In the Library Reviews - Patrick Welch Reviews -- Page One



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Reviewed Titles 13th Magician Before and Beyond - A Collection of Stories Brendell: Rogue Thief Cynnador The Casebook of Doakes and Haig	Patrick Welch Reviews Page One Added November 30, 2003 The Casebook of Doakes and Haig Author: Patrick Welch Publisher: Twilight Times Books Available At: www.twilighttimesbooks.com Publishing Date: Available Now Genre: Fantasy: Detective Format: Ebook disk and download in PDF/HTML/Palm Price: $6.95 diskette, $4.50 download ISBN: 1-931201-12-9 Author Website: www.sff.net/people/patrickw/ Reviewer: Joyce Handzo Leprechauns are elusive creatures, but luckily author Patrick Welch has captured one in his imagination and shared the adventures of the wee elf and his human friend with his readers. Haig, of Doakes and Haig Criminal Consultants, is no larger than a hand. He lives with and works for Sean Doakes. In fact, Haig is something like an heirloom, being passed down from generation to generation, since Sean's great, great, great grandfather snagged the small sprite. The pair run a store where the only product sold is Doakes and Haig Recipe Sweetener. The ingredients in the sweetener are of course secret, and combine ordinary things with a dash of leprechaun enchantment. The pair ekes out a modest living until they are called upon to solve the murder of one of their best customers. After successfully solving the crime, their career as criminal consultants takes off. The book chronicles their adventures on six different cases. The stories flow one into another and all are exceptionally well written and fun to read. Mr. Welch has creatively and successfully combined mystery and fantasy. Doakes and Haig live in an alternate world, one in which England is still in possession of the Colonies. Planes and cars have not yet been invented. This unique setting lends a most interesting element to the stories. Mr. Welch has also used his imagination when creating the character of Haig. This is no ordinary leprechaun! The reader will be treated to some surprises and unusual "facts" about the fairy world. The cases themselves are as unique as they are baffling. In Savage Customs a Native American is accused of murder and the detectives need to clear his name. Only problem is, the defendant doesn't speak English and the detectives don't speak Sioux. Cat's Moon Rising is about the abduction of rare cats for a secret ceremony. Haig didn't want to accept this case at first because cats and leprechauns are notorious enemies. Other cases include a trip to the Colonies, the murder of a leprechaun, and even one in which a band of wee folks bat the bad guys with shillelaghs. The Casebook of Doakes and Haig is an entertaining collection of stories featuring an unusual pair of detectives in a unique world. While there is no pot of gold at the end of the book, readers will definitely be filled with smiles and satisfaction. Return to top of page. Added June 21, 2003 Before and Beyond - A Collection of Stories Author: Patrick Welch Publisher: Double Dragon Publishing Available At: www.double-dragon-ebooks.com Publishing Date: August 2002 Genre: Science Fiction Format: Ebook download in PDF/LIT/ Price: $4.99 ISBN: 1-894841-76-X Author Website: www.sff.net/people/patrickw/ Reviewer: Lisa Lambrecht Before and Beyond by Patrick Welch is a collection of twenty-six stories that takes you into many magical and different worlds. In the Before section, you will be taken back into world of magic where demons and magicians reign. A young demon is held captive by a evil magician in Demon in a Box. You will find out what happens when powerful magicians don't use the magic to better the world in Cold Spell. A family finds out if their dog is really their best friend in Bingo. And in The Practice of Vengeance an evil magican tests out his domain's security system. In the Beyond section, Mr Welch takes us to the future and into space. In The Ganymede Incident we see what happens when a demon is bored and lets loose his gargoyles on a research space station. A group of aliens decend upon earth and a small group of humans fight to survive in The Value of Patience. Will three supply deliverers be able to resist the call of the siren in In the Beltway? In Last CAll at the Dew Drop Inn, Vampires, cyborgs, werewolfs and succubi and many other creatures inhabit the same strange world where "change" happens frequently. Patrick Welch does a great job of keeping his readers entertained with his vast collections of stories. Stories that take you from the world of magic and its magicians to far-out space and the future. For readers who likes stories filled with fantasy and some that make you stop and think "what if?" then Before and Beyond is right up your alley. While some may think that twenty-six is an awfully lot of stories, Patrick Welch's talented writing keeps you enthralled until the very end. For fantasy lovers out there, I highly recommend Before and Beyond by author Patrick Welch. Return to top of page. This page was last updated on January 1, 2008 This page and all its contents are Copyright© 2002-2008 In the Library Reviews and the individual reviewers. Except where noted, all graphics are Copyright© Eos Development and are used with permission. All book covers are Copyright© their respective publishers and are used with permission. The In the Library Reviews logo is Copyright© 2002 by In the Library Reviews/Sharyn McGinty. Site maintained by In the Library Reviews.