 First edition | |
| Author | Christopher Moore |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Michael McGurl |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Romance, Comedy |
| Publisher | Avon |
Publication date | 1997 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| Pages | 325 |
| ISBN | 0-06-073544-9 |
| OCLC | 56195254 |
| Preceded by | Bloodsucking Fiends |
| Followed by | The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove |
Island of the Sequined Love Nun is a novel by American absurdist writer Christopher Moore, published in 1997. It is based partly on the author's personal experiences in Micronesia.
Plot
Tucker (Tuck) Case is a pilot for a cosmetics company, who crashes the company plane while having sex. This event causes Tuck to be blacklisted from flying in the United States, so he accepts a lucrative offer from a doctor-missionary on a remote Micronesian island to transport cargo to and from the island and Japan.
Tuck moves to the island with a Filipino trans woman navigator and a talking fruit bat. There Tuck eventually uncovers a horrible secret harbored by the doctor and his wife, who capitalized on the fact that the island natives are under the influence of a cargo cult that developed as a result of establishment by Allies of an air runway there during World War II.
Shakespearean allusions
In chapter 8, "The Humiliation of the Pilot as a Passenger", Moore alludes to Shakespeare's Hamlet. Tuck is the heir to the Denmark Silverware Corporation, much like Hamlet being the prince. Later Tuck's mother marries his uncle after her husband has a not-so-accidental riding accident resulting in his death.
Tuck is then summoned by an old girlfriend named Zoophilia (similar to Ophelia). While approaching the house in a rage he runs over Zoophilia's father. Zoophilia meets her demise by taking a handful of Prozac and a mouthful of water then drowns in her hot tub, grief-stricken. Before Tuck leaves he is threatened by Zoophilia's brother.