George Henry Smith (1922-1996) was an incredibly prolific author. He used many pseudonyms and to really muddy the waters there were at least two other George H. Smiths writing pulp fiction at the same time.
Duffus January runs an occult-themed bookshop and works as an occasional private eye focusing on cases with occult aspects. His latest case is typical. A girl named Morgan Lacy thinks she has been cursed by a witch. January’s job is to convince her that spells can only harm people if they believe in them. January does not believe that magic actually works.
But January is actually an odd complicated guy. He is terrified of all mechanical things. Especially cars. Cars will watch you and stalk you. January believes that he is an incredibly powerful wizard. It’s just that his spells don’t work on Earth. Magic does not work on Earth. But January is from Earth. He doesn’t believe in other worlds. On the other hand he does have a vague sense of being different. And when he gets his nails manicured he is careful to save the nail clippings. If they fell into the hands of a witch then the witch would have great power over him. Even though magic doesn’t work it pays to take no chances.
January has a magic sword. Except of course that its magic doesn’t work on Earth.
So you might be thinking that January is some kind of nut but the story will soon take a major turn and we will discover why he believes so many contradictory things.
Morgan Lacy is kidnaped by a rather odd couple. And then January meets Annis. She is Morgan’s half-sister. He discovers what is going on. Both Morgan and Annis claim to be the rightful Witch Queen of Lochlann, or at least such claims have been made on behalf of both girls. Lochlann is a kingdom in another realm totally separate from our world. It’s a kingdom beneath the seas, but not the seas of our world. It’s a world of Celtic goddesses and magic and witches. Of course January knows that this is all nonsense.
He and Annis will have to get some help from the goddess Branwen. This involves a ritual. The ritual comes a pleasant surprise to January since it requires him to have sex with Annis. Living in a world of magic has its compensations.
Of course there are countless dangers to be faced. There’s a long sea voyage. There are monsters, some of them semi-human. There are fish-men. There’s another goddess to deal with. A bad goddess. Branwen is a good goddess.
The kingdom of Lochlann must be saved. Only the rightful witch queen can save it. It would be helpful to know which sister is in fact the the rightful witch queen. Duffus January knows the answer to that question. Or at least he thinks he knows.
The fact that Annis and Morgan are very beautiful rather charming young women complicates things. Whichever beautiful charming young woman he last spoke to tends to be the one that January trusts.
January does find out something. He had always had the feeling that he was really destined to be a mighty and noble warrior rather than a bookshop proprietor. In this new world he really is a mighty and noble warrior. And that magic sword now really is magical.
The way magic is handled is quite interesting. There are limits to what it can do. And even the most powerful sorcerer (or sorceress) can find his magical powers drained by overuse. So magic is not a plot device that allows the hero to solve every problem he encounters without effort.
The alternative world or magical realm in which the hero finds himself is heavily based on Celtic mythology and it’s brought vividly to life.
This is not a book that wants to be taken over-seriously. It’s a lighthearted sword-and-sorcery romp, but there’s a good story here, plenty of action, some romance and it’s all very enjoyable. Highly recommended.
This book reminds me a little of The Druid Stone which Gardner Francis Fox wrote under the name Simon Majors in 1967. I recommend The Druid Stone highly.
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