A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 1 - Nick Hoffman has everything he's ever wanted: a good teaching job, a beautiful house, and a solid relationship with his lover, Stefan Borowski, a brilliant novelist and writer-in-residence at the State University of Michigan. But when Perry Cross shows up, Nick's peace of mind is shattered. Not only does he have to share his office with the nefarious Perry, who managed to weasel his way into a tenured position without the right qualifications, he also discovers that Perry played a destructive role in Stefan's past. When Perry turns up dead, Nick wonders if Stefan might be involved, while the campus police force is wondering the same about Nick. Originally published in 1996, this first book in the Nick Hoffman Academic Mystery series is now back in print, with a 2019 foreword by the author. EDITORIAL REVIEWS: "Deliciously wicked... The perfect book to take away for a weekend in the country... a genuinely funny modern comedy of manners." - Washington Post Book World "The Borgias would not be bored at the State University of Michigan, that snake pit of academic politics." - New York Times Book Review "Clever and sharp social satire." - Los Angeles Times "Lev Raphael skewers academic pretensions with wicked glee [and] Dickensian flair." - Chicago Sun-Times Lev Raphael offers "a delightful take on death in academe." - San Francisco Chronicle A "witty and devastating backstage view of college life." - San Diego Union-Tribune "Some of the most pointed and funny put-downs of academics in my memory." - Detroit Free Press Raphael "elegantly skewers ivory-tower pretensions, petty politics, incompetencies and hypocrisies." - Booklist Lev Raphael combines "stylish literary mystery with an intimate look at the jungle of academia... witty, impeccably written." - The Mystery Review "Marvelous humor and satisfying mystery... wickedly fun." - Drood Review of Mystery "Bright, breezy, and laugh-aloud funny." - Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 2 - Nick Hoffman, desperate to get tenure, has been saddled with a thankless task: coordinating a conference on Edith Wharton that will demonstrate how his department and his university supports women's issues. There's been widespread criticism that SUM is really the State University of Men. Problem is, he's forced to invite two warring Wharton societies, and the conflict between rival scholars escalates from mudslinging to murder. Nick's job and whole career are on the line unless he can help solve the case and salvage the conference. Originally published in 1998, this new edition contains a 2020 foreword by Gregory Ashe as well as a new introduction by the author.

A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 8 -Successful professor Nick Hoffman finds his secure, happy, college-town life changed forever after a nightmarish encounter with police. The idea that someone can accuse you of a crime, and a SWAT team shows up at your door and drags you away? But even when that horrible night is over, tension and paranoia build in ways that are far too plausible. Someone is clearly out to destroy him. Nick and his partner Stefan Borowski face an escalating series of threats that lead to a brutal and stunning confrontation. A novel of suspense, Assault with a Deadly Lie probes the disturbing psychological impact of slander, harassment, stalking, police brutality, and the loss of personal safety within the academic world. In this eighth novel in the series, Lev Raphael, Lambda Award winner, takes us on an especially topical voyage into politics and college freedoms. Included in this new edition, a foreword by Carole B. Shmurak (Susan Lombardi mysteries) as well as a new introduction by the author. "A riveting great read for mystery/suspense fans, Lev Raphael once again documents his impressive gifts, holding the reader's rapt attention from beginning to end with unexpected plot twists and surprise twists." - Midwest Book Review "In Assault with a Deadly Lie, the ivory tower topples under a barrage of guns and violence. Nick Hoffman and his partner find that literature and an idyllic domestic life are no match for a deranged character's revenge conspiracy." - Lynn C. Miller "A splendidly written story of innocence, intrigue, and invisible enemies, Assault with a Deadly Lie waltzes beautifully between poignancy and terror. But better still is the question that will haunt readers long after the book is put down: Could this happen to me?" - P.J. Parrish

A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 3 - Mayhem at the State University of Michigan: Is it murder...or another faculty meeting? Filled with caustic humor about university life and written with literate style and grace, The Death of a Constant Lover escalates Nick Hoffman's involvement with mayhem and faculty meetings. When the son of a professor is murdered on a campus bridge, Nick's presence at the scene puts him right where he can't afford to be: in the middle of trouble. With his tenure review coming up, he's been warned by his department chair to avoid bad publicity. But Nick is forced to wade in deeper anyway, inexorably drawn into yet another risky investigation in the surprisingly cutthroat world of academia. He may be surrounded by academics with deadly agendas, but he's armed with the hope that his wit and insight will be enough to avert the death of his career... and maybe his own as well. A Lambda Literary Awards Finalist, this new edition contains a 2020 foreword by Brad Shreve (Mitch O'Reilly series) as well as a new introduction by the author.

A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 4 - The fourth novel in the highly acclaimed series begins on a high note. It appears that Nick's career is finally moving in the right direction, and the celebrity that comes with solving murders has brought him more students than he can possibly handle. But things are never calm at the State University of Michigan: Nick's partner's career seems to be taking a downturn, a new faculty member is causing a lot of nasty talk, and cryptic messages are showing up in Nick's mailbox. What turns up next is a corpse - and some very unsettling thoughts for the reluctant sleuth. Lev Raphael is a Lambda Literary Awards winner and multiple nominee for several books. This new edition in his Nick Hoffman series contains a 2021 foreword by Meg Perry (Jamie Brodie series).

A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 6 - It's winter, but academic madness is in full bloom at the State University of Michigan. Untenured professor Nick Hoffman is desperately trying to keep out of the way as three senior professors battle to be the chair of his department. They all hate each other and all demand his support in an atmosphere of intense crisis. The situation implodes when an emergency meeting turns the department upside down. Nick is left desperate to make a quick getaway, so his partner Stefan suggests an idyllic week at a Caribbean Club Med. The island of Serenity, however, proves to be anything but serene. Once again, Edith Wharton scholar Nick Hoffman, who grew up in New York City and was never even mugged, finds himself face-to-face with murder. In this sixth novel in the series, Lev Raphael, Lambda Award winner, amuses and delights on campus and on vacation. Included in this new edition, a foreword by Anthony Bidulka (Russell Quant Mysteries). "Author Lev Raphael knows quite a lot about the dismal swamps of academe and the sunlit beaches of the Caribbean. The time he has obviously spent in these places make it possible for him to write vividly - and wittily - about both, with his tongue planted firmly in his cheek." - Lambda Book Report "Funny, cynical, and bittersweet, the new Nick Hoffman mystery will be eagerly pounced on by Raphael's many fans." - Lauren Henderson, My Lurid Past "Lev Raphael has done it again - another mordantly witty mystery featuring everyone's favourite acerbic English professor, Nick Hoffman. Relax with Tropic of Murder and take an entertaining, exotic Club Med vacation without even having to get out of your favorite chair." - Dean James, Decorated to Death "Beguiling and funny." - Washington Post "Raphael keeps us turning pages with mouthwatering descriptions of buffets and a paradise brimming with cheerful attendants; he ratchets up tension with rumors of ghosts and some very substantial fellows threatening to trade blows." - Booklist "Raphael's wit is sharp as ever." - Kirkus Reviews

A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 5 - Evil Stalks the Halls of Academe! Welcome to the hothouse world of academia where egos bruise as easily as peaches and vendettas grow like weeds. Nick Hoffman's State University of Michigan is a place where the Borgias and the Marx Brothers would be equally at home. Heading into the Christmas season, SUM is being torn apart by bizarre attempts to make it more diverse while an autocratic new provost pushes for a White Studies program and Nick faces not only a tenure battle but conflicting requests for support in a battle for department chair. With his professional life a mix of seasonal chaos and departmental warfare, Nick discovers that he's not only attracted to the outrageously sexy Juno Dromgoole and disturbed by these disorienting new feelings in his life, but also the target, along with Juno, of a vicious harassment campaign that escalates into stalking, assault, and attempted murder. This new edition contains a 2022 foreword by Martha C. Lawrence (Murder in Scorpio). "Lev Raphael's lacerating wit fillets the fatted calves of academia, roasts them with the hot breath of satire, then serves them up in the sauciest of mysteries." - Val McDermid "Nick Hoffman is back, relegated to the basement of his college so he won't get into trouble. But when someone torches his mailbox, Nick gets the hint that an arsonist is carrying a flame for him. As ever, Lev Raphael is witty, biting and on the nail when it comes to the groves and gripes of academe." - Ian Rankin "Lev Raphael is one of the most sophisticated mystery authors alive, and his latest, Burning Down the House, is witty and charming." - Cleveland Plain Dealer "If conditions on university campuses really are as bizarre and insidiously political as depicted in novelist-critic Lev Raphael's new Burning Down the House, higher education must be at an all-time low. As the author amusingly presents it, the faculty at State University of Michigan is an assortment of eccentric, conniving, self-promoting, not to mention homicidal, half-baked do-nothings." - Los Angeles Times