never heard of Randy Wayne White, but the books said “New York Times Bestseller” on them, so shame on me, right?

The good news is the restaurant is outstanding. I give it 5 stars.

The bad news? Sanibel Flats is long on plodding plot, long on stilted and flat dialogue, and short on character development. I’ve started numerous ongoing character series by other authors, and continued after the first read. With Doc Ford? Sadly, it ends here for me.

Even the several surprises at the end, although they do tie up loose ends, are mostly implausible.

The one redeeming quality of Sanibel Flats is the character Tomlinson, an aging hippy, with a penchant for spouting Eastern Philosophy, who is very smart (Harvard) and very quirky. He is consistently charming, and when he is discussing a serious subject, is sometimes unintentionally hilarious. Tomlinson is what kept me reading the book, which I otherwise would have abandoned.
Profile Image for Rob Baker.
286 reviews8 followers
July 16, 2022
3.5 stars.

Entertaining, well-crafted crime novel set partly in Florida and partly in the fictional Central American country of Masagua.

The protagonist, “Doc” Ford is part Sherlock Holmes (he can analyze a crime scene expertly), part James Bond (international man of adventure), part Indiana Jones (at least in this book he gets involved in archeological artifacts), and part Howard Roark (a stoic, confident, rational man who stands for truth and justice but is not above breaking the law to make sure they win out).

He is a retired NSA agent who currently lives in a small shack at the end of a dock where he studies marine biology and attracts women like blood draws sharks.

In this, his first novelized adventure, Ford is drawn into a kidnapping and murder stemming from the illegal black market for Mayan relics from Masagua and simultaneously into some potential corruption in a local real estate development. The settings and the side characters are all colorful and well drawn, especially the “Watson” whom Ford picks up along the way to help him in his escapades.

The writing is solid, though a little clunky at times (especially some of the dialogue), and the story kept me engaged, intrigued, and guessing, pulling some surprises out even in the final few pages.
Profile Image for Cathy DuPont.
456 reviews174 followers
October 26, 2011
Happened to pick this up at used book store and it's the best $2 I've ever spent. Loved, just loved the book. When I find a writer I love, I tend to read everything they've written and this happened with RWW. Read them all (Doc Ford) and follow him like a groupie. Have also read his six books under Striker and enjoyed them as well, although they're not as 'polished' as the Doc Ford series. Doc Ford and Tomlinson are quite a pair and balance each other in a good, unique and fun way. White's description of the surrounding are not only believable but create a sense of place for the reader. So happy to have stumbled upon Randy Wayne White a few years ago. His books have brought me many hours of pleasurable time which was well spent. Much enjoyable reading and it all started with this great book. Can't wait until February 2012 for next one.
Profile Image for Mara Purl.
Author 41 books24 followers
March 9, 2011
Discovered Randy Wayne White (if you say his name fast, you sound like Mr. McGoo) on a recent trip to Florida. His descriptors are so original that he truly owns his location and makes it vibrate into reality. Excellent protagonist, perfectly irritating antagonist, scary plot. A lot of biological, scientific detail, too much for some, but again, he owns his subject. I listened to the excellent audio version and am signing up for the next in his series.
Profile Image for Sonny.
342 reviews7 followers
May 28, 2021
I decided to add another author to my already too full list of authors I want to read all their books ( I can write grammatically correct sentences when I want to I just chose not to at this time) and I am glad I chose Randy Wayne White.
This is the first Doc Ford mystery and I thought it was great. Full of plot twists and action, once I got started I didn’t want to stop reading until I finished it. Can’t wait to get the rest of the series.
Profile Image for Annette.
310 reviews6 followers
October 4, 2023
First book Randy Wayne White wrote. I’m amazed Doc Ford made it to the end of this suspense thriller alive. What a storyteller!
Profile Image for C.
1,240 reviews30 followers
March 16, 2011
The story itself might be ok - and better in text. The audiobook is killin me. The characters all sound like retirees.

And I have to say this: "iridescent pubic hair"? Really? Dear lord.

Overall, this is not going where I anticipated it would (in so many ways). I thought, from the way the book started out, we were going to be off on some South American caper. But no. I guess I should have read a summary first!

I gave up on it. The text version is probably much better ...the narrator just destroys what IS likeable about this.

(edit - oh, they do end up in South America but... talk about random disjointed plot...)
Profile Image for Lee.
837 reviews37 followers
January 29, 2013
The first in White's, long running "Doc Ford" series. Here is another interesting and unique character. Looking like a beach bum, helpful neighbor, with a good ear for listening... then you find out later in the book, he's not what he seemed in the beginning. Quite a bit of history/science in some fish species, but didn't overwhelm me. I'm hoping his friend and neighbor, Tomlinson, who's an 'ol stoner type dude, that just happened to study at Harvard....stays in the picture. Fun, mystery/thriller.
144 reviews9 followers
September 24, 2015
this is the first book from Randy Wayne White and the first one I have read. it was better than I expected. I liked the writing style and I enjoyed all the plot twists. I am look on forward to reading more in the series.
Profile Image for Tim.
2,259 reviews229 followers
February 6, 2013
This is an excellent adventure that’s a tad overdone on some of the violence, especially against innocents. All in all, still a good story. 8 of 10 stars
Profile Image for Matthew McElroy .
260 reviews1 follower
May 21, 2023
The book was kind of a standard two star read, then made a good run for three stars.
But the twists at the end were unexpected in the worst kind of way.
Imagine Paul writing all the letters of the New Testament, and concluding Revelation with "Hail Satan". It wouldn't make sense. It would go against everything that had already happened in the book and it would give a character who doesn't actually factor into MOST of the book an outsized impact.

That was this. Me being elected President would make as much sense as the last three chapters of this book. Or President AND NFL MVP. White probably wrote this book with something like a few notes on a pad and then just started typing.

Ford is a largely unlikable characters and there is no one that softens him or shows his redeeming characteristics. Well the fairly stock villains put him "at his best". But why wouldn't a guy who knows all the laws, all the biology, and all the history also know all the psychology? This will be the only book I read by White.
Profile Image for Robin Apold.
15 reviews
November 22, 2023
A bit slow and too detailed at times but some good plot twists throughout the book.
Profile Image for Michael Hicks.
Author 36 books462 followers
July 24, 2020
My review of SANIBEL FLATS can be found at High Fever Books.

Confession time: my entry point into Florida Noir was by way of the USA television series Burn Notice, a sort-of pastiche to 80s TV that was a bit like a cross between The A-Team and Magnum, P.I. When that show ended, I found myself with a hankering for more Florida-based crime stories. I was bored of the usual big-city settings like New York and Los Angeles, and wanted to keep exploring the quirks of places like Miami and the Keys. I wanted the sun, sex, and surf of the Sunshine State and all its attendant madness of swampy murders and bloody conch shells. I was recommended two authors, both whom of have long-running series' -- James W. Hall for his Thorne books, and Randy Wayne White's Doc Ford Novels. I read several of Thorne's early adventures and enjoyed them, but Doc Ford languished in my TBR.

White presently has nearly 30 Doc Ford novels under his belt (plus the Doc Ford's Rum Bar & Grille restaurant chain, two factors that should help prove just how enormously popular and successful this series is!), which, as a strict read-in-order book nerd, makes me wish I'd started on this series much earlier and had less of an uphill climb to face. On the other hand, if the rest of the series proves to be as enjoyable as Doc Ford's 1990 debut in Sanibel Flats, I'm not likely to mind having such a surplus of books to read.

Doc Ford is a former government agent (what agency he worked for and what he did for them is unclear) now living off a marina on Sanibel Island collecting sharks to sell to schools for dissection. He's lured back into a life of intrigue by an old associate, Rafe Hollins, whose son has been kidnapped. Hollins used to smuggle artifacts for a Central American revolutionary, to whom he is now in debt, with the life of his child hanging in the balance. Doc agrees to help, but when he goes to meet Hollins, he instead finds his former friend hanging dead and being picked apart by vultures.

Sanibel Flats is a surprisingly complex mystery with a lot of dangling threads a lesser author would have gotten caught up in and left flailing. White, though, proves to be incredibly competent at juggling all of the various intricacies woven throughout the narrative, and he keeps the plot bouncing from one subplot to another. This is a pretty densely layered noir that pulls in elements of marine biology, Mayan history, Florida land development, guerrilla armies, and romantic entanglements. Somehow, White makes sense of it all, even if the resolution ultimately felt a little too pat and a touch disappointing after all that had come before it.

I can forgive the squandered ending, though, simply because I enjoyed the characters so much. Ford is a nicely complex-but-trying-to-be-simple man, and it's a lot of fun to see the characters at the marina try to figure him out. They peg him as a quiet, bookish guy who wouldn't hurt a fly. Readers will instantly know different, and I had a blast watching his pals learn just how wrong they are when Doc's encounter with a snotty businessman goes south early on. I dug seeing Ford manipulate his way in and out of situations, social engineer those around him, and use a welcome combination of spycraft and science to keep the upper hand. He's a smart guy, as his pal Tomlinson, a hippie whose brains belies his appearance. Both men have cultivated disguises of sorts, and discovering who they really are is a lot of fun.

Wayne leaves you wanting more from each of them, and I'm certainly game for another adventure. Thankfully, I have a lot of catching up to do!
Profile Image for Mary.
817 reviews12 followers
March 27, 2021
Absolutely Love the character, doc Ford, and his sidekicks, Tomlinson the intellectual hippy is one of my faves. Doc gets a call from an old friend from High School, and agrees to help him find his son who has been kidnapped, most likely by outlaws in South American Jungle. It is in an area where Doc used to live and work, before he was sent home. Now he has to go back in the danger zone and find the boy.
Profile Image for Don.
229 reviews10 followers
February 11, 2022
I have to admit I was completely absorbed by White's first crime series novel starring Doc Ford, a somewhat mysterious academic marine biologist and former government agent that has decided to 'retire' in Florida. What he was retiring from remains a mystery - but, he's setup shop as a biological supply shop for schools (marine animals for dissection, etc). All is well until....

A great start to a series for a first novel - smart character, interesting side characters and a good mystery. This was 4 to 5-star reading through the first half the book only to fall on its face in the second half. The story became cliched and one had to completely suspend disbelief. 1.5 to 2-stars for the rest of the story. The ending is an absolute writing mess - new information all jammed into the last chapter as if the author was rushed to get the book out. (The writing style changed as well which was perplexing).

I'll give White a break on book one since I've heard they finally get better. But, for me, this was a 3-star read overall.
Profile Image for Elissajeanne boise.
71 reviews2 followers
January 14, 2010
doc ford is my ideal man. i would want to be his woman did i not possess the certainty that i would end up dead or estranged. he's badder than bourne, sexier than dirk pitt, and as smart as pendergast. the dynamic between he and tomlinson grows richer and more bizarre with every book. these are men everyone would benefit from meeting. i know they're make believe but somewhere there exists persons after who these characters were modeled and i'd like to know them in a biblical sense. this series makes it imperative that i see florida's west coast before it is destroyed by the tourist industry.
5,326 reviews62 followers
April 29, 2017
This first entry in the Doc Ford series is a great lead-in to the series. You can see why it caught on.

Doc Ford quits the espionage business to go into his real business of marine biology. He retires to a marina and becomes part of the community.

Of course, nothing is ever that easy in an espionage novel.

An old friend's son is kidnapped, and Ford tracks the kid to Central America, where he gets involved with revolutionaries.

Great stuff.
Profile Image for Keith.
69 reviews1 follower
August 28, 2012
This was a fun read. In addition to the adventures with the unscrupulous business men and central American revolutionary gorillas, I enjoyed the marine biology references, description of the tropical jungles, and life on the fringes on Florida.
I am looking forward to reading other Doc Ford stories by Randy Wayne White.
Profile Image for Brendy Bou.
14 reviews2 followers
January 28, 2014
I enjoy the character development in these books. The setting is where I will perhaps spend much of my retirement days, and I'd love to meet up with a "Doc Ford" in the area! ;-) He is intelligent, loves great music, and extremely intelligent balanced with a kind heart.
I may read all of Randy Wayne White books in the future. Fun and exciting.
Profile Image for D.G. Speirs.
Author 5 books6 followers
January 14, 2023
This was picked up due to a restaurant on Sanibel Island, where my wife and I escaped from the "Zombie Apocalypse" first in 2020. I like the food, especially the rum (Bumbu is our new favorite), and any restaurant with a bookshop cannoty be bad, right?

Sanibel Flats was White's first novel, and like mine, it shows. It was a relatively easy read, it introduced the cast of characters and the fictional marina (overlayed by location onto a real wildlife sanctuary). Being three decades old, some of its references are outdated, but overall, the story holds up. There are a couple of twists - not revealed here as I won't ruin a mystery-adventure with spoilers.

Theren have been a LOT of Doc Ford books, as well as a second series, and now a new YA series set in the same area. However, all of this is on hold now, as White's beloved Sanibel Island was Ground Zero for the destruction of Hurricane Ian in 2022. I plan to read through his other books in order and see how this real-life tragedy colors any new works.



Profile Image for Marcia Suppo.
30 reviews
December 3, 2023
I was excited to read this book, but the excitement did not last long. This was not an easy or quick read. I appreciate all the research by the author. However, at times the author went on and on about a topic, that really didn’t mean that much to the story in the long run.
Profile Image for Julia DeBarrioz.
Author 6 books52 followers
December 19, 2014
I really enjoyed this book, it was pretty much a dream line-up of plot elements: a secret agent (even if retired), south florida, central america, mayan history, revolutionaries, marine biology, and even a little painting.

I found it to be well written, and the twist at the end surprised me, which these days doesn't happen often. Doc Ford is a likeable character, super smart, funny, interesting, and the descriptions of Sanibel and sea life are wonderful. A++!

*On a side note, which has nothing to do with the author or the story, which I found to be top quality--I listened to the audio version, and I utterly loathed the narrator's performance. Look, I know it's not easy to embody several different characters with one voice, but geeze he butchered it. His voice didn't fit with the character of Doc, his interpretation of Tomlinson was very annoying, and any of the female voices were pure charicacture. I will continue with this series, but I will definitely go the paper route next time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 657 reviews

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