An Endearingly Creepy Trilogy

Author John Connolly is best known for a series of thrillers featuring a private detective named Charlie Parker.  I've never read any of those books.  However, I can't get enough of his Samuel Johnson books, which feature a slightly peculiar young boy and his loyal dachshund.  In the first book, The Gates, Samuel and his dog accidentally witness a portal to Hell open in his neighbor's basement, and said neighbor become possessed by a demon intent upon bringing Hell to earth.  I know . . . it sounds weird, but it's really, really well-written.  This book is filled with wonderful characters and highly amusing sarcastic footnotes.  It's sort of like a Lemony Snicket book for adults.  The second book, The Infernals, finds Samuel dragged to Hell along with four cranky thieving dwarfs, two policemen, and an ice cream truck.  In the third book, The Creeps, infinite darkness attempts to take over all known universes via Samuel's small British town.  I highly recommend this series to anyone who likes quirky tales, main characters who are heroes in spite of themselves, and lesser demons with hearts of gold.