When Paradise Beckoned

In the mid-1970s, an award-winning Tampa Bay news anchor finds himself at the forefront of an international drug-smuggling investigation. In this recollection of true events, Paul and his wife Janie take a hard look at how they got there. The crux to the novel is the investigation that ensued nearly two years after Paul and Janie had started their travel business, flying small groups in vintage WWII DC-3s to destinations like Grand Cayman, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and even Haiti. Using a small air service to reach these islands of paradise, they developed friendships with the pilots, who, unbeknownst to Paul and Janie, had a second, more lucrative business in the Caribbean.

In this novel, Lisa Hayes, daughter of the couple and participant in some of the journeys, revisits the trips, the destinations, the regular travelers, and the strangers who shared their adventures.

Immerse yourself in a story that is stranger than fiction. Including photographs to document the happenings, this book will take you to sunny beaches, incredible dive sites, unique island foods and people . . . even brushes with the Bermuda Triangle, the Cuban Air Force, and voodoo.

Sometimes being in the right place at the right time can send your life whirring like a propeller on a course for change and unexpected growth. That's what happened to Paul and Janie. This is their story.