The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror

Not for kids.

Some folks will have you believe that "The Stupidest Angel" is about the violent death of Santa Claus. Or the ghastly resurrection of Santa Claus. Or even a member of the Heavenly Host, an archangel no less, who is a few feathers short of a full wingspan. But no. Christopher Moore's latest novel is about the people -- the wonderfully quirky, eccentric and at times downright insane people -- of Pine Cove, Calif. Moore has conceived a wonderfully witty comedy of errors, taking the spirit of Christmas and grinding it under his boot heel like a noxious cigar. This isn't a holiday tale full of candyfloss and holly, oh ho ho no, it's a twisted whodunnit (without the mystery part, of course, since we know exactly who did what to whom) overlaid on a jittery small town that lives for its Christmas tourism boom. If, by the end of the book, you haven't laughed your eggnog out through your nose, ask local bartender Mavis Sand to describe the contents of her signature holiday drink, a Slow Comfortable Screw in the Back of Santa's Sleigh. And then let her catch you loitering under her goiter-sized clump of mistletoe....

Christopher Moore's The Stupidest Angel has got to be the sickest, most perverse take on the Christmas Angel / Christmas miracle theme I have ever encountered. I loved it. Many of the characters were apparently resurrected (unfortunate choice of words) from other books by Moore, but a reader does not have to have read these earlier works to grow to love-or fear-the...uh...eccentric population of Pine Cove, California. Only the cemetery people (don't want to give too much away here) were a tad on the unlikable side, but I think that was probably Moore's intent, so that's not really a criticism. The plot builds logically (ironic, huh?) and suspensfully, and the final battle scene is delicious. Christmas simply won't be the same again. If you love irreverence, sarcasm, and situations that seem to actually make sense in their ridiculousness, you'll love The Stupidest Angel. If not, well, I'm sure they're showing that Jimmy Stewart movie somewhere on television right now.

Santas and zombies and angels, oh my! And Fruit bats in Ray Bans! And a dog that is far more clever than myself! If you've never read any of Chris Moore's stuff, than you are missing a chance to brighten the most foul of days. If you have, then nothing more need be said about Moore, you already know. TSA is no exception from the rest. It's a laugh out loud funny holiday romp, with a tact I dare say has never been attempted before. Its the rare author that can fill a Christmas story with zombies and a functionally retard angel, a stoner cop, a psychotic B-movie actress, and pull if off with aplomb. With a cast of lovable losers and misfits for his other works, Moore spins a tale that will have you rolling on the ground with laughter, or at least getting you funny looks if you are reading it in public. You would be seriously remiss to pass up this dose of holiday cheer. If this is your first exposure to Moore, go back and read the books in order. You don't want to miss the history of the characters. You won't be sorry.

Christmas has come to the little hamlet of Pine Cove, CA, and as we all know, Christmas is a time for miracles. A little boy sees Santa get offed with a shovel (he kind of deserved it), and wishes with all his heart that Santa would come back to life. Too bad for Pine Cove the angel that grants this wish is Raziel, the stupidest angel from "Lamb". Now Pine Cove's dearly departed are rising from the grave, and they don't want Christmas turkey. They want brains. The Author Guy brings back your favorite characters from his previous novels - Tucker Case and Roberto the talking fruit bat from "Island of the Sequined Love Nun", Mavis Sand of "Practical Demonkeeping" and "Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove" fame, Skinner the dog and his Food Guy Gabe, and of course, ex-stoner Theo Crowe and his wife Molly Michon. In a play on "Gift of the Magi", Theo has grown one last bumper crop of weed to finance his gift for Molly. He doesn't quite realize the DEA has helicopters around, or that murder witness Tucker Case is flying one of them. Molly, on the other hand, has gone off her meds so she can afford her present for Theo. She doesn't quite count on her narrator reappearing, or the lines between reality and the Outland (where she is the Warrior Babe) blurring. And no one quite counted on the zombies. Pick up a copy of The Stupidest Angel. You'll be laughing all the way through Christmas morning.

Christopher Moore has written a Christmas book like no other. Bringing characters from several of his past novels together in Pine Cove, CA, the site of his first hilarious book of terror, "Practical Demonkeeping," he tells a story that will have you rolling on the floor with laughter. When a child who's just seen "Santa" killed meets up with the angel Raziel, last seen in "Lamb," who's been selected to perform a most-important Christmas Eve task, a series of misunderstandings culminate in a hilarious, horrific send-up of your favorite so-bad-they're-good horror movies. Moore's twisted sense of humor shines in the odd pairings he cooks up -- the biologist Gabe and his dog, whose ruminations will have you laughing out loud; the pilot Tucker Case and the talking fruit bat he got as part of his divorce settlement; sheriff and former pot-head Theo Crowe and his wife, Molly Michon, the former scream queen who's gone off her meds and thinks she really is the warrior babe from her movies. The action starts on page one and doesn't let up until the final word on the last page. For devoted fans, this is a long-awaited delight. For those who've not yet experienced one of the Author Guy's hilarious terror trains, prepare to be hooked. There's always a surprise when you least expect it.