martinez's gil's all fright diner

Two friends – Earl (as in the Earl of Vampires) and Duke (as in the Duke of Werewolves) – are driving along one evening when their truck runs out of gas. They wind up at an all-night diner in Rockwood, a small desert town, which has a bit of a zombie problem. The pair help Loretta, the diner’s owner/cook, fend off the zombies that are drawn to her diner. Impressed, Loretta asks the two to stay on and help her take care of some other supernatural problems going on in the town and to learn who is raising the ghouls. Duke and Earl discover that Tammy (also known as Mistress Lilith, Queen of the Night) and her loyal but dumb boyfriend, Chad, are plotting to end the world in order to resurrect the old gods. Similar in style and humor to Douglas Adams, Joe R. Lansdale, and “Shaun of the Dead,” this comic horror-fantasy novel is packed with warped humor and action. The characters are likeable, three-dimensional, and quirky. The story is fast, interesting, and unpredictable. Martinez carves out a nice little bit of entertainment with surprising depth.