Book Review: "Island of the Sequined Love Nun"

At the recommendation of both one of our neighbors and one of my long-time best friends, it was advised that I check out the works of the author Christopher Moore. (No relation to Dudley Moore, before you ask, given if you know me. ;)) It just so happened that our neighbor owns quite a few of his books and loaned a few of them to me. After fighting the mass distraction of procrastination, I finally got around to reading the first of these, and it happened to be Island of the Sequined Love Nun. It had me at the title alone, which sounded (to my mind anyway) like an odd combination of Liza Minnelli, Keith Moon's character in Frank Zappa's 200 Motels (where he plays a suicidal, roller-skating nun), and Sally Field's iconic Sister Bertrille. Knowing full well it wouldn't have anything to do with any of these, but intrigued by the mental image it conjured up anyhow, I immediately dove into it and wasn't sorry.

From page one, I was hooked. The main character, Tucker Case, is a ancoholic womanizing pilot for a large cosmetics conglomerate. One day, his appetite for both liquor and women gets him in trouble as he decides to steal a plane and join the Mile High club in it. Needless to say,he crashes, and nearly dismembers himself (emphasis on the latter half of that word...), and has his life in the balance of whether he'll be sent to prison, excommunicated, or what will happen to him. Having had his flying license revoked, and having not much else to offer the world he can do with himself as a career, he's sunk. But along one day comes an offer from a doctor out in the island of Alaulu offering him wealth beyond his wildest dreams, and all he has to do is fly a plane "for medical supplies" for him. What he doesn't know that he's getting himself into is an island dictated by a cargo cult, and his 'supplies' he'll be flying and harvested organs of the clueless islanders.

All of the characters in this story are intensely unique and colorful, and I LOVE it. Not one is your typical cookie cutter image of anybody. They're incredibly memorable, as is the storyline itself. It's unlike anything you'll probably ever read elsewhere, and I would highly recommend this book to you no matter what sort of genre you enjoy, because it has it all included. You won't be disappointed. A huge thumbs up, props, and 5 stars to Mr. Moore for this fine work!