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Witches and Warlocks
In The Bedfordshire Warlock, a warlock gifted with powers he doesn’t utilize begins to question his fate when he discovers the dark secrets surrounding the new town where he and his mother have settled. Where did the idea for this book come from?
I have always been fascinated by the dark history of The Salem Witch Trials. What if there were actual witches and warlocks with supernatural powers in colonial America who were the initial cause of the hysteria and became victims themselves in the execution of the innocents? In addition, when I was a little boy, the thought of having powers like those of witches and warlocks I saw on television and movies was an obsession of mine. So, in a sense, Dorian’s story is the story I wish had happened to me (the powers, not the Ascension plot line) when I was a kid.
What was the inspiration for Dorian’s traits and dialogue?
In my mind’s eye, Dorian Leeves physical description matches what I imagined Dorian Gray looked like in Oscar Wilde’s masterpiece (the inspiration for Dorian’s name in the novel as he points out). My protagonists are amalgams of my personal traits and characters I admire from literature and media. For example, I’m a scientist and an educator so there is at least one scientific teacher in the mix for every novel I pen. As for the active dialogue, Dorian reflects my thoughts on the issues facing young gay men in the early 1990s during the gay liberation movement when I was also a graduate student in the biological sciences.
What draws you to the paranormal genre, and makes it ripe for you to write such a great mystery story in it?
First, thank you for saying it is a great mystery. Second, I have always been drawn to mysteries involving the supernatural, especially those falling into the horror genre. Because I was in higher education for 25 years, I was expected to write and publish research-based articles for scientific journals. So, the last thing I want to write for pleasure is a strictly factual-based story. The flexibility I have when writing about a world outside the natural laws is freeing. Adding a mystery to the storyline makes it more interesting.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when can we expect to see it released?
My publisher bought the rights to my first self-published novel The Malevolent, a graphic ghost story set in Maine in the early 1980’s. The coast of Maine was a favorite family vacation state when I was a teenager in the 1980s. It is written under my nom de plume, P.F. Roquelaure, because I was still a professor at the time and the last thing I needed was for my students to do an internet search and have this disturbing novel pop up! It will be out in 2025. My literary agency is also shopping my latest novel Bloodstone, set in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, which involves pirates and blood magic. Like all of my novels, the setting is a place where I have lived. In this case, it is a love letter to a beach town where my family vacationed for 45 summers in a row!
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Three hundred years later, the force from the well, Beladon, contacts Dorian Leeves, a young man with supernatural abilities, and informs him that he possesses the same powers as Elias Doever. Dorian will accomplish his ascension into powers beyond his belief if he can re-unite the “three bloods” of Elias Doever, himself, and Beladon. However, the body was buried in secret unconsecrated ground. Dorian’s new love interest, Toby Blessing, creates complications for his quest to find the skeletal remains of Elias Doever for his ascension.
Dorian must decide whether to abandon his ascension and power or embrace a life with Toby in the present day.
The Bedfordshire Warlock
Patrick R. Field’s The Bedfordshire Warlock delivers a captivating mix of history, witchcraft, science, and the supernatural, spiced with just enough romance to keep things balanced. The story revolves around Dorian Leeves, a warlock who doesn’t practice magic but knows he possesses extraordinary abilities. When he moves with his mother to a colonial-era house in Bedfordshire, strange events intensify, and his latent powers grow stronger. As he uncovers the home’s grim past, linked to Elias Doever—a man once tried for witchcraft—Dorian becomes obsessed with the town’s dark secrets and wonders if fate has marked him to take on the same title.
Narrated by Dorian himself, the story plunges into his meticulous and descriptive perspective. At times, I feel the narration leans more toward “telling” than “showing.” Yet, in a unique way, this approach works. Dorian’s scientific and analytical personality shines through, giving readers a clear sense of his methodical nature. Field manages to weave an intriguing plot that unfolds with surprising fluidity. The novel’s mysteries pile up, strange visions and supernatural events intertwining until the truth behind Bedfordshire’s history finally reveals itself.
Field excels in crafting the setting of Bedfordshire. The small-town life comes alive with a vivid, almost nostalgic charm. He perfectly captures the essence of a New England autumn, where falling leaves, crisp air, and centuries-old buildings cloak the town in a thick aura of history. This rich backdrop gives the book a layer of calm, a stark yet appealing contrast to the eerie supernatural elements.
The mystery is the heartbeat of The Bedfordshire Warlock, pulsing stronger with each twist and turn. Following Dorian as he connects the dots is thrilling, and I was genuinely invested in his quest. The finale, though, felt a bit over-the-top, and I believe the romance seemed to exist mostly to heighten the emotional stakes at the climax. Still, these minor notes didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment. This is a gripping, immersive ride, and sometimes, that’s exactly the type of escape readers need.
Pages: 300 | ISBN : 978-1509255320
LITERARY TITAN 