The Sun Is God

By: Adrian McKinty

Narrated by: Gerard Doyle

Colonial New Guinea, 1906: A small group of mostly German nudists lives an extreme back-to-nature existence on the remote island of Kabakon. Eating only coconuts and bananas, they purport to worship the sun. One of their members, Max Lutzow, has recently died, allegedly from malaria. But an autopsy on his body in the nearby capital of Herbertshöhe raises suspicions about foul play.

Retired British military police officer Will Prior is recruited to investigate the circumstances of Lutzow's death. At first, the eccentric group seems friendly and willing to cooperate with the investigation. They all insist that Lutzow died of malaria. Despite lack of evidence for a murder, Prior is convinced the group is hiding something.

Things come to a head during a late-night feast supposedly given as a send-off for the visitors before they return to Herbertshöhe. Prior fears the intent of the "celebration" is not to fete the visitors - but to make them the latest murder victims.

©2014 Adrian McKinty (P)2014 Blackstone Audiobooks

Great prose, but not a great story.

This is a work of historical fiction about a relatively minor episode in the history of New Guinea, although it does provide a glimpse of what German colonialism was like in 1906. I've read all McKinty's mysteries, and this novel is quite different. Although I thought his prose was often as fine as usual, the story itself isn't all that exciting. Some of the characters were interesting, although I couldn't tell how much of their personalities were figments of McKinty's imagination. I love listening to Gerard Doyle, so between his narration and McKinty's writing, I found the book enjoyable. Thankfully, it wasn't too long.

Take a wild ride with a master of the mystery!

Where does The Sun Is God rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I must admit to a bias here: I love this writer and his narrative voice. This is a historical novel based on fact, so it is really a radical departure for Adrian, but you won't be disappointed if you put on your headphones and let the story and atmosphere carry you back in time to a very exotic locale.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Sun Is God?

The most memorable moments would all be spoilers, I'm afraid, but the moment when the prim and proper English woman goes "native" would have to be toward the top,

Which scene was your favorite?

I'm afraid the revealing the most powerful scenes would spoil the story, but the bizarre dinner party with the "Queen" toward the beginning of the book will stick in your memory for quite some time.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. I came close, For someone who is deliberately trying to practice delaying gratification McKinty's books definitely test my self control.

Any additional comments?

Be prepared for a very strange story indeed.

Good but not as good ...

Fun and interesting, but not quite up to snuff with McKinty's other works. It almost seemed like he needed a break from his more intense works, and there is comedy. Still good but not as good.

An unusual but gripping story by Adrian McKinty

I normally expect Adrian McKinty's stories to be thrillers set in Northern Ireland and was surprised to find that this story was set in German New Guinea, near modern-day Rabaul, in the early 1900's. It featured a strange cult group of mostly German nudist sun worshipers. To make it even stranger they only ate coconuts and bananas (because they grew at the top of trees so were closer to the sun) and sunbathed their days away in a stupor after drinking a cocktail of coconut milk and powdered heroin at breakfast.

Will Prior, a former British military policeman, has retired to German New Guinea after a traumatic incident keeping control of a South African concentration camp. His new found tranquility is disturbed when the German authorities recruit him to investigate the death of one of the cult members, Max Lutzow, on the remote island of Kabakon. The cult members insist that he died from malaria but an autopsy suggests that the death was from other causes.

Prior, a German officer and a middle-aged single Englishwoman, visit the island to investigate. They are immediately thrust into the middle of the cult's day-to-day life and diet (including the coconut cocktail), meeting with constant denials of any wrongdoing in Lutzow's death. Eventually when Prior starts to flush out the truth things get pretty tense.

This was the first audio book that I have listened to and I enjoyed the experience during my morning walks and car journeys. If I had read the book I think that I might have given up because it was not what I expected from McKinty. The narrator, Gerald Doyle, did a great job in turning what could have been a fairly unexciting story into something pretty absorbing.

Fascinating story!

Would you listen to The Sun Is God again? Why?

Yes I definitely would.
It was a very interesting story, I had never heard anything about this before listening to this book.
Plus the fact that it is Adrian McKinty and Gerard Doyle that in itself is enough for me to read it again.

What other book might you compare The Sun Is God to and why?

None that I can think of.
It is unlike any of the authors other books.

Have you listened to any of Gerard Doyle’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes! He is one of my favorite narrators.
Great performance as always.
I think Gerard Doyles narration is always great even if sometimes the books themselves aren't. But with McKinty and Joyal you know it's going to be a great listen.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, and I did do that.
Stayed up all night last night to listen to it.

Any additional comments?

McKinty really can write about anything.
I hope to see some more historical accounts written by him in the future.