Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocolpyse, by Robert Rankin

(0575074019)

Great title, eh? For a general view of this book, picture Roger Rabbit meets Sam Spade meets Thursday Next. Very noir, but funny (in a noir-ish way), and convoluted.

Jack is on his way to the city to make his fortune. Too bad for him that the city is Toy City, populated by (yep) toys and Mother Goose characters (the Elite). He arrives just after Humpty Dumpty has been murdered--boiled alive in his own swimming pool--and soon other characters begin turning up dead. He and a stuffed bear named Eddie, the partner of Bill Winkie (disappeared, presumed dead) attempt to sort out all this. The police are no help: they are Smiling Policemen with a bent towards rubber hose use (since they are made of rubber after all).

Weird book. The mystery is really not the point, although if you are a noir fan, it will suffice. The joy is the creative characters and fantastic (in the old-fashioned sense) worldview Rankin has created. Having checked his list of books, I will say that they all seem to be as catchily-titled as this one. Might be worth a read. Good travel book.