Rating: 
Summary: A dull, ill conceived effort. It is not worth the reading.
Review: I had hoped this would be a worthy sequel to the story of Rick, Ilsa, Victor and Louie. Instead this novel is boring, implausable, and dull. I truly hope no one thinks this has potential to be a motion picture.
Rating: 
Summary: Just like any other sequel, only more so.
Review: Like most people who buy this book, I am a huge fan of the movie, "Casablanca". I purchased, "As Time Goes By" to it to bring back the emotions of the movie. As I began reading the book I almost stopped myself many times thinking I was cheating my cherished Casablanca memories. The story or my love for the original movie kept me reading. Mr. Walsh did a good job of creating an interesting past for Rick, however his future was pretty hooky. Some of the characters headed into unbelievable areas. Victor Laslo turned very dark and jeopardizes Ilsa's life for his obsession. Mr. Walsh cheapens his tale with tongue in cheek references to Humphrey Bogart's career and cause of death. All that said it was not really a bad book. I hope it is not made into a movie so that I will not be tempted to see it.
Rating: 
Summary: here's looking at you, again
Review: Well worth reading, even twice. I found the author's treatment of Rick's youth fascinating and plausible, perhaps the best part of the story. Victor Laslow is a one-sided, white-knight in the movie, and Walsh adds some depth to the character in this sequel. I was disappointed with Ilsa. The author tried to make her more calculating, more take-charge, but in my opinion she comes across as sometimes confused, sometimes a whore.The novel does an excellent job exploring the relationships between Rick and Sam, and Rick and Renault. There is plenty of action and suspense. Read it again, Sam!
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and fun...
Review: Having seen Casablanca at least two dozen times, As Time Goes By was, for me, fun & nostalgic, giving some of my all-time favorite characters both a past & a future. These may not have been the pasts I would have thought, nor the futures that I would have planned, however, I believe that Michael Walsh put his heart into this effort, keeping to & picking up on the details of the movie dialogue & innuendo, & obviously enjoying himself in the process! This book added dimension to each of the characters -- the sides we witnessed in the film were only in Casablanca, after all, & only over the course of a couple of days. Keeping in mind that this is a light, "fun" read, & not something to find subliminal meanings in will only add to your enjoyment. At the same time, this was no small undertaking on the part of the author -- & whenever I want a book to "keep on going" as I near the end, I always applaud!
Rating:
Summary: Poorly written, unconvincing development of characters.
Review: This is a bad book. The characters you know from Casablanca transform radically - for unknown reasons, and extremely unconvincingly - into someone else. Rick takes sides and becomes involved in a lunatic plot, with Laszlo becoming his co-conspirator and SHE the super-spy, infiltrating the enemy. Please. On top of it, it is very poorly written, some dialogues actually hurt. No good.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent read!
Review: Michael Walsh has taken one of the greatest movies of all times and extended the enjoyment for the reader. From the beginning, Rick is a wonderful character (if you can still hear Bogart's voice), Ilsa is enchanting, and Lazlo is a fanatic. The book kept me reading well into the night and was worth every minute.
Rating:
Summary: It's good; but I hope they don't try this with Citizen Kane
Review: Recently, my girlfriend and I watch "Casablanca" together and I do feel it has brought us even closer to each other. I liked and really identified with the character of Rick. He meets a girl, falls in love with her, and she drops him to go back to her husband. A couple years later she comes back into his life and he goes through the same feelings he had two years ago. They are not the same people they each knew. And, at the end, he shows what I think is a true romantic sentiment from a guy, he saves her life and her husband's as well. And then he and his new best friend walk off into the mist and fade to black. The novel picks up right where the movie left us. Rick and Louis make their escape from Casablanca. Bringing Sam, one of the great underused characters in any movie, along for comedy relief, Rick and Louis globe hop after Ilsa and Victor. We find out Victor's true quest in Europe. Ilsa being there to protect his sole. Victor and the Czech Resistance in London are attempting to assasinate an SS official in Prague. Rick and Louis come along for the ride. Intermingled between every one or two chapters is a flashback to New York and an origin to Rick himself. Why doesn't he stick his neck out for nobody? Where did he learn to handle a gun so well? And how did he meet Sam? The two storylines move together to one great moment that probably can't be captured in a TV miniseries. Meanwhile, I'm giving my girlfriend constant updates on the story as I progress. And I'm sure we'll be tuning in for the forthcoming miniseries. So Casablanca, a hard movie to do a sequel to; but I think Michael Walsh is one person who has gotten it right.
Rating:
Summary: A Sequel To A Classic Isn't So classical Itself
Review: Casablanca was one, if not the best films ever made. I do not consider it heresy that a sequel should be written. In fact, I eagerly plucked the book from the shelf and hurried home to explore the further adventures of Rick and Ilsa. Disappointment quickly followed. Mr. Walsh's novel does contain some good points, but unfortunately his plotting and story telling skills leave something to be desired. The plot revolves around an assassination plot: an evil Nazi, dubbed "The Hangman of Prague", is the target. Ilsa gets in on the action by going undercover, and coozing up to the intended victim. Rick and Louis fear mass reprisal if the plan succeeds, and doubt if any of them will escape with their lives. Lazlo is a fanatic with a personal score to settle and a single-minded obsession to kill the man who killed his father and imprisoned him in a concentration camp. He is willing to sacrafice himself, his wife, and anyone else to complete the mission. He even coldly kills a beloved Casablaca character, when he feels that character has betrayed the mission. Rick's origins are delved into: he was a jewish gangster in New York during Prohibition, and there are some nice tie-ins to the original play "Everybody Comes to Rick's", which was the basis for Casablanca. They are more interesting than the real plot that follows. The ending is a hollow cliche and is the worst thing about the book really. I will not spoil it for everyone else, but it rings hollow indeed. "As Time Goes By" is only the author's 2nd novel, and it shows throughout the manuscript. Fans of Casablanca won't find that old Hollywood magic in this lackluster sequel
Rating: 
Summary: A fun read If not taken too Serious.
Review: Casablanca is a Classic not to be messed with! BUT, because of the love I have for the characters, I did enjoy envisioning them coming to life once again. At first I was worried that the story could change my views of the original movie. After reading it I realized it's really not a bad story, which could be the bases and conclusion for the main story. Walsh does stick closely to the feel of the movie. I think if you love the story, and just crave more, you should read the book. Just as long as no movie is made!
Rating: 
Summary: play it again sam
Review: Although my initial reaction to seeing a book pick up where the movie Casablanca closed was not positive, I must say that after an evening and a day reading through to the end dispelled my trepidation. Unlike a movie, which by necessity would require new faces (as all the original cast is long gone) part of the beauty of this book is in hearing in your mind thoses long lost voices once again. Mr. Walsh, by incorporating scenes and phrases from the movie, is aptly able to bring the reader back to the forties and bask in the sublime characters created in the movie. I was pleasently surprised to see how each characters history was explained, none of it in a havy handed or preposterous fashion to say the least. The pleasure for me in this book was not so much a tying up of loose ends or explaining previously unexplained events (why cant rick go back to ny) but rather in the pure enjoyment of having another opprotunity to be in the company of all those original characters one more time. Mr. Walsh, you have done a service to those of us who long to return to Ricks Cafe, and hear Sam play AS TIME GOES BY , one more time MARK J. WEINBERG BROOKLYN NEW YORK
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