Read for the RIP VII Reading Challenge.
The Infernals continues the adventures of Samuel Johnson, his dog Boswell, and his friend Nurd, the demon. After the events of The Gates, when the ruler of Hell sent the evil Mrs. Abernathy to Earth to clear the way for an invasion (by way of the Large Hadron Collider), the portal has closed, with Nurd and Samuel on opposite sides, figuring they’ll never see each other again. That is until Mrs. Abernathy, in an attempt to win her way back into the Great Malevolence’s favor, opens the portal back up, and drags Samuel into Hell.
Samuel and Boswell are not the only ones brought in, there’s also the local constables, an ice cream truck and its driver, and four dwarfs that happen to be driving through town when the portal opens.
I pretty much have to sum this book up as hijinks ensue, because it’s otherwise really hard to explain. If you’ve read the first book, you’ll have a pretty good idea of the kind of things Samuel and Nurd manage to get themselves into. (And if you haven’t read the first book, go out and read it – it’s goofily fun – a la Terry Pratchett – footnotes and all.) It may be a book about Hell and demon invasions, but it is a hoot to read.