The Pope of Palm Beach: Tim Dorsey’s Wild Ride Through Florida’s Most Infamous County
If you want to understand Palm Beach County, the real Palm Beach County, not the glossy magazine version, Tim Dorsey wrote the guidebook. It just happens to be disguised as a crime novel.
The Pope of Palm Beach follows Serge Storms, Dorsey’s manic, caffeine-fueled, trivia-obsessed antihero, on a journey through Palm Beach County’s layered history. The story bounces between the 1970s and the present day, tracing how a scrappy kid from Riviera Beach became a local legend while the county transformed around him.
Florida History Wrapped in Chaos
Dorsey, a former Tampa Tribune reporter who passed away in November 2023, packed every chapter with real Florida history, geography, and culture. The book rips through Palm Beach landmarks, forgotten stories, and the kind of details that only someone who truly loved the state would know. From the old Burt Reynolds dinner theater to the backroads of the Glades, it is a love letter written at 100 miles per hour.
Why This One
Dorsey wrote 26 Serge Storms novels, and every single one doubles as a Florida travel guide for people who like their tourism with a side of mayhem. But The Pope of Palm Beach stands out because it captures one county’s entire arc, from old Florida to new money, through the eyes of someone who grew up watching it change. Start here, then work your way through the rest of the series. You will not be bored.
