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Adrian McKinty

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The Sun Is God Kindle Edition

by Adrian McKinty (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

3.7 327 ratings

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FROM THE EDGAR® AWARD-NOMINATED AUTHOR OF THE DETECTIVE SEAN DUFFY NOVELS Colonial New Guinea—1906: a small group of mostly German nudists live 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 that 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 that the intent of the “celebration” is not to fete the visitors but to make them the latest murder victims.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“The writing resembles Joseph Conrad without the layers of hard-to-understand impressionistic writing or Graham Greene without the Catholic guilt…. Entertaining.”
– BUFFALO NEWS

“McKinty’s gift for storytelling is evident…his fascinating tale is rich in detail, and there’s a most unexpected hero.”
– RT BOOK REVIEWS

“That the story of the Cocoivores is true makes it all the more fascinating and an intriguing frame for this entertaining and unusual historical mystery.”
– BOOKLIST

Praise for the Detective Sean Duffy novels:

"The best crime novel that I've read in a long time…. [McKinty is] a great writer.”
—NANCY PEARL

“An utterly brilliant novel with its own unique voice.” —STUART NEVILLE

“Pitch-perfect....Everything in this novel hits all the right notes. This is crime fiction at its best.” – BOOKLIST STARRED REVIEW

"I Hear the Sirens in the Street blew my bloody doors off!" -IAN RANKIN, author of the Inspector Rebus novels

About the Author

Adrian McKinty is the author of eighteen novels, including the acclaimed Detective Sean Duffy novels. Rain Dogs is winner of the 2017 Edgar® Award – Best Paperback Original. Gun Street Girl was shortlisted for the Anthony, Ned Kelly, and Edgar® Awards. The Cold Cold Ground won the Spinetingler Award. I Hear the Sirens in the Street won the Barry Award and was shortlisted for the Ned Kelly Award. In the Morning I'll Be Gone won the Ned Kelly Award and was selected by the American Library Association as one of the top-10 crime fiction novels of 2014. McKinty is also the author of the standalone historical The Sun Is God. Born and raised in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland, McKinty was called "the best of the new generation of Irish crime novelists" in the Glasgow Herald.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00J1HDB86
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Seventh Street Books; Unabridged edition (September 9, 2014)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 9, 2014
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1529 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 273 pages
Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1846689848

Customer Reviews:
3.7 327 ratings

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Adrian McKinty

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Adrian McKinty was born and grew up in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He studied philosophy

at Oxford University before moving to Australia and then New York City. In 2019 Adrian had a global hit

with his standalone novel The Chain. Adrian's novels have won the Edgar Award, the Ned Kelly Award (3 times),

The Anthony Award, Barry Award, Macavity Award and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award.

His books have been translated into over 40 languages.

Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5

327 global ratings

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Eileen K

Well-crafted historical fiction with a mystery at the center

Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2014

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I love Adrian McKinty's writing--Irish Noir, his blog (The Psychopathology of Everyday Life http://adrianmckinty.blogspot.com/ ), and now this historical fiction, set in pre-World I German New Guinea. A mysterious death, German nudists, an imperious plantation owner, and an expat British officer suffering from early-20th century PTSD: another reviewer wished the book had been longer, but what else was there to say? Historical fiction can easily get bogged down in the notecards--all the historical explication. I thought this book was headed there, but McKinty did not disappoint--he set the context and moved on to the characters and the story. As with all good historical fiction, I learned something about a time and place I didn't know about, and I was entertained by a good yarn with a complex central character.

3 people found this helpful

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CD Carter

Not what I expected at all

Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2014

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I feel the need to put out a disclaimer on this review. I really enjoy Adrian McKinty's writing. His Duffy trilogy is one of my favorite series. This book was far different than the other novels of his I've read. This one was far and away different. It's a very short book and I find myself wishing it had been longer. I think it could've been a 5 star book with another chapter or two.

The book reminded me a lot of the style I read when I was a kid - Agatha Christie in particular. It started out a little slow which I am unaccustomed to with his previous books, but once on the island, I thought it became much more engaging.

The end was fantastic and I hope that he decides to work more with the hero of the story. Talk about an interesting character! I don't want to give any of the story away, but more please, Mr. McKinty.

3 people found this helpful

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Ms Mary Flaherty

I liked the development of the main character

Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2014

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The description of the landscapes and buildings brought you to the remote island, you could almost feel the sun on your face as you read the book, I found the end disappointing as if it had been rushed, it is an unusual ending but perhaps more true to life at that time. I liked the development of the main character, he went from a soulless selfish individual to a man with passion and focus.

One person found this helpful

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ors2626

Different from McKinty's other works, but just as good!

Reviewed in the United States on September 11, 2020

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I really enjoyed this book. I bought it after discovering Adrian McKinty and devouring his Michael Forsythe and Sean Duffy series. This one is quite different: a historical novel based on real events in early 20th century Papua New Guinea. Really fascinating stuff! I learned quite a bit and as always, McKinty's writing kept me hooked. The atmospheric tale was just totally stranger than fiction and so unique.
I highly recommend it!

3 people found this helpful

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Debra123purple

True Crime in New Guinea- 1906

Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2017

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This was not at all what I was expecting from Adrian McKinty- but I really enjoyed it. I guess versatility of genre is a measure of a good author.
This felt rather like a William Boyd book to me- and the setting was unfamiliar but very well described and quite atmospheric.
Before reading this book I knew virtually nothing about colonial New Guinea in the early 20th century - but I would like to think I know a little more now. I gather the book was based on actual events so McKinty has done a great job of telling the tale for a modern audience - and fascinating us with with his usual well-drawn characters in the process.

2 people found this helpful

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Jake

Only for hardcore fans

Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2017

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Have read all of mcKinty books. Don't start with this one. Really odd book. Not much drama and it drags, but
the exotic setting is interesting and the writing is good as usual. Only for hardcore McKinty fans.

2 people found this helpful

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Rosie Not the Cat

I have loved all your other books

Reviewed in the United States on July 15, 2014

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Adrian, I have loved all your other books, but sorry, this one just didn't cut the mustard. It reminded me of Peter Corris- whose style and panache in crime-writing is exceptional - bombing horribly in an attempt to write a partly factual historical novel set in the south pacific. Naismith's Dominion, I think it was called. Put me off Corris for years. The good news is that I love your Irish characters and the Belfast flavour, humour and everything else

3 people found this helpful

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Tomslyck

A New McKinty Character Comes to Life

Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2014

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Having stumbled upon Adrian McKinty at my local library, I quickly became a fan devouring every book the library had and then buying new ones in advance on Amazon. After three Sean Duffy novels, the thought of meeting a new protagonist was a little worrisome, but Will Prior won my attention and turned into someone I could appreciate in a future encounter. The fact that the story was based on a historic event just adds to the appeal for me.

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Eva

Murder among coconut eaters

Reviewed in Germany on September 3, 2014

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From the setting this book is very different from all rhe other McKinty books. Having started to read McKinty's books out of interest for Ireland, I quickly got addicted and now continue to read everything of this author because of his compelling style and grippig stories.

The story is situated in a nearly forgotton episode of history - German New Guinea, the Bismarckarchipel, in 1906. There is the strange, wild, hostile nature in New Guinea, humid, hot, with biting insects and dangerous deseases. "A nature at state of war with all the works of civilized man" as McKinty puts it. But still there is beauty: "The sky a golden hair on a fuchsia cloth" - very poetic, I love these side-reflections - (but how the hell does this look like?)
And in the middle of this setting the Germans: German myself, I quite enjoyed how the New Guinean high-society is pictured, a bit stiff and wooden, correct, organized, tidy - a bit of a cliche, sure, but well done and with an ironic wink. Nice also the references to German science and engineering and its prominent products: Bayer Aspirin and Heroin.
On the other hand, there is Will Prior, the main "hero", a former english military police officer, traumatized from the Boer war, who idles away his days on his run-down farm with his native servant-mistress. Also him a bit of a cliche and more the type of the usual McKinty heroes. He is nicely set off the New Guinean estabilshment around the Germans and Queen Emma - an excentric widowed millionaire. He is the sympathetic, down-to-earth underdog who takes the challenge to solve the mystery around the death of Max Lutzow, a member of August Engelhardt's "Sonnenorden", a group of early hippies, living on sun and coconuts on Kabakon, a nearby island.
As the story proceeds, Will and Klaus develop a sort of reluctant friendship. These two and Bessie Pullen-Burry, an accompanying english anthropologist, get more and more sucked into the strange, stunning atmosphere on Kabakon, somewhere between Marquez, Fitzcarraldo and Joseph Conrad.
I like the way how McKinty makes his heroes sympathetic to the reader. They are all far from moral, they are flawed and troubled but as they are believable, "round" characters you immediately side with them.
McKinty plays virtously with a wide spectrum of language: inner monologes, sharp and witty dialogues, vivid scene descriptions, poetic reflections, feverish dreams - a pleasure to read.
Suspense builds up slowly and culminates in a furious climax with an unexpected turn.... especially this final scene is done brilliantly and is literature rather than crime fiction!

3 people found this helpful

BrilliantineM

An unexpected tropical romp

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 1, 2014

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Like other reviewers, I bought this because I'd read a few of McKinty's crime novels. Having honed his writing chops on crime, he’s learnt a few lessons about moving the plot along at a racketing pace and keeping the reader interested.

The novel begins with Will Prior, a British military policeman in South Africa during the Boer War. While on duty he carries out a deeply unpleasant task, which is the catalyst for him to leave the army.

He makes his way to Herbertshöhe in Deutsch New Guinea (now Kokopo in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea), where he leads a desultory life – until he is called upon to help with an investigation into a suspicious death. This leads him to an island inhabited by a sun-worshiping cult of misfits who subsist on coconuts, bananas and opiates.

The Sun is God is a fascinating story. The history of the Pacific seems littered with larger-than-life characters and improbable events, and McKinty provides a highly readable take on just one of these unbelievable-but-true stories. I couldn’t put it down.

If I were to offer a few criticisms, the novel could have benefited from a more critical edit, especially towards the end where a shift in narration could have been handled more smoothly. And the effort spent building up Will’s back-story initially feels as if it goes to waste somewhat in the latter parts of the novel, which are highly event-driven.

Overall though, this is a thoroughly enjoyable read, especially for anyone with an interest in the Pacific. I’d love to see McKinty tackle more stand-alones set outside his comfort zone.

One person found this helpful

Crime Fiction follower

Four Stars

Reviewed in Australia on October 27, 2014

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Different setting and time for this author.

Merle

Disappointing

Reviewed in Germany on November 14, 2017

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I normally love Adrian McKinty, but this was boring. Didn't care from the beginnning, neither about whodunnit nor about the protagonist's fate. Author should stick to what he does best.

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Domino

Empire of the Sunworshippers

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 7, 2014

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An odd one this. I bought it because Adrian McKinty wrote it. Having been out of touch for a few months, it snuck up on me, I didn’t know McKinty had another novel on the way. Miles away, both thematically and geographically, from what I expected for a McKinty book this story of a little known (unknown to me) colony of sun-worshipping German immortality seekers at the start of the 20th Century probably would not have attracted my attention was McKinty not one of my favourite writers. But it is a fascinating tale of colonialism, cults and murder which McKinty, with few stumbles (a reference to Sherlock Holmes seems a little forced) handles incredibly well.

Through the eyes of his fairly ineffectual hero, an ex-British soldier recovering from the horrors of the Boer war, Adrian explores the mystery of the ‘cocovores’ on a South Pacific island whose belief that the secret of eternal life is in coconuts and sunbathing (with a little sprinkling of heroin) leads to at least one suspicious death. On the way McKinty touches on European empire-building, strange Victorian thinking on medicine and health, the tensions leading to the Great War and beyond. The climax is something of a twist and works very well. The characters are very well drawn. The tone reminded my a lot of Dan Simmons’ ‘The Terror’, a book I love.

I am a McKinty fan and, as an Ulsterman, I love his Irish-noir. ‘The Sun Is God’ is something of a departure but it is perhaps Adrian McKinty’s best novel yet.