The Greater Number

by  Paul Loh

"The Greater Number" is the story about two groups of survivors making their way to safety to a fortified area located in Arizona. "The Greater Number" is very much like a journey through a surreal, but loopy nightmare. The author describes a very vivid backdrop with interesting imagery. . I found myself chuckling frequently throughout the novella and I thought that it was very appealing. The author tends to go a little overboard with puns, though. This was a fun story to read, and the pace was very brisk, if a bit on the frantic side. The author presents some very good concepts with this story, especially with combining cultural references along with the zombie plague. I liked the idea of a great leader of the undead horde calling himself, "The Hand of Karma". The author goes a different route including a few of deluded living persons in the horde along with the dead which was an interesting twist. One couple who is among the living dead is included in the storyline which is another interesting voice heard. I would classify this tale as a lot of slapstick comedy and grisly horror.

The main characters were memorable. Three young men walking on the road when they encounter the monk and the living dead. They are Hewlett Fen-Chang, Desmond Azabache and Mbu Ng and are the driving force in this story. There is a Helen Hiawatha who is a patient at a mental facility and exceedingly wacky adds to the humor. The other characters were interesting in their own right, including the "Hand of Karma". Introduced in this novella are both the Yeti and Sasquatch who end up as innovative heroes. The characters had some unlikely names which added volumes of  silliness. The characters are equally well fleshed out and are fun to read. They provided a sense of the absurd which provided a decent change from gloomy undead stories.

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