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    The Serpent of Venice: A Novel
    The Serpent of Venice: A Novel
    The Serpent of Venice: A Novel
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Serpent of Venice: A Novel

    Written by Christopher Moore

    Narrated by Euan Morton

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    New York Times bestselling author Christopher Moore channels William Shakespeare and Edgar Allan Poe in The Serpent of Venice, a satiric Venetian gothic that brings back the Pocket of Dog Snogging, the eponymous hero of Fool, along with his sidekick, Drool, and pet monkey, Jeff.

    Venice, a long time ago. Three prominent Venetians await their most loathsome and foul dinner guest, the erstwhile envoy of Britain and France, and widower of the murdered Queen Cordelia: the rascal Fool Pocket.

    This trio of cunning plotters—the merchant, Antonio; the senator, Montressor Brabantio; and the naval officer, Iago—have lured Pocket to a dark dungeon, promising an evening of spirits and debauchery with a rare Amontillado sherry and Brabantio’s beautiful daughter, Portia.

    But their invitation is, of course, bogus. The wine is drugged. The girl isn’t even in the city limits. Desperate to rid themselves once and for all of the man who has consistently foiled their grand quest for power and wealth, they have lured him to his death. (How can such a small man, be such a huge obstacle?). But this Fool is no fool . . . and he’s got more than a few tricks (and hand gestures) up his sleeve.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateApr 22, 2014
    ISBN9780062309112
    Author

    Christopher Moore

    Christopher Moore is the author of seventeen previous novels, including Shakespeare for Squirrels, Noir, Secondhand Souls, Sacré Bleu, Fool, and Lamb. He lives in San Francisco, California.

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    Reviews for The Serpent of Venice

    4.5/5

    105 ratings27 reviews

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    • 2/5
      The Serpent of Venice by Christopher Moore no matter how hard I tried, I could not keep up with all the characters in the book, nor did I want to! Very ambitious work. Read 284/355 pages and could NOT finish!**

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      This humorous (often silly) novel is based on two Shakespearean plays (Merchant of Venice and Othello) and Poe?s (Cask of Amontillado). The setting evokes medieval Venice masterfully. Despite the light nature of the story, the historical context is enlightening. The plot moves rapidly and most of the jokes are bawdy, thus maintaining interest. Moore treats the foundational texts so creatively that one needs to approach his treatment of them with some caution. However, some familiarity with them would be quite helpful. All in all, this delightful book was light but engrossing enough to recommend it.
    • 5/5
      The Serpent of Venice is outrageously funny and full of cheeky wit. I love both Shakespeare and Poe, so I wasn?t sure how I would react to a satire that combined both. I shouldn?t have worried, Christopher Moore did a wonderful job of blending the worlds together. The Serpent of Venice is a Shakespearean retelling of The Merchant of Venice meets Othello with a dash of Cask of Amontillado thrown in. One of my favorite characters from Fool, Pocket, is featured in this book along with Shakespeare?s Othello and Desdemona. Oh and a ghost, because well ?there?s always a bloody ghost.?Filled with bawdy humor, sex, murder, and a serpent that is obsessed with Pocket, Moore?s latest novel is definitely a page-turner. I could not put it down once I started it. I found myself having those awkward laugh-out-loud-in-public-while-reading moments because Pocket is such a sarcastic yet lovable character. I don?t want to give any spoilers so I won?t go too much into it but I would definitely recommend you give it a try.
    • 4/5
      Ah, the sequel is never as good as the original is it? A fine addition to the Christopher Moore library, but well behind better works like Lamb, Fluke, Fool or Dirty Job.
    • 5/5
      This is a hilarious reworking of Othello and The Merchant of Venice with a little Poe thrown in for good measure. Pocket is a fool, well not a fool in the usual sense but a jester you could say. He wears his motley proudly and finds himself at the heart of a murder plot in which he is the star. After being rescued by a mysterious sea creature he sets out to undo the men who plotted his murder and that of his beloved queen. Oh and he has to rescue his idiot apprentice and his monkey as well. Of course he needs an accomplice and that void is filled by a young Jewish girl named Jessica whom he promptly corrupts. I give it 5 out of 5 stars and I also suggest that you check out the first novel featuring Pocket which is entitled Fool.WARNING side effects of reading this book may include but are not excluded to: Bouts of uncontrolled bawdiness and the need to shout Fuckstockings at random times. As well as uncontrollable urges to hit people with a walking stick that is adorned with a fool's head.
    • 5/5
      The book is hilarious. Moore takes the characters and plots from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice and Othello and combines them into a unusual and great story. The main character is Pocket, the main character from Moore's King Lear.?Without giving away the convoluted plot (almost as convoluted as Shakespeare's original plots) I have to say the best part of the novel is the dialog: it is brilliant and it sparkles and its filled with humor.?Don't miss this book if you like your stories served with humor and satire.? if you like this book by Moore, you may like my Falstaff's Big Gamble. It combines Hamlet and Othello into a Shakespearean parody.
    • 3/5
      The Serpent of Venice was an absolute hoot. While I have always loved Shakespeare?s sonnets, I never did have the same love for his written plays. Don?t shoot me, I enjoy them immensely ? but reading them can be a taxing experience. Now those plays seen live or on screen? Fabulous darling. So when I saw Christopher Moore was going to do his own Shakespearean rendition of a mashup of Othello and The Merchant of Venice I was fully unprepared but thought it would be fun to give it a whirl.

      Moore takes Shakespeare and turns him on his head, spanks him with a bit of balderdash and sends him off crying to his mumsy. All of that is of course a treat to watch. I have to admit I?ve never read The Merchant of Venice so some of the nuances there might have been lost on me, but in no way hampered my enjoyment of the book. I hear some of the characters in this book were also featured in his previous book FOOL, but I?ve only read his Bloodsucking Fiends, Love Story books, so I wouldn?t know. Luckily, I didn?t feel like I was missing any information even though I didn?t read the ?first? book. However there must be something said about the writing style in which this is written. Sometimes I felt like I was being left out of a joke that I was expected to understand. Maybe that is just me, or the inspired content, or maybe I don?t have as naughty of a mind. Who knows, sometimes it worked for me and occasionally it didn?t. I do love comedy and satire though and this gave me plenty of that. I had to smirk at his use of Shakespeare?s Chorus.

      So what is it about ? no why ever would I freaking tell you that? Read the plays? No? ? then read the book. But there?s a ghost ? because ?there?s always a bloody ghost.? Oh and let?s not forget the serpent itself and sex. From what I hear if you?re a Moore fan than the titillating sex is to be expected. All in all, The Serpent of Venice will be a riotous read for the right reader.
    • 4/5
      This one wasn't as good as Fool or Sacre Bleu, but I liked it better than A Dirty Job.
    • 3/5
      Though merging three narratives creates some structural instability, "The Serpent of Venice" is still a fine, riotous, side-splitting Shakespearean re-imagining.
    • 4/5
      The Serpent of Venice is the sequel to Fool, starring lovable, raunchy jester Pocket of Dog Snogging. This time he is in Venice at Cordelia?s behest to tell the Doge of her displeasure with the ongoing wars and the money and lives they waste. (She became Queen of England at the end of Fool, if you don?t remember.) In the course of this, he meets characters from Othello and The Merchant of Venice. It doesn?t go well for him. He begins to uncover a plot to engineer a war (and profit from it) and gets bricked into an alcove of a basement. (Think Cask of Amontillado by Poe.) Oh, and there?s a sea monster, which Pocket first assumes is a mermaid. He?s wrong. So very wrong. As with all of Moore?s works, this book is hilarious with a good deal of bawdy humor, because Christopher Moore (and let?s be honest, because Shakespeare too). One of the things I really love about Moore is how obvious it is that he?s done his homework. I learned that Jews in Venice had to live on a separate island form everyone else in the 13th century, and that they were required to wear a yellow hat. Why were these things skipped in my medieval history classes? Of special interest to me, I also learned that The Merchant of Venice included the first written use of the name Jessica, which means that I probably have Shakespeare to thank for my name. Thanks Will! I can?t recommend Moore enough. You can probably read this without having read Fool, but why would you want to? Just go read all of his books. Trust me.
    • 3/5
      Title - The Serpent of VeniceAuthor - Christopher MooreSource - Scottsdale City LibrarySummary - Venice, a long time ago, three prominent men lure their dinner guest, the diminutive Fool Pocket, an ambassador sent from England, to a dungeon with the promise of wine and loose women. It is a trap of course and the Fool dwarf is locked away to die slowly. The three men have a plot to send Venice into another Holy War, but Pocket with the great Othello has already thwarted that plan. So they plan again. To capture Pocket. To murder his love Queen Cordelia. To discredit the Moor Othello and his love Desdemona. To replace the Doge of Venice and in doing so become insanely rich and famous. These three, the merchant Antonio, Montressor Brabantio and the Officer Iago have planned on everything. That is except the horny murderous sea dragon that frees Pocket from their trap, after giving him a good shag or two.But this is Pocket, no ordinary Fool and when he escapes he unleashes a plan of vengeance so full of hate and misery and more than a little ridiculous fun. Loose, with the help of the Jewess pirate Jessica, his oversized and simple friend Drool, his pet monkey Jeff among others, Pocket sets himself to take revenge on the trio and save Venice from a War it cannot win or afford.With a cast of characters borrowed and stolen from several Shakespearian plays, the plot folds and unfolds and then folds again. There is betrayal, there is innuendo, there is lying and plotting and of course there is a ghost. Because there always is a bloody ghost.Review - Christopher writes ridiculous fun books. His characters are unreal and in their own sad ways rather pathetic. But they still rise above the challenges and in some way find a path to win out. Or to at least piss a good lot of folks off along the way. People we ourselves wouldn't mind pissing off if we didn't have good manners.Pocket first came to being in the book Fool. A humorous adaption of the play King Lear by Shakespeare and I loved it. I loved it so much I told my oldest daughter about it and how funny King Lear was. Being the aristocratic and stuffy Shakespearian lover she is, she was offended which of course, just made it all the more fun for me."...Moi?" said I, in perfect fucking French. "Toi, mon amour," said she, in the teasing tongue of the frog. She kissed me lightly on the eyebrow and danced across our bedchamber to a heavy table where lay paper, ink, and quill. "The kingdom is going to shit. I need my loyal knights here as a show of strength against those who would usurp me. You need to make it clear to the Venetians that I have no intention of joining yet another holy Crusade, nor will anyone from any of my lands, or, if I can manage it, our allies. And I want you to wear your motley. I want message to come from a fool." "But I am your king." "No you're not." "The royal consort?" I ventured. "I have, in my weaker moments, shagged a fool," said she, her head bowed in shame. "And married the same," said I. "I don't think we should dwell on that, love. Go to them. Speak my mind. Dwell in their palaces, drink their wine, learn their secrets, and leave them flustered, frustrated, and insulted, as I know only you can do." "But, lamb, sending a fool to the pope-" "Oh, bugger the pope!" "I think he already has someone to do that..."See, irreverent. Offensive and is so rare in today's literature. Just damn funny."...So," said I. "Just chopping random bits off a bloke, something you Jews do a lot then..."This is Othello/The Merchant of Venice after a really fun bender. Shakespeare on crack if you will. Without the paranoia. But there is a ghost. There is always a ghost. And of course the Fucking French.
    • 4/5
      Christopher Moore plays with Shakespeare in a mashup of The Merchant of Venice and Otello. As told by the Fool, Pocket of Dog Snogging. Oh, and there's a dragon!
    • 4/5
      A follow-up to Fool which sees Pocket transferred into a couple of other of Shakespeare's plays along with a smattering of Poe just for good measure. The Merchant of Venice and Othello provide much of the backdrop for his adventures this time around. We join up with Pocket as he's about to fall foul of a murderous plot hatched by Brabantio, Iago and Antonio to rid themselves of a troublesome fool and proceed with their plan for a new crusade. Finding himself in chains behind a newly created wall in a dungeon was not the ending Pocket had desired to a promised night of wine and debauchery but finds succour and eventual rescue from a mysterious sea creature and ends up in the employ of Shylock. Can the Jew and the fool work together to wreak revenge on Antonio and his cohorts while also protecting Othello and rescue Marco Polo from a Genoese prison along the way?I haven't read any of the source material from where this story is garnered from but that didn't spoil my enjoyment of this second outing of Pocket of Dog Snogging. The afterword at the end of the book describes how the author combined certain characters to keep the cast more manageable along with some historical notes for the setting. This is a bawdy tale of revenge set in Venice along with a few side trips during the late fourteenth century. There are numerous laugh out loud moments to be had throughout the story, the dialogue is especially funny, togeher with plenty of excitement and danger to make this a quick and easy read. Thoroughly enjoyable.
    • 4/5
      This is a fun, irreverent comedy about a fool (jester) caught up in political/commercial intrigue in a fantasy version of Venice of the late thirteenth century. The story is based (mainly) on various Shakespearian plays. With this as a starting point, one might expect some sophisticated humor. This is not what Moore provides. In some ways, this is refreshing because one need not be an English major or historian to enjoy the book, but it does tend to reach fairly far down to appeal to a baser audience. The characters, without exception, have the emotional maturity and self-restraint of hormonally supercharged adolescents. Their juvenile antics make them funny in the same way some people find clowns funny, but it is a superficial kind humor, which, in this case, relies on vulgar language, sex, a few fart references, and boob flashes. It's crude, but it manages to float (just) above the shallows of the metaphorical comic cesspit.

      I can't say this book is for everyone, but it should appeal to readers who enjoy humor of the South Park or Family Guy variety. Although I am not much of a fan of these (or TV in general), I enjoyed it.
    • 3/5
      Monty Python does Shakespeare (and a smidgen of Poe). I like Monty Python, Shakespeare, and Poe, but somehow this book just made me want to go read Terry Pratchett. I think the ratio of silliness to story is off.
    • 4/5
      I read my first Christopher Moore novel in the 90s when I picked up a remaindered copy of Coyote Blue for cheap. I loved it, but for some reason or another it was more than a decade until I picked up another one of his novels. Lately I've been slowly reading his other books, including his most recent work, The Serpent of Venice, which I was lucky enough to get a review copy of.Serpent of Venice is a sequel to the novel Fool. Fool was a parody of King Lear, starring Pocket, Lear's fool. This book also stars Pocket, and as the title suggests is (partly) a parody of The Merchant of Venice. It's also a parody of Othello with a dash of Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado" thrown in.Being a Shakespearean parody, the book is fairly bawdy and uses a good bit of archaic language. Being a Christopher Moore novel, there is a lot of humor. There is also some fool on dragon sex, for the sort of people who get turned on by that sort of thing.I don't think this is Moore's best book, but it's good, and it's funny enough that I laughed out loud at several points. It's well worth reading.
    • 4/5
      Let me be a little vain and talk first about the physical appearance of this book. I love it! The pages are nice and thick and the edges are a rich blue that matches the cover. There are little red accents as well, for the chapter titles and the chorus. It?s a nice change of pace compared to the standard paperback (or hardcover) and I love special little touches like colored ink.The Serpent of Venice follows Pocket after his adventures in Fool. He?s off to Venice to prevent a war and befriends Othello and Desdemona while dealing with the wicked scheming of Iago and his partner in crime Montressor Brabantio. As usual Pocket is constantly trying to outwit the long list of people who wish to kill him. The book jacket describes this as ?a literary satire, a dramedy mash-up rich with delights, including (but not limited to): foul plots, counterplots, true love, jealousy, murder, betrayal, revenge, codpieces, three mysterious locked boxes, a boatload of gold, a pound of flesh, occasional debauchery, and water (lots of water).? There are several familiar Shakespearean characters in this book, and of course, a ghost (there?s always a bloody ghost)!What I liked:As usual, Christopher Moore makes me laugh. The Serpent of Venice book is set after the events in Fool (see my review for that here), so it helps to read that first, however, I think that even if you?ve never read it, you can follow what?s going on easily enough and still chuckle at all of Moore?s jokes. The witty banter between characters is very Shakespearean, though much easier to read.Again, as with Fool, one doesn?t need to be well versed in Shakespeare to enjoy the book (though Moore borrows from Othello and The Merchant of Venice as well as other sources), but it does help to at least know a vague outline of the plots. Personally, I enjoyed Othello and read it somewhat recently (if within the past couple of years is considered recent?) so it was nice to see how Moore played with the characters.This time around there were very few footnotes. Instead we were treated to the Chorus, our snarky, red-inked, rhyming narrator.What I didn?t like:I didn?t feel that The Serpent of Venice was quite as funny as Fool. I can?t quite put my finger on what was missing, but it just wasn?t as powerful as the first book, maybe because I?d already witnessed Moore?s style of Shakespeare parody. The other stylistic choice that I had a hard time getting used to was the POV switching. Fool is told from Pocket?s perspective but in The Serpent of Venice Moore decides to add in some third person. I would have been fine with this, but he changes point of view mid-chapter. So many times we will go from third person, following Iago for instance, then there will be a switch to Pocket?s first person view and it could be disorienting at times. I do believe most switches are broken up by the chorus or the wonderful little dragon symbol, but I would have felt better about it had each chapter stuck to one POV.But if you?re already a fan of Moore and if you?ve read Fool (or if you haven?t), you should check this book out! Again, it does contain some adult language and content, so younger readers might want to stay away. If you haven?t read any of Moore?s work, I?m not sure I would recommend starting off with Serpent simply because it is intended to be a sequel. But if this book sounds at all interesting to you, go pick up something by Moore!For quotes and pictures, check out my blog!
    • 4/5
      Christopher Moore is both funny and creative. He is a great change of pace from heavy literature. This book combines mainly plot lines from Othello and The Merchant of Venice along with a some Edgar Allan Poe. It brings back Pocket "the fool" the jester from Moore's previous novel " Fool". Moore just has a way with language. Although some of the sexual humor is a bit crude it fits with the book. If you are looking for a good laugh with creativity etc. then I recommend all of Christopher Moore(Lamb is his best) but this one is good but I would read "Fool" first. Enjoy
    • 3/5
      Fuckstockings. If that odd expletive offends you, Christopher Moore's books are not for you. On the other hand, if you find that to be an invaluable addition to your turn the air blue vocabulary, you should pick his books up immediately. If you are undecided, well, put some pants on and pick a side. Because there's no middle ground with a Moore book. He writes about vampires (human and animal), zombies, Jesus's childhood, the art world and artists, a dumb angel, demons, Shakespeare's characters, Native American myths, and more. This eclectic collection probably does not sound like something I'd read at all, aside from the inventive and genius swearing thing, because I do love a thumping great curse word. And yet, I love Moore's works. He's smart and witty and twisted in the best sense of the word. The Serpent of Venice, Moore's latest and a sequel of sorts (not really) to his earlier novel, Fool, may not be my favorite of his books but it has all the important hallmarks of a classic Christopher Moore. An inventive and head-spinningly complex mash-up of The Merchant of Venice, Othello, and Edgar Allan Poe's The Cask of Amontillado, The Serpent of Venice brings back Pocket the Fool from Moore's King Lear inspired novel. Pocket is in Venice. He left his beloved Queen and wife Cordelia at her own behest to travel to Venice and prevent the start of another Crusade. His strength in negotiating is his very annoying manner, his irreverence, and his instinctive mocking lewdness. While the doge appreciates Pocket, the rest of Venice does not and his stance on another Crusade makes him and England very unpopular. When the novel opens, he is traveling to a clandestine dinner that promises much bawdiness. Instead, he finds plotters who want him as dead as his Queen, who they admit to poisoning. He is drugged with an old Amontillado and walled up in the basement dungeon of Brabantio (yes, Desdemona's father) and left to die. But Pocket is not so easily killed and he vows revenge for the death of his love. With the help of a dragon, Shylock and his daughter Jessica, Othello and Desdemona, and even Marco Polo, Pocket will wreak vengeance on a whole cast of Shakespeare's baddies and their cohorts, Brabantio, Antonio, Iago, and more. Moore has tied well known Shakespeare plays up in knots but he has managed to rope his disparate source material together well, grounding his novel in a firm and legitimate knowledge of the works in question. The originals may be completely intertwined but they are still recognizable and his use of famous lines and speeches reinforces their presence. His Pocket the Fool is still a raucous and debauched character fond of willy waving and outright innuendo. His scheming machinations throughout the novel prove that revenge Moore-style is a dish best served cold. Shakespeare's characters remain true to their originals, for the most part, and somehow they fit in beautifully even when Pocket is wading through the deepest canals of vulgarity. The novel is accomplished and entertaining, the sort of rollicking farce that readers have come to expect from Moore. Moore's end note about the original works and how he structured this warped mash-up is interesting indeed. Knowledge of the originals is not strictly necessary but helpful in catching all the allusions and nods. Likewise, a previous reading of Fool is not necessary either but again enhances and adds to the depth of the playing about here. There are moments where the plot stalls a bit and Pocket's long simmering plan for revenge can be a little over long but in general, Moore's latest version of the Bard on hallucinogens will satisfy fans and the not easily offended quite a bit.
    • 4/5
      Pocket?s back! This time in Venice! The ?Fool? is thinking only of exacting revenge for the murder of his wife and so allows himself to be lured to Venice by Antonio (the merchant), Iago (the naval officer) and Brabantio (the senator). Promising him a night of debauchery and some Amontillado (drugged, of course) Pocket finds himself chained in a dungeon and left to die. With the help of a mysterious, and somewhat lusty, sea creature Pocket makes his escape and ends up in the employ of Shylock. With the help of Shylock?s daughter, Jessica, Fool manages to rescue his friend, Drool, and his monkey, Jeff from their imprisonment (where they happened to share a cell with Marco Polo) they set off to right all the wrongs done to them. Throw in Gobo, Portia, Othello, Cordelia et al ? and you can see where this book is headed ? down another twisty, turny, utterly raucous path that can only come from the mind of Christopher Moore.

      Shakespeare purists who happen to read this book will no doubt be outraged at the mashing of plays and characters, but I sincerely believe it comes from a place of deepest respect in Mr. Moore?s heart. A writer not enchanted with the original works could never work them into such an absolutely hilarious story. Even Will himself would laugh.

      Mr. Moore is described as an ?absurdist author?. Anyone who has read any of his books knows that is an accurate statement and I think Mr. Moore?s books are an acquired taste. So if you are dipping your toes into Mr. Moore?s pool of work, this may not be the one to start with (may I humbly suggest ?A Dirty Job?). If you are already a Christopher Moore fan, this is a must read. What else is there to say except ?Ah, fuckstockings? ? now I have to wait for his next book to come out.

      Once again, huge KUDOS to Euan Morton for the outstanding performance on the audio book version.
    • 3/5
      Laugh out loud funny, with a whole lot of smartness thrown in for good measure. The reader is absolutely brilliant, and makes the whole thing shine. Fun, entertaining and clever as heck.
    • 5/5
      When I saw this in hardcover in the bookstore, as lovely an edition as it is (lovely wee graphics, colored inks in strategic places, blue page edges), I knew to go back to audio for this one. Like Shakespeare?s plays, the books with Pocket of Dog Snogging really need to be heard performed. And I do mean performed. Not merely read. Euan Morton performs this book like mad. He is Pocket, through and through, but he puts so much life and distinctiveness into all the other voices, you can tell by listening who is talking. Iago he did as a Scot! Oh that was great. Apart from him, everyone had English accents and spoke English even though they were Viennese. Awesome in and of itself. If that kind of fourth wall breaking absurdity tickles your brain, this is the book for you.Of course you?ll get your funny bone tickled, too. Like Fool, this book is based on Shakespeare?s works (The Merchant of Venice and Othello), but also has a dash of Poe weirdly enough. Then there?s dragon shagging, fortune stealing, disguises, beheadings, cross-dressing, creative cursing, back-stabbing, religious persecution, heinous fuckery, swashes buckling, and a soupcon of lechery. Ok, more than a soupcon. A bucketful. Nay, a canalful. And a ghost. There?s always a bloody ghost. I?m much more familiar with the Merchant of Venice than Othello, but knew enough going in to understand the outlines of what was happening. I loved how Moore combined both plays by making Desdemona and Portia sisters. It made Iago?s heinous fuckery plausible in the setting and in all the important bits, Moore is true to the Bard?s plot. And who can plot like he could? Damn it?s dark. And funny. Even when Moore wasn?t trying too hard it was funny. He weaves circumstances and asides (like the Chorus) that just make your mind sizzle. It?s clever and cheeky without being too twee or precious. Yeah, he?s aware he?s tearing the stuffing out of some very reverence work, but he does it with love and a madcap glee that is really hard to resist.
    • 3/5
      Mixed feelings on this one-- Christopher Moore can make me howl with laughter, but this one combined so many elements (previous characters, CM books, several Shakespearian plays, several other literary and dramatic works, and an extreme sense of the absurd) that it took me a while to find the rhythm. I actually put it aside for a few days and then started over.Previous characters: Pocket the fool, his assistant Drool, and the monkey Jeff (also the ghost of Cordelia, last seen romping happily with Pocket in Moore's Fool.Previous books: See aboveShakespearian plays: Merchant of Venice, Othello, with throwbacks to LearAs to the others you'll have to discover for yourself.But forget everything you know from your high school/uni English classes. This Venice has sea serpents in it. And it's a wild ride.
    • 5/5
      This book breathed new life into my soul. Seriously I think my hair was actually fuller while I read it. This is actually the second book in Christopher Moore's Fool series. It reads like a standalone novel though, which is great for me because i don't have the first one.

      It is based on three works: Shakespeare's The merchant of Venice, and Othello, and Edgar Allen Poe's The Cask of Amontillado. There are several characters from these works that have been woven into one identity. The Fool, Drool, and Jeff are original characters.

      The plotting was impeccable. I could tell the distinct works from the dialogue and what was original writing. It all flowed so well. There is also a VERY sarcastic narrator known only as the chorus.
    • 4/5
      In this mash-up of Othello, The Merchant of Venice, and Poe's The Cask of Amontillado, Christopher Moore has created a delightful story that had me laughing out loud more than once. I highly recommend the audio version read by the talented Euan Morton, whose voice work is brilliant.
    • 5/5
      Very funny, kept my interest all the way through. Worth reading merchant of Venice and Othello and a casket of imontiago first, but not necessary.
    • 4/5
      Joy's review: A lot like his previous book, "Fool". This time the Fool from "Lear" goes to Venice for a mash-up of "Merchant of Venice" and "Othello". Often fun, always bawdy and profane... read the last bit on his sources first to save yourself head scratching on what is in which play...