Meet twenty-two-year-old Cherry Pye (née Cheryl Bunterman), a pop star since she was fourteen — and about to attempt a comeback from her latest drug-and-alcohol disaster.
Now meet Cherry again: in the person of her “undercover stunt double,” Ann DeLusia. Ann portrays Cherry whenever the singer is too “indisposed” — meaning wasted — to go out in public. And it is Ann-mistaken-for-Cherry who is … Ann-mistaken-for-Cherry who is kidnapped from a South Beach hotel by obsessed paparazzo Bang Abbott.
Now the challenge for Cherry’s handlers (über-stage mother; horndog record producer; nipped, tucked, and Botoxed twin publicists; weed whacker-wielding bodyguard) is to rescue Ann while keeping her existence a secret from Cherry’s public — and from Cherry herself.
The situation is more complicated than they know. Ann has had a bewitching encounter with Skink — the unhinged former governor of Florida living wild in a mangrove swamp — and now he’s heading for Miami to find her…
Will Bang Abbott achieve his fantasy of a lucrative private photo session with Cherry Pye? Will Cherry sober up in time to lip-synch her way through her concert tour? Will Skink track down Ann DeLusia before Cherry’s motley posse does?
All will be revealed in this hilarious spin on life in the celebrity fast lane.
more
Carl Hiaasen returns to form by switching up. Star Island gives the author’s despoliation-of-Florida theme a rest by providing him with another target for his considerable store of outrage: pop celebrity.
The chief offender is Cheryl “Cherry Pye” Bunterman, a teenage Britney manque with a singing voice “like a sack of starving kittens” and a …
Just finished this book, I adore Carl Hiaasen, he never disappoints! This book is a riot, a very easy read.
With all the news about Britney Spears coming out as I write this, I couldn’t help but go back and read (second time) Star Island by Carl Hiaasen. The trouble maker in the book is a pop star who has been groomed for “success” since an early age by her parents. In his usual rollicking good style, Hiaasen entertains by telling the story of …
Cheryl Bunterman thinks she has talent and can carry a tune. However, she actually has a drug addiction and is willing to have sex with just about anybody. Her parents, Janet and Nick, hire an actress to keep up appearances when “Cherry Pye” is inebriated or in rehab. Ann DeLusia is the actress and the gig isn’t too bad. She just has to make sure …
I read everything this author writes . Most enjoyable and a feel good book.
This is the first book I’ve read by Carl Hiaasen, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. He has an unusual style —such as using character’s full names throughout the book. At first, that bothered me, but once I got his “rhythm” of prose, it no longer did.
The book takes you on a wild and witty ride with child pop star, Cherry Pye, her stunt double, Ann …
Hiaasen is the best. Always.
Teen pop sensation Cherry Pye is about to release a comeback CD – her second. Her entire future is riding on its success, however her partying is getting in the way of preparing for the tour. In fact, her family has hired Ann DeLusia, a look alike, to fool the paparazzi. Unfortunately, for Ann, she’s about to be kidnapped. With everything …