As Keith Chapman, Chap O'Keefe was an editor and contributor to various fiction publications in London in the 1960s before shifting to New Zealand and spending nearly 35 years in newspaper and magazine journalism. He returned to fiction writing in earnest in 1992 with the O'Keefe westerns and edits the Black Horse Extra online magazine.
As well as standalone titles, the O'Keefe westerns include the adventures of the ex-Pinkerton detective, Joshua Dillard, and the exploits of the engaging Miss Lilian Goodnight, a scallywag heroine better known as Misfit Lil.
O'Keefe's books are published in the series Black Horse Westerns, the Linford Western Library and Dales Westerns. His latest project is a series of fast-moving, action-packed pocket-book paperback originals in the Gold Medal, Ace Books tradition, but incorporating themes designed to appeal to the contemporary reader. The first title is MISFIT LIL CHEATS THE HANGROPE. Check out the listing on Amazon.co.uk. A Kindle edition is also now available for ebook readers. And you can sample the first chapter at http://chapokeefe.webs.com/bhemch/ .
Fellow western author Ben Bridges says, "I'm so glad to see that this book is starting to get the recognition it truly deserves. Take it from someone who's collected and read westerns for more than forty years, MISFIT LIL CHEATS THE HANGROPE stands head and shoulders above the current crop of competitors! It has a fabulous story with - to this reader, at least - a completely unforeseen denouement, vivid, lively characters and regular bursts of action which - and here's the important bit - STEM NATURALLY FROM THE PLOT and aren't just shoe-horned in to beef things up a bit. I have, of course, read Chap O'Keefe for a long while now, but genuinely feel that this is his best to date! Please keep 'em coming, Chap!"
Reader (and author) Richard Webster says, "I'm excited to hear of a new Misfit Lil book. It's a wonderful series with a delightful protagonist. Chap O'Keefe is doing an excellent job at nudging the genre forwards, something that's desperately needed if westerns are to continue to grow and flourish. I'm looking forward to seeing the new [pocket-book paperback] format."
Legendary blogger Grumpy Old Bookman once said, "Misfit Lil . . . . What a terrific name for a character, eh? This book belongs to an endangered species: the western. As for the story: totally professional, as you would expect, and a lot of fun. By my count, MISFIT LIL FIGHTS BACK is the author's sixteenth book, so he knows how to do the job. Ms Lil has appeared before, and doubtless will again."
A second Black Horse Extra Books paperback, featuring O'Keefe's other series hero, the ex-Pinkerton adventurer Joshua Dillard, is also available. The title is LIBERTY AND A LAW BADGE and you can read the engrossing first chapter, plus a sampling of reviewers' praise, at http://chapokeefe.webs.com/bhelib .
Chap O'Keefe, his wife, three adult children and four grandchildren continue to live in Auckland, New Zealand. The family home is high on a North Shore hillside overlooking Hellyer's Creek and the sparkling Waitemata Harbour.
COMPLETE CHAP O'KEEFE WESTERNS LIST:
Gunsmoke Night (1993)
The Sheriff and the Widow (1994)
Shootout At Hellyer's Creek (1994)
The Outlaw and the Lady (1994)
The Gunman and the Actress (1995)
The Sandhills Shootings (1995)
Doomsday Mesa (1995)
Frontier Brides (2004)
The Rebel and the Heiress (2005)
Ride the Wild Country (2005)
The Lawman and the Songbird (2005)
Ghost Town Belles (2006)
Misfit Lil Rides in (2006)
Misfit Lil Gets Even (2006)
Sons and Gunslicks (2007)
Misfit Lil Fights Back (2007)
Peace at Any Price (2007)
Misfit Lil Hides Out (2008)
A Gunfight Too Many (2008)
Misfit Lil Cleans Up (2008)
Blast to Oblivion (2009)
Misfit Lil Robs the Bank (2009)
Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope (2009)
Faith and a Fast Gun (2010)
Liberty and a Law Badge (2010)
