Allen is a hapless grad student on the verge of academic probation at Gothic State University, an odd little institution on the rocky Pacific shores of Oregon.  There is not much that can be done to salvage his GPA—except to redeem himself by accompanying the eccentric Dr. Evergreen and his cold, enigmatic wife on a research trip to Prague.  Allen is none too excited to spend the summer with a professor known campuswide as a cranky taskmaster who stinks of bad cigars and gin—but Dr. Evergreen ends up being the least of his problems.

Narrated by the all-knowing ghost of long-dead alchemist and conman Edward Kelley, VAMPIRE A GO-GO (Touchstone/Simon & Schuster; September 1, 2009; $14.99/paperback; 978-1-4165-5227-7) by Victor Gischler, takes readers back in time and into the depths of Prague Castle to reveal secrets that have lain dormant since the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph II—an eccentric ruler who filled his kingdom with astrologers, alchemists, and other pseudo-scientists. 

Like Edward Kelly years ago, Allen simply doesn’t realize what he’s getting into, and an unforgettable cast of characters adds to the chaos.  There’s a trio of witches who may not actually have magical powers, a gun-toting squad of Jesuit priests set on doing the will of the Church, and Allen’s best friend Penny—the pretty girl-next-door who also happens to be a werewolf.  A deranged sorcerer and supernatural seductress add to the danger of a quest for an ancient device with the capacity to restore life itself.

Gischler is a master of the class-act literary spoof, and his work has drawn comparison to that of Douglas Adams, Kurt Vonnegut, and Thomas Pynchon.  Just as Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse was a “raucous thrill ride” (Publishers Weekly) and a playful stab at the post-apocalypse story, VAMPIRE A GO-GO is a hilarious romp of spooky, Gothic entertainment.