Nicholas Litchfield

Nicholas Litchfield is the founding editor of the literary magazine Lowestoft Chronicle, author of the suspense novels When The Actor Inspired Chaos and Bloodshed and Swampjack Virus, and editor of twelve literary anthologies. His stories, essays, and book reviews appear in many magazines and newspapers, including BULL, Colorado Review, Daily Press, Pennsylvania Literary Journal, Shotgun Honey, The Adroit Journal, The MacGuffin, The Virginian-Pilot, and Washington Square Review. He has also contributed introductions to numerous books, including twenty-two Stark House Press reprints of long-forgotten noir and mystery novels. Formerly a book critic for the Lancashire Post, syndicated to twenty-five newspapers across the U.K., he now writes for Publishers Weekly. You can find him online at nicholaslitchfield.com.

Virgin Cay and A Night Out by Basil Heatter

Litchfield Reviews Virgin Cay and A Night Out by Basil Heatter for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: In two suspenseful novels set in and around the Gulf of Mexico, the late American author Basil Heatter tells the stories of a shipwrecked boatman who is persuaded to commit murder for the price of a new ship, and a shrimp boat captain who unwittingly gets embroiled in a drug smuggling operation. A blend of crime fiction, nautical fiction and suspense, Virgin Cay and A Night Out are two exceptional novels by sea-loving Heatter, son of renowned newscaster Gabriel Heatter.

Litchfield Reviews Virgin Cay and A Night Out by Basil Heatter for the Lancashire Post Read More »

Behind the Mask- An Anthology of Heroic Proportions By Tricia Reeks and Kyle Richardson, editors

Litchfield Reviews Behind the Mask Edited by Tricia Reeks and Kyle Richardson for the Colorado Review

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Colorado Review book review by Nicholas Litchfield: Rocketing into speculative fiction territory, Behind the Mask, a strikingly entertaining anthology of short stories focused on the everyday lives of those in possession of superhuman abilities, sparkles with vibrant luminosity and star-spangled hipness. Leaning away from the cartoonish elements of the superhero genre, editors Tricia Reeks and Kyle Richardson have put together a smart and stimulating miscellany of humor and pathos, romance and adventure.

Litchfield Reviews Behind the Mask Edited by Tricia Reeks and Kyle Richardson for the Colorado Review Read More »

Smith by Timothy J. Lockhart

Litchfield Reviews Smith by Timothy J. Lockhart for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: Blackmailed into working for a secret government organisation, a hard-bitten former servicewoman overcomes a perilous training programme to become a highly skilled and extremely resourceful assassin in a taut, action-packed thriller.In his explosive debut novel, Smith, former US Navy officer Timothy J. Lockhart draws on his years of experience working with various government intelligence agencies to craft a gripping tale of international intrigue.

Litchfield Reviews Smith by Timothy J. Lockhart for the Lancashire Post Read More »

The Affair of Lady Westcotts Lost Ruby and The Case of the Unseen Assassin by Gary Lovisi

Litchfield Reviews The Affair of Lady Westcott’s Lost Ruby and The Case of the Unseen Assassin by Gary Lovisi for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: In a pair of intriguing novellas set in London in the 1890s, the deductive skills of Sherlock Holmes and his protégé, Inspector Alec MacDonald of Scotland Yard, are severely tested by a string of random killings of ‘gentlemen of consequence,’ and a plot to bring down the monarchy and plunge the British Empire into chaos.

Litchfield Reviews The Affair of Lady Westcott’s Lost Ruby and The Case of the Unseen Assassin by Gary Lovisi for the Lancashire Post Read More »

Stranded by Matthew P Mayo

Litchfield Reviews Stranded by Matthew P. Mayo for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: Lost, alone, and trapped in a little valley in the Northern Rocky Mountains in 1849, a desperate 14-year-old girl must find a way to survive the savage winter weather and frequent attacks by hungry wolves, grizzly bears and mountain lions in the historical fiction novel Stranded.

Litchfield Reviews Stranded by Matthew P. Mayo for the Lancashire Post Read More »

Mrs. Jeffries Rights a Wrong by Emily Brightwell

Litchfield Reviews Mrs. Jeffries Rights A Wrong by Emily Brightwell for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: When a genial businessman is brutally bludgeoned to death in his hotel room with his own walking stick, it’s up to Inspector Gerald Witherspoon’s resourceful household servants to piece together the clues and point their master in the right direction. Prolific New York Times bestselling American author Emily Brightwell (aka Cheryl Arguile) has been penning popular cosy mysteries on a regular basis for the past 24 years.

Litchfield Reviews Mrs. Jeffries Rights A Wrong by Emily Brightwell for the Lancashire Post Read More »

The Delight of Being Ordinary by Roland Merullo

Litchfield Reviews The Delight of Being Ordinary by Roland Merullo for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: Missing and believed kidnapped by the Mafia, two of the world’s most recognisable holy men embark on a secret, impromptu road trip across the appealing Italian countryside in a delightfully whimsical novel from acclaimed American author Roland Merullo.

Litchfield Reviews The Delight of Being Ordinary by Roland Merullo for the Lancashire Post Read More »

My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith

Litchfield Reviews My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith for the Lancashire Post

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Lancashire Post book review by Nicholas Litchfield: Wine, women and bulldozers are the three ruling muses in the charming and amusing fourth stand-alone novel from prolific, bestselling Scottish author Alexander McCall Smith. Set in Montalcino, an idyllic town in Tuscany, Italy, noted for its fine red wine, My Italian Bulldozer is a quirky novel revolving around romantic complications, noble deeds, and the spirit of adventure.

Litchfield Reviews My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith for the Lancashire Post Read More »

The Phantom of Thomas Hardy by Floyd Skloot

Litchfield Reviews The Phantom of Thomas Hardy by Floyd Skloot for the Colorado Review

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Colorado Review book review by Nicholas Litchfield: American memoirist, novelist, and poet Floyd Skloot nimbly crosses the gorge between fact and fiction in his uniquely inventive The Phantom of Thomas Hardy. Part travelogue, part memoir, part novel, this semi-autobiographical and semi-biographical endeavor is multifaceted and blends the various categories so thoroughly that the result is comparable to a rich, smooth-textured cocktail with a faintly peculiar flavor.

Litchfield Reviews The Phantom of Thomas Hardy by Floyd Skloot for the Colorado Review Read More »

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