The god of death is allowed to take a holiday, conditional on completing a task. Eamon the handsome ghoul deputizes but grows to like the job. Mason, a violent, misogynist detective, agrees to let the god of death assume his identity. As Mason, he must deal with his feelings for Pauline, Mason's submissive wife. And as a detective, he is sucked into the machinations of a Chicago gangster who is looking to expand into New Orleans and Las Vegas.
He meets the Grey man and his partner, Dearg, a vampire, and enlists their help to find Oengus, the Celtic god of love who has gone off the grid and is freelancing, fighting evil in America. Meanwhile, Eamon the handsome ghoul plots his downfall.
