book introduction

The Big Grab & The Savage Breast by John Trinian (Introductions by Brian Greene and Nicholas Litchfield)

A John Trinian Twofer: The Big Grab/The Savage Breast

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The John Trinian (aka Zekial Marko) revival continues with this latest twofer from Stark House Press, The Big Grab / The Savage Breast. The author, a very proficient writer of crime novels, found success with numerous works, most notably Scratch a Thief and The Big Grab, each written in the early 1960s. Both of those crime tales became movies—the first filmed as Once a Thief, the latter as Any Number Can Win. Trinian wrote the screenplays.

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Grey Face & The Green Eyes of Bast by Sax Rohmer (Introduction by Nicholas Litchfield)

Two Haunting Classics from Sax Rohmer

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This month sees the reprint of Grey Face and The Green Eyes of Bâst, two masterful mysteries by the king of eerie occult fiction, Arthur Henry Sarsfield Ward (1883 – 1959), known to readers as Sax Rohmer. Although best remembered for his sizable collection of stories featuring the fiendish Dr. Fu Manchu, the author enjoyed great success with many of his other works. His standalone novels and book series containing Parisian criminal investigator Gaston Max attracted a large international fanbase. His tales concerning the female supervillain Sumuru went from radio to book and were eventually adapted to the big screen, spawning a couple of movies (produced in the 1960s and 1980s).

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The Sailcloth Shroud / All the Way by Charles Williams (Introduction by Nicholas Litchfield)

Seafaring Thriller Launches Charles Williams Revival

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As crime fiction collections go, few will better the latest twofer from Stark House Press – The Sailcloth Shroud and All The Way by Charles Williams. These reprints from the late 1950s, released this past month, are a couple of taut, tough, cleverly crafted stories that firmly hold the reader’s attention all the way to the journey’s end.

The second story, All the Way (sometimes known as The Concrete Flamingo), is a gripping noir that tugs at your heartstrings. Whatever your views regarding the intense ending, few can fault the masterful quality of the writing or the intriguing plot. It’s a noir that deserves to be remembered.

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Woman of Cairo and Dear, Deadly Beloved by John Flagg (Introduction by Nicholas Litchfield)

WOMAN OF CAIRO and DEAR, DEADLY BELOVED Bookgasm Review

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This month, Bookgasm gave a very encouraging review of the recent Stark House Press publication WOMAN OF CAIRO, and DEAR, DEADLY BELOVED— two Fawcett Gold Medal originals that are back in print for the first time in decades. “John Flagg, the pen name for John Rex Gearon, introduces us to his series character, Hart Muldoon, in the two novels from the 1950s reprinted here by Stark House Press,” writes book critic Alan Cranis of Bookgasm. “An introduction by editor and author Nicholas Litchfield traces Flagg’s career, the development of the Muldoon character, and how Flagg’s various occupations provided material for his novels and short stories. Both novels are noticeably more hardboiled than other spy novels of the era, but remain as alluring and entertaining as they were when first published.”

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Woman of Cairo and Dear, Deadly Beloved by John Flagg (Introduction by Nicholas Litchfield)

John Flagg’s Colorful Tales of Freelance Agent Hart Muldoon

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Back in November 2016, I read an excellent pair of novels by John Flagg, pseudonym of American crime writer John Gearon (1911-1993). Death and the Naked Lady (a thrilling tale of stolen jewels, murder, and espionage aboard a luxury ocean liner) and The Lady and the Cheetah (a deadly case of blackmail and sabotage among European nobility at an Italian palace) featured an interesting introduction by bestselling author James Reasoner. The volume also contained a very good short story concerning murder in high society (“Faces Turned Against Him”). You can read my verdict on the collection in the Lancashire Post or one of its 25 syndicated UK newspapers. You’ll find at this weblink archived online access to my review as it originally appeared in the Lancashire Post, featuring the Nicholas Litchfield byline: https://web.archive.org/web/20170105140113/https://www.lep.co.uk/lifestyle/books/book-review-death-and-the-naked-lady-and-the-lady-and-the-cheetah-by-john-flagg-1-8316256/.

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Devil May Care and Sinner Take All by Wade Miller (Introduction by Nicholas Litchfield)

Two Exhilarating Thrillers by Wade Miller

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Among the novels I’ve read this year, Devil May Care and Sinner Take All rank as two of the very finest. Both were penned by the writing duo of Robert Allison Wade (1920–2012) and H. Bill Miller (1920 –1961), a couple of close friends who wrote a fair number of big-selling novels in the crime, mystery, and thriller genres during the 1950s and 60s. Without doubt, their most fruitful collaboration was Badge of Evil, a manuscript adapted for the screen as Touch of Evil, directed by Orson Welles and starring Welles, Charlton Heston, and Janet Leigh. Other novels by Wade and Miller were adapted to the screen, though, strangely, Devil May Care, considered by some as the duo’s best, didn’t become a movie (despite actor James Cagney’s efforts), and it hasn’t been reprinted since the Fawcett Gold Medal printings in the 1950s.

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The Tooth and The Nail and The Wife of the Red-Haired Man by Bill S. Ballinger

Two Superior Chill and Puzzle Thrillers From Bill S. Ballinger

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A number of writers have been questioning me about my recent book introductions. They were under the impression I’m writing one a month. I can see why they would think that, looking at the listings on Amazon. As much as I’d love to be hammering out an intro every month, I’m not sure I’m entirely

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Two Stunning Excursions Into Terror From Dolores Hitchens

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Over the past two years, I’ve been lucky to be involved in quite a few book projects with the excellent independent publisher Stark House Press. I’ve read and reviewed a large number of their books and am continually amazed by the sheer quantity of quality authors they publish. A lot of their catalog consists of

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