The Serpent of Venice by Christopher Moore

Synopsis:  After the death of his wife, Pocket the Fool, is kidnapped, imprisoned (well walled up in a dungeon, brick by brick) and left for dead.  With the help of some kind of sea monster he is released and seeks revenge on the people that did this to him and killed his bride.  We meet a slew of characters Iago, Rodrigo, Bassiano, and a list of other names that end in O, as the book says.  He must work with Jessica, a wannabe pirate daughter of a Jewish Venetian moneylender named Shylock to plot against the O ending names and avenge his wife and attempted murder plot.

My review:  Okay book, but not nearly as good as Fool, or some of his other works.  I am glad that I read Fool again to remind me of several of the characters, like Jeff his pet monkey, Drool his fool apprentice and the Ghost Cordelia.  There is quite a bit going on in this book and I did not find it as cohesive as some of his others.

I feel a bit torn, I am disappointed that I am a little disappointed in this book.  I had the highest of expectations and feel a bit let down.  Don't get me wrong, I will probably end up reading this book again at some point in the future because that is just what I do with Christopher Moore books but the book was just okay to me.  Maybe once I reread it since I already know the story, some of the plots and subplots will become more clear.  Christopher Moore is still my favorite author and I will still wait in line to meet him and I will still read anything he puts in print.

My rating:  6
Pages:  316
Author website:  http://www.chrismoore.com/