Matt Devlin left his ex-wife and his career in Baltimore, and moved with his rebellious teen daughter Sylvia to New York. He's a member of the Christ is Fit congregation, and (with partner Kate Strong) a Health Enforcement Agent - he can stop and fergie people who might be over their permitted weight limit, search for stashes of imported brown or high-f*t C, and raid suspected eateasies. But when Cupid Frish, a woman he pulled over who was carrying thirty boxes of concealed ganache "for personal use", winds up dead, clad only in a bikini made of best quality Swiss brown, Matt gets embroiled in a city-wide conspiracy.
This novel is billed as satire, and it certainly qualifies - Moore has created a not-too-distant and believable future where religion is inexorably intertwined with thinness and Control, the local zoo has opened a 'humonster' exhibit so kids can learn that the f*t are people too, hypocrisy runs rife, and the effects of global warming are ignored in favour of distraction. The link between religion and weight control is particularly well written - Communion is now a salad, and apple juice (because of Eve's apple) is a beverage of choice for the faithful, and worship consists of prayercise, flexing for the Lord.
Although I found the premise intriguing, Death by Chocolate didn't grab me - I wasn't captured by the characters, uninterested by the murder, not distracted by the (admittedly creative) red herrings, and unsurprised by the resolution. I should have known when I saw the cover:
Rules for book buying #1: "Pure, uncut hilarity" is almost as much of a red flag as "A hilarious romp". - Alex
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