As usual, GRAmel has outdone itself with Tropicana, a pitch-perfect setting for adventure, mystery, and action in a tropical banana republic. Set in the tiny, fictional state of San José, Tropicana weaves a complex setting suitable for a wide variety of games, drawing from a huge body of inspiration.

Geographically, San José is located near Guatemala on the Caribbean side of Central America. The mainland portion of San José is made up of dense jungles, a brown tropical river, a range of mountains featuring an active volcano, and numerous ancient Mesoamerican ruins and abandoned Spanish mines and other sites. Extending into the Caribbean is a peninsula where most of San José's population lives in small towns and the sprawling city after which the country is named. One part Rio de Janeiro, one part Cartegena, one part Miami, the city is a playground for drug runners, movie stars, spies, treasure hunters, gangsters, surfers, and low lifes. Numerous islands dot the sea near the peninsula, some converted into high-class resorts, others owned by billionaires, while others are empty or used for other purposes.

Part One ("Bienvenido a San José") is the largest individual chapter, discussing at great length the history of this little country, starting from its mysterious origins with the indigenous peoples and their strange practices, to waves of conquistadors and colonizers, to its struggles with piracy, to the modern era of drugs and politics. It also introduces the reader to a dossier of major players and organizations in San José, providing more than enough enemies and possible confederates for a long-running campaign.

Part Two ("From Tropicana With Love") explains how to make a character for use in this setting using the Savage Worlds core rules. It explains which skills, Hindrances, and Edges are disallowed or modified, and introduces some new ones. Here is also one of Tropicana's most interesting and flavorful additions, the selection of a type of music that represents your character, a vital part of your character's identity when used in conjunction with the "Tropicana Jukebox" rule described later in the book.

Part Three ("Hot Stuff") discusses suitable gear, introduces some new gear options, and has a quick method to determine availability. It also has a quick system for creating customized gear and vehicles.

Part Four ("They're Beautiful, They're Brilliant, and They Work for Me") details rules for creating your own agency -- a formal group of characters who can be hired to undertake various kinds of work. These groups can engage in private investigation, salvage and recovery, transport, protection, you name it. These rules have guidelines for creating headquarters, managing operations, and even determining hirelings, income, and renown.

Part Five ("Pulp, Action, and Weird") are the setting rules for Tropicana. There are a few new subsystems here -- really more like refinements of existing systems so the GM doesn't have to puzzle his or her way through it. This includes a system for handling competitions, disguises, events between adventures, gambling, seduction, shadowing, and the innovative "Tropicana Jukebox." The latter involves a player-created soundtrack for the game, where a randomized song at the start of each combat provides benefits for the character whose song comes up first.

Part Six ("Como Puede Ser Verdad?") is the Gamemaster's section, designed to help GMs put together possible adventures in this setting. It goes over different genre approaches, from horror to espionage to exploration. It also gives suggestions for types of characters and how to get them involved, expands on the Agency rules, explores possible opponents, and steps back to look at San José's role in international politics.

Part Seven ("Live and Let Die") is a Bestiary, starting off with typical animals one might encounter, such as giant leeches, monkeys, jaguars, and different kinds of swarms. Next is a long list of human opponents, giving stats for the henchmen and bosses of all the numerous gangs, militias, para-military organizations, and so on.

If you're a fan of any of the following, you'll enjoy this setting: • James Bond movies • Just Cause (videogame) • Clive Cussler novels • Grand Theft Auto • Burn Notice • Romancing the Stone • Scarface • Uncharted (videogame) • Mission: Impossible • Spring Breakers • Miami Vice • City of God

I was actually surprised to not find a list of inspirational sources in the Gamemaster's section, but pretty much any movie in a tropical setting, featuring spies or jungle mysteries or drug trafficking, and rife with action and adventure would be perfect.

One other flaw was the absence of a map, even a crude one, of the Republic of San José. I'm a visual guy, and knowing where things are relative to one another would be very helpful in piecing together a full understanding of this setting. It's still fully functional, of course -- and some might prefer a more fluid geography -- but for me a setting like this is deeply rooted in its geography. In fact, a player's map would also be very helpful. The creators mentioned a possible gazetteer in the future, which would be wonderful. But even barring that, I'd love to see a simple b&w PDF map, even better if lots of locations are on a layer than can be turned off and printed for a player's map.

Being a fan of explosive action, dark mysteries, and wild action, I love this setting and can't wait to run it!