This month, we’re featuring our first young adult novel of 2025: Mars, Maraming Zombie by Chuckberry Pascual, the awaited sequel of Mars, May Zombie.
Set in 2029, nine years after a zombie apocalypse ravaged the world, Mars, May Zombie and Mars, Maraming Zombie follows Marcelo “Mars” Manapat, a queer teen survivor navigating life in the undead-infested Red Zones. Alongside his neat freak grandmother, Lola Vicky, and his sassy, fashion diva best friend Billie, Mars has adapted to the daily dangers of their harsh reality. But everything changes when he devises a daring plan to escape to the nearest zombie-free Blue Zone—only to uncover a chilling secret that may be worse than the flesh-eating monsters outside. With survival growing harder in the resource-scarce Black Zone and the undead threat rising, Mars and his found family must now face more than just zombies and soldiers. The dream of reaching the elusive Green Zone pushes them forward.
Imagining a Post-apocalyptic Philippines
Dystopian young adult novels set in the Philippines are quite rare, and zombie stories even more so. You’re more likely to encounter Filipino mythological creatures like the tiyanak or tikbalang as characters than an undead army attacking. Though we have a concept of aswangs and even the vampire-like Amalanhig from Visayas, there is something decidedly Western about the Hollywood-style walking dead.
Mars, May Zombie and its sequel, Mars, Maraming Zombie, form a rare and original duology set in a dystopian Philippines. Written with distinctly Filipino wit through its bakla humor and pop culture references, the books pull readers in through a casual, conversational tone. It presents an alternate reality—one where the almost three-year lockdown persisted. And also, may zombies! The familiarity of the references makes the story both relatable to Filipinos and entertaining.
According to author Chuckberry Pascual, the idea for the story of Mars was sparked by a mix of pandemic-era fears and viral fake news that blurred fiction and reality.
“Naisip ko ‘to dahil noong pandemic may kumakalat na fake news na kapag nagpa-vaccinate ka, magiging zombie ka.”
Said Chuckberry Pascual.
“May viral video noon na mayroong mga grupo ng mga tao na nagtatakbuhan dito sa Maynila. Sinasabi ng mga netizens, “Ayan oh, naging zombie na sila!” So, parang naniniwala yung mga tao do’n. ‘Yun ang pinanggalingan ng ideya na “What if nga ‘no, maging zombie ang marami sa’tin.”
Building from this real-life hysteria, Pascual used the zombie metaphor to explore societal issues. Much like marginalized people in real life, the zombies in the novels were victims of a system that neglected the needs of the people. The Mars duology highlights the importance of having a responsible government that will aid its people during times of crisis and disasters.
More Than Survival: Queerness in the Time of Zombies
Chuckberry Pascual is a prominent award-winning queer writer. His well-acclaimed books–Ang Nawawala (The Vanished), Plus/+, at Iba Plus, Maramihan: New Philippine Nonfiction on Sexual Orientations and Gender Identities (co-edited with Rolando B. Tolentino), and Kumpisal: Mga Kuwento–feature carefully-crafted queer representation.
“Chuck is an excellent queer writer, and publishing his books has been a dream come true!”
said Kata Garcia, Adarna House’s Product Development Officer.
Amidst zombies and the threat of a violent government, Pascual seamlessly weaves LGBTQIA+ elements into the Mars books without it being the main conflict of the narrative. Pascual avoids clichéd stereotypes often associated with queer or gay characters. Mars’ identity isn’t spotlighted as an issue—he’s respected by his peers and even dubbed as “baklang gubat” for his impressive aim, embodying strength and pride without relying on camp or caricature.
More than Mars being post-apocalyptic, it was the LGBTQIA+ representation that attracted us to the story.
Said Ani Almario, Adarna House’s Vice President for Product and Development.
Mars, Maraming Zombie, Out Now!
Just in time for the summer break, Mars, Maraming Zombie!—the highly anticipated sequel to Mars, May Zombie!—is finally here! The sequel expands the world introduced in the first book by bringing in more characters who will capture (and maybe even betray) our hearts, along with a brand-new zone to explore alongside our survival dream team: Mars, Billie, and Lola Vicky.
What are you waiting for? Join the slay! Read, Mars, Maraming Zombie!, now available at select National Book Store branches across Metro Manila, or online through the links below:
About the Creators
Chuckberry J. Pascual graduated from UP Diliman. He is the author of the collections Kumpisal (USTPH, 2015), Hindi ito Romansa (SWF-UPD, 2020), Bayan ng mga Bangkay (UP Press, 2022), and Ang Nawawala (Visprint, 2017) which won the Best Book of Short Fiction in Filipino at the National Book Awards. He teaches literature and creative writing at the UST Faculty of Arts and Letters and has served as Resident Fellow for the UST Center for Creative Writing and Literary Studies and as Faculty Researcher for the UST Research Center for Culture, Arts, and Humanities.
Alejandro "Iñigo" Fadul is an illustrator based in Quezon City. He designs t-shirts, posters, etc., inspired by Y2K fashion, pop culture, and retro artworks and magazines, especially from the '80s.