Well, that was kind of a let-down. After finding Bimbos of the Death Sun, the first volume in this two-book set, offensive and terrible, the second part was just kind of…blah. Zombies of the Gene Pool finds the professorial couple of the first book, Jay and Marion, at the scene of another mysterious death in a hotel. This time, they’re there for a reunion of science fiction authors and the unearthing of a time capsule. An unexpected guest shows up, gets half a page of screen time, and dies. The rest of it is just the usual clue-following: who’s got motive, what’s in the time capsule that somebody doesn’t want anyone to know, etc.
It’s fine. Some of the detecting is a little eye-rolly (“I’m 98% sure I know who did it, but I can’t possibly tell you yet!”), and none of the characters really stirs up any sympathy or worry. Did X do it? Will Y be the next victim? Do I have any reason at all to care? No. But Jay and Marion are less obnoxious than last time around, and I didn’t mark any quotes that made me want to yell at people.
So, yeah. Not much to say about this one, which is weird compared to the last one. Meh.
I remember when this and Bimbos came out. They were a big “must read” amongst my nerdy set. We could go through and pick out people we knew. Too bad it seems dated and satirical after all these years. As a con attendee for many years yourself, I’m sure you didn’t appreciate your people being made fun of.
But I’m glad you read them. They are required reading for every geeky/nerdy/fanboy and fangirl on the planet. Maybe you should write a rebuttal.