If Fluke (Or, I know Why the Winged Whale Sings) is the first book you’ve read by Christopher Moore, you might think he’s a bit goofy. However, if you’ve read his other books, including a story about a modern-day vampire who falls in love with an average guy and a book about keeping a demon as a pet, you’ll know that a book about being swallowed by a giant whale-like ship and living in a place called Gooville is just par for the course.
Fluke is the story of Nate Quinn, a marine biologist who studies whales and why they "sing". Nate’s team includes Clay Demodacus, a marine photographer, Amy, a cute research assistant, and Kona, a kid from New Jersey who thinks he’s a native Hawaiian. As Nate gets closer and closer to the reason why the whales sing, he begins falling for Amy and gets dangerously close to stumbling upon some secrets he shouldn’t know. Then, when he finds himself being swallowed by a humpback whale, things really start to get strange.
If you’re familiar with Christopher Moore’s work, you’ll probably be wondering throughout the first third of the book what happened to his crazy plotlines and unfathomable imagination. However, when Nate gets swallowed, you’ll realize that the following two-thirds of the book is plenty crazy to keep up Moore’s reputation. Moore’s plot is not only wildly imaginative, but it’s also backed up quite well. Moore obviously did his homework before he went to work on a book about whales, and it shows in nearly every page.
As for characters, Nate, Clay, Amy and Kona (as well as some other-worldly characters that are introduced later on) are just as entertaining and original as Moore’s other creations. They’re witty, entertaining and quite easy to like, making their plights under the sea all the more interesting.
Other than a few confusing parts where Moore gets a bit too technical, Fluke is an all-in-all entertaining and imaginative book that will please both loyal Moore fans and those who are new to his unique world of craziness.