What do you think?
Rate this book
Benjamin Justice #1
Simple Justice
Following the death of his lover and a scandal involving his Pulitzer Prize-winning article, crime reporter Benjamin Justice has fallen into a hazy, alcoholic reclusiveness, hiding out in the West Hollywood neighborhood known as the Norma Triangle. He is called back to the world of the living by an unexpected, and unwelcome, visit from Harry Brofsky, his former boss. Brofsky wants Ben to do some background work (strictly off the record) with another reporter on the investigation of a seemingly motiveless killing outside a local gay bar.
Sucked in for reasons even he doesn't quite understand, Justice finds himself back in the life of gay bars, spurned lovers, dysfunctional families, and tawdry secrets--all the things he had been trying to escape. While fending off passes from his sexy, young female partner, he finds himself falling hopelessly in love with the man he must ultimately nail for murder--a killing that turns out to have far more personal and political implications than a simple bias crime.
Simple Justice is a subtly plotted mystery that takes a piercing look at not only violent crime but violations of the heart and soul in the sometimes glamorous, more often dark and dangerous gay life of West Hollywood.
Sucked in for reasons even he doesn't quite understand, Justice finds himself back in the life of gay bars, spurned lovers, dysfunctional families, and tawdry secrets--all the things he had been trying to escape. While fending off passes from his sexy, young female partner, he finds himself falling hopelessly in love with the man he must ultimately nail for murder--a killing that turns out to have far more personal and political implications than a simple bias crime.
Simple Justice is a subtly plotted mystery that takes a piercing look at not only violent crime but violations of the heart and soul in the sometimes glamorous, more often dark and dangerous gay life of West Hollywood.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
22 people are currently reading
457 people want to read
About the author
John Morgan Wilson
20 books50 followersJohn Morgan Wilson is the author of several novels in the Benjamin Justice series as well as two co-written books with band leader Peter Duchin. He's the winner of the Edgar Award and three-time winner of the Lambda Literary Award for the Benjamin Justice novels. He lives in West Hollywood, CA.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
November 7, 2018
Real Rating: 2.5* of five
The Publisher Says: Following the death of his lover and a scandal involving his Pulitzer Prize-winning article, crime reporter Benjamin Justice has fallen into a hazy, alcoholic life, hiding out in the West Hollywood neighborhood known as the Norma Triangle. He is called back to the world of the living by an unexpected, and unwelcome, visit from Harry Brofsky, his former boss. Brofsky wants Ben to do some background work (strictly off the record) with another reporter on the investigation of a seemingly motiveless killing outside a local gay bar. The investigation throws Justice back into the life of gay bars, spurned lovers, dysfunctional families, and tawdry secrets--all the things he had been trying to escape. And it leads, ultimately, to the reexamination of his own dark past, and his own crimes of passion. Simple Justice is a subtly plotted mystery that takes a piercing look at not only violent crime but also violations of the heart and soul in the sometimes glamorous, more often dark and gritty gay world of West Hollywood.
My Review: Simple? Simplistic. Subtle? Clichéd. Voices are muffled as if through handkerchiefs. (Seriously...try that sometime...all you are is inaudible.) Gunshots? Are you sure it wasn't a car backfiring? (In the past 20 years, the ubiquity of fuel injection has made this once-frequent occurrence unusual enough to be more noteworthy than a mere gunshot.) The large, muscular African-American bouncer at a gay bar says the victim was “all by hisself.”
Nauseous.
The murderer, when revealed, is so boringly predictable that, on the character's first appearance, I noted “killer” on the page. (Since erased. Hey, quit frowning, some people dog-ear.) The red herrings were days old, and smelt up the place. (Punishment will continue until praise is heaped upon me.)
So why did I finish it? It's the sixteen-year-old first book in a series that has eight books. First books are seldom all that wonderful, and a series that's lasted eight has something. Maybe I won't like that something, but I'll try one more to see. It only took about three hours to read this one, so it's not like I'm making a major time commitment. Plus the Pearl Rule looms behind each page-flip, dangling its gorgeously made invitation to say “sayonara” and sail away for better-written shores.
The Publisher Says: Following the death of his lover and a scandal involving his Pulitzer Prize-winning article, crime reporter Benjamin Justice has fallen into a hazy, alcoholic life, hiding out in the West Hollywood neighborhood known as the Norma Triangle. He is called back to the world of the living by an unexpected, and unwelcome, visit from Harry Brofsky, his former boss. Brofsky wants Ben to do some background work (strictly off the record) with another reporter on the investigation of a seemingly motiveless killing outside a local gay bar. The investigation throws Justice back into the life of gay bars, spurned lovers, dysfunctional families, and tawdry secrets--all the things he had been trying to escape. And it leads, ultimately, to the reexamination of his own dark past, and his own crimes of passion. Simple Justice is a subtly plotted mystery that takes a piercing look at not only violent crime but also violations of the heart and soul in the sometimes glamorous, more often dark and gritty gay world of West Hollywood.
My Review: Simple? Simplistic. Subtle? Clichéd. Voices are muffled as if through handkerchiefs. (Seriously...try that sometime...all you are is inaudible.) Gunshots? Are you sure it wasn't a car backfiring? (In the past 20 years, the ubiquity of fuel injection has made this once-frequent occurrence unusual enough to be more noteworthy than a mere gunshot.) The large, muscular African-American bouncer at a gay bar says the victim was “all by hisself.”
Nauseous.
The murderer, when revealed, is so boringly predictable that, on the character's first appearance, I noted “killer” on the page. (Since erased. Hey, quit frowning, some people dog-ear.) The red herrings were days old, and smelt up the place. (Punishment will continue until praise is heaped upon me.)
So why did I finish it? It's the sixteen-year-old first book in a series that has eight books. First books are seldom all that wonderful, and a series that's lasted eight has something. Maybe I won't like that something, but I'll try one more to see. It only took about three hours to read this one, so it's not like I'm making a major time commitment. Plus the Pearl Rule looms behind each page-flip, dangling its gorgeously made invitation to say “sayonara” and sail away for better-written shores.
April 13, 2019
Benjamin is a broken man. A one-time lauded journalist who won the coveted Pulitzer Prize for a series he wrote about AIDS, he's now living with a ruined name and years of regrets. After the death of his lover years before, he's been hiding from the world, getting by on bit jobs and the generosity of his landlords. When his old editor, Harry, comes walking back into his life, asking him to help his new star journalist, Alex, with a piece about the death of gay man, Ben at first refuses - until he sees news coverage of the confessed murderer and is convince something's not right.
There's a lot going on in this first book. Wilson does a great job of setting up Ben's character. His past is anything but peachy and he's been worn down by his guilt and grief. He's a bit fatalistic and prefers to duck his head than to stick his neck out, at least with his personal life. Once he gets the scent for a story beyond the facts being reported in the news though, he's all about sticking his neck out, taking chances and doing whatever he needs to do to find the truth.
There are actually two mysteries here: why did Ben lie in his story that won him - and lost him - the Pulitzer, and who is the murderer. The first was pretty obvious to me rather quickly, but getting all the details slowly uncovered as the story progressed and Alex got more and more interested in his story gave a better picture of who Ben is. As for the murderer, there are a lot of good leads and possible suspects. I did peg the real murderer early on, but the why and how come didn't get revealed until closer to the end.
A head up: This is NOT a romance series. There is a bit of dubcon here. Like I said, Ben's a broken man and his choice of bed partner is less than wise. Then again, his bed partner is also broken and using Ben right back. How much it bothers you, or doesn't bother you, or whether you think it actually goes into non-con territory, will no doubt vary.
Edit: Oh, and funny story. There was one particular typo that clearly wasn't found, and I didn't realize it at first, and that was when Jacques is referred to as a fern. F-E-R-N. At first, I wondered if that was some sort of gay slang I was unaware of (entirely possible) but on it's second appearance, I realized it was supposed to be fem. F-E-M. LOL. 😂 Clearly, that one got missed during the formatting from paper to digital. As for other typos, this was refreshingly light on those.
There's a lot going on in this first book. Wilson does a great job of setting up Ben's character. His past is anything but peachy and he's been worn down by his guilt and grief. He's a bit fatalistic and prefers to duck his head than to stick his neck out, at least with his personal life. Once he gets the scent for a story beyond the facts being reported in the news though, he's all about sticking his neck out, taking chances and doing whatever he needs to do to find the truth.
There are actually two mysteries here: why did Ben lie in his story that won him - and lost him - the Pulitzer, and who is the murderer. The first was pretty obvious to me rather quickly, but getting all the details slowly uncovered as the story progressed and Alex got more and more interested in his story gave a better picture of who Ben is. As for the murderer, there are a lot of good leads and possible suspects. I did peg the real murderer early on, but the why and how come didn't get revealed until closer to the end.
A head up: This is NOT a romance series. There is a bit of dubcon here. Like I said, Ben's a broken man and his choice of bed partner is less than wise. Then again, his bed partner is also broken and using Ben right back. How much it bothers you, or doesn't bother you, or whether you think it actually goes into non-con territory, will no doubt vary.
Edit: Oh, and funny story. There was one particular typo that clearly wasn't found, and I didn't realize it at first, and that was when Jacques is referred to as a fern. F-E-R-N. At first, I wondered if that was some sort of gay slang I was unaware of (entirely possible) but on it's second appearance, I realized it was supposed to be fem. F-E-M. LOL. 😂 Clearly, that one got missed during the formatting from paper to digital. As for other typos, this was refreshingly light on those.
September 3, 2020
Simple Justice
By John Morgan Wilson
Originally published 1996
ReQueered Tales Edition, September 2020
Five stars
The eeriest thing about John Morgan Wilson’s “Simple Justice” is not that it doesn’t feel dated after all the years since its original publication in 1996, but rather that it seems more relevant than ever in the context of our world as it is right now in 2020. With some careful retooling by the author for this new edition, it stands as a document of a mid-1990s nouveau-noir detective story; but also as a gripping contemporary moral tale set in a world where “moral” is an equivocal concept at best.
Benjamin Justice is a failed journalist who, at thirty-eight, seems to have given up on life. He lives in his late lover’s garage apartment in Los Angeles, going quietly to seed with his lingering grief and in the sodden aftermath of his spectacular fall from Pulitzer-Prize-winning reporter to journalistic pariah. When his former boss, Harry Brofsky – whose career was all but destroyed by his association with Justice – shows up proposing that he mentor a hotshot young reporter named Alexandra Templeton, he understandably balks. What finally coaxes him out of his lair of self-defeat is the apparent murder of a pretty young man in the parking lot of a West Hollywood gay bar by a teenaged Chicano boy. Something is off about this supposedly open-and-shut case, and once Harry shows Benjamin the news video, he’s hooked.
This is a rich, deeply layered story. Its complicated plot is not so much Byzantine as kaleidoscopic, the many tumbling fragments gradually filling both Justice’s and the reader’s mind with calculated confusion. Interestingly, the one aspect of LA that doesn’t really figure in this story is Hollywood, and that’s something of a relief. We have class, race, issues of sexual orientation and politics aplenty – more than enough without dragging the movie industry into it. A key pleasure in this book is getting to know Benjamin Justice himself, which takes some doing and is exquisitely handled through Wilson’s skilled narrative. The fragmentary unveiling of Justice’s life, grudgingly revealed at first but ultimately laid bare by his reluctant mentee, left me stunned. Alexandra Templeton is herself a complicated character, but far less damaged than Justice. The author depicts her through Justice’s eyes with clear, concise strokes. I suspect the fact that Templeton never becomes as fully three-dimensional as Justice is part of the author’s plan. Wilson’s greater interest in this book – the first of a series – is in showing how these two wildly different people forge an alliance that neither of them initially wants.
Wilson probes into human frailty and prejudice as he drags Justice deeper into the mystery. Racist assumptions made by white folks about Chicanos are shoved up against Black/Hispanic hostility, racism within the Korean community, and – of course – the constant underlying hostility of everyone in LA toward gay people, especially at a time when AIDS was still front and center in America’s consciousness. No group is innocent, no group is solely the victim. We are dragged into an ugly stew of prejudice and anger, only to be startled by moments of compassion that can be as painful as the hatred.
The mystery is solved, but that’s no spoiler. There is redemption here, but not quite fulfilled. The final moment in the book left me shaken, because it is a last reminder that there is more tragedy here than solving a single murder can heal. Benjamin Justice is like a drowning man at the start of this story. At the end, his head is above water, but he hasn’t made it to shore yet.
I finished “Simple Justice” all but desperate to read the next book in the series. Good job.
By John Morgan Wilson
Originally published 1996
ReQueered Tales Edition, September 2020
Five stars
The eeriest thing about John Morgan Wilson’s “Simple Justice” is not that it doesn’t feel dated after all the years since its original publication in 1996, but rather that it seems more relevant than ever in the context of our world as it is right now in 2020. With some careful retooling by the author for this new edition, it stands as a document of a mid-1990s nouveau-noir detective story; but also as a gripping contemporary moral tale set in a world where “moral” is an equivocal concept at best.
Benjamin Justice is a failed journalist who, at thirty-eight, seems to have given up on life. He lives in his late lover’s garage apartment in Los Angeles, going quietly to seed with his lingering grief and in the sodden aftermath of his spectacular fall from Pulitzer-Prize-winning reporter to journalistic pariah. When his former boss, Harry Brofsky – whose career was all but destroyed by his association with Justice – shows up proposing that he mentor a hotshot young reporter named Alexandra Templeton, he understandably balks. What finally coaxes him out of his lair of self-defeat is the apparent murder of a pretty young man in the parking lot of a West Hollywood gay bar by a teenaged Chicano boy. Something is off about this supposedly open-and-shut case, and once Harry shows Benjamin the news video, he’s hooked.
This is a rich, deeply layered story. Its complicated plot is not so much Byzantine as kaleidoscopic, the many tumbling fragments gradually filling both Justice’s and the reader’s mind with calculated confusion. Interestingly, the one aspect of LA that doesn’t really figure in this story is Hollywood, and that’s something of a relief. We have class, race, issues of sexual orientation and politics aplenty – more than enough without dragging the movie industry into it. A key pleasure in this book is getting to know Benjamin Justice himself, which takes some doing and is exquisitely handled through Wilson’s skilled narrative. The fragmentary unveiling of Justice’s life, grudgingly revealed at first but ultimately laid bare by his reluctant mentee, left me stunned. Alexandra Templeton is herself a complicated character, but far less damaged than Justice. The author depicts her through Justice’s eyes with clear, concise strokes. I suspect the fact that Templeton never becomes as fully three-dimensional as Justice is part of the author’s plan. Wilson’s greater interest in this book – the first of a series – is in showing how these two wildly different people forge an alliance that neither of them initially wants.
Wilson probes into human frailty and prejudice as he drags Justice deeper into the mystery. Racist assumptions made by white folks about Chicanos are shoved up against Black/Hispanic hostility, racism within the Korean community, and – of course – the constant underlying hostility of everyone in LA toward gay people, especially at a time when AIDS was still front and center in America’s consciousness. No group is innocent, no group is solely the victim. We are dragged into an ugly stew of prejudice and anger, only to be startled by moments of compassion that can be as painful as the hatred.
The mystery is solved, but that’s no spoiler. There is redemption here, but not quite fulfilled. The final moment in the book left me shaken, because it is a last reminder that there is more tragedy here than solving a single murder can heal. Benjamin Justice is like a drowning man at the start of this story. At the end, his head is above water, but he hasn’t made it to shore yet.
I finished “Simple Justice” all but desperate to read the next book in the series. Good job.
May 21, 2023
I love a good murder mystery especially one in which the mystery is solved by a disgraced ex-journalist who is also gay and still mourning the loss of his love from six years earlier - Mr Benjamin Justice is that person.
An old friend calls in a favour and Benjamin finds himself researching and then investigating the shooting of a young man outside a gay night club. The police think they have the killer because someone has confessed but Benjamin has his doubts and of course the police always get the wrong person otherwise there would be no story.
And so Benjamin is drawn deeper and deeper into the murder of this young man Billy Lusk, and in doing so he uncovers twists and turns which make for intrigue and a delectable amount of tension. Couple this together with the angst that Benjamin is still under from the loss of his career and loved one and you have an excellent book.
In fact it was so excellent that I cheated and peaked at the last page but this didn't spoil it for me, just made it more exciting.
Having confessed this all I can say is that this is great writing. It is a well crafted murder mystery with a wounded hero pulled back into the fray of life despite his unwillingness and he finds himself beginning to live again and feel again and slowly edge towards solving this murder.
The writing is gritty and engaging from the first page and this is a series. Of course I am hooked and so pleased that I have another murder mystery series with which to indulge myself. This is going to be a very good one and I shall be reading it through to the end.
An old friend calls in a favour and Benjamin finds himself researching and then investigating the shooting of a young man outside a gay night club. The police think they have the killer because someone has confessed but Benjamin has his doubts and of course the police always get the wrong person otherwise there would be no story.
And so Benjamin is drawn deeper and deeper into the murder of this young man Billy Lusk, and in doing so he uncovers twists and turns which make for intrigue and a delectable amount of tension. Couple this together with the angst that Benjamin is still under from the loss of his career and loved one and you have an excellent book.
In fact it was so excellent that I cheated and peaked at the last page but this didn't spoil it for me, just made it more exciting.
Having confessed this all I can say is that this is great writing. It is a well crafted murder mystery with a wounded hero pulled back into the fray of life despite his unwillingness and he finds himself beginning to live again and feel again and slowly edge towards solving this murder.
The writing is gritty and engaging from the first page and this is a series. Of course I am hooked and so pleased that I have another murder mystery series with which to indulge myself. This is going to be a very good one and I shall be reading it through to the end.
February 16, 2021
Outstanding murder mystery, author John Morgan Wilson is rewriting the series from his original publication thanks to ReQueered Tales picking up the rights. Benjamin Justice is a broken, former journalist who gets one last chance to revive his career. Gritty look at the investigation which forces him to examine all the twists and turns of his life, the loss and mistakes. This one is a real serious murder mystery - nothing cozy going on here. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
July 6, 2012
Very good gay mystery set in the mid-90s about a former newspaper reporter who's been working the occasional freelance job to make ends meet since it came out he'd fabricated the story for which he won a Pulitzer. When his former editor tracks him down about working on a story, he doesn't want to... but he slowly gets sucked in.
August 31, 2014
Simply stated, I loved it. It had the kind of melancholy tone that I really appreciate, along with descriptive prose and characters (including secondaries) that you can really feel for. And I loved the themes, twisting as they did around many ideas of self -- being true to oneself or failing to do so, presenting false images of self for the love of others, warping oneself to fit in with society, having oneself warped by the loved ones who should honor you most, and so on.
A sample of Wilson's evocative writing, from the first scene in the book:
Anyway -- this one struck me just about right, from the first word to the last. I'm giving this about 4.4 stars, rounding down to 4.
A sample of Wilson's evocative writing, from the first scene in the book:
The city was golden, blinding, blasted by heavenly light. It was one of those days that made nipples rise and minds wander and bodies shiver with sensuality and inexplicable dread. The kind of day when the heat wrapped snugly around you but sent an ominous chill up your back at the same time, like the first sexual touch in a dark room from a beautiful stranger whose name you’d never know.I loved just about everything about this story. And don't listen to reviewers who complain about things like cars backfiring or Southerners speaking in dialect -- for one thing, this was written nearly twenty years ago when plenty of cars still backfired, and for another, yes, Southerners really do speak that way (since I am one, I can say that with authority).
Anyway -- this one struck me just about right, from the first word to the last. I'm giving this about 4.4 stars, rounding down to 4.
March 16, 2018
The first Benjamin Justice mystery - we're introduced to the defamed investigative report. Working on his first story from a former editor in hopes of resurrecting his career, Justice get much more than he bargained for. If you like your protagonist to have major flawes - yet root for him at every turn, you'll enjoy this read!
November 19, 2021
Title/Author: Simple Justice by John Morgan Wilson
Series/Standalone: Benjamin Justice #1
Genre/Sub-Genre: Mystery
Book Format: Print
Length: 304 pages
LGBTQ+ Orientation: Gay
Content Warnings: Some homophobia and racism.
Well-Written/Editor Needed: Well written
Would I Recommend?: Yes
Notes: Simple Justice is the first book in a gay mystery series that was first published in 1996. In 2020 the author made major edits to the story and republished it under the same title. At the moment, the library does not have a copy of the new edition as it needs to be special ordered.
In October 2020, Steven Reigns of Lambda Literary interviewed the author on his revised novel. You can read the interview here: John Morgan Wilson on the Pain & Pleasure of Revising a Novel 25 Years Later (https://lambdaliterary.org/2020/10/jo...)
Personal Thoughts: I read the original novel published in 1996. In the interview Wilson says that parts of the book made him cringe when he reread it for the first time after 25 years. Not having read the new edition, I’m not sure why he felt the need to make the changes he did. The original is a tightly packed novel with a fantastic mystery and a great set of characters.
I took my time reading it, but it was still a very engaging read every time I picked it up. It’s also very gritty in its reality. Ben has lost his partner to AIDS and is struggling to hold onto life when this case lands in his lap and pulls him back to his feet with his need to free an innocent kid. His humanity shines through the darkness, as does that of every other character here.
I highly recommend this first book in the series and am looking forward to diving into the rest of the books!
Series/Standalone: Benjamin Justice #1
Genre/Sub-Genre: Mystery
Book Format: Print
Length: 304 pages
LGBTQ+ Orientation: Gay
Content Warnings: Some homophobia and racism.
Well-Written/Editor Needed: Well written
Would I Recommend?: Yes
Notes: Simple Justice is the first book in a gay mystery series that was first published in 1996. In 2020 the author made major edits to the story and republished it under the same title. At the moment, the library does not have a copy of the new edition as it needs to be special ordered.
In October 2020, Steven Reigns of Lambda Literary interviewed the author on his revised novel. You can read the interview here: John Morgan Wilson on the Pain & Pleasure of Revising a Novel 25 Years Later (https://lambdaliterary.org/2020/10/jo...)
Personal Thoughts: I read the original novel published in 1996. In the interview Wilson says that parts of the book made him cringe when he reread it for the first time after 25 years. Not having read the new edition, I’m not sure why he felt the need to make the changes he did. The original is a tightly packed novel with a fantastic mystery and a great set of characters.
I took my time reading it, but it was still a very engaging read every time I picked it up. It’s also very gritty in its reality. Ben has lost his partner to AIDS and is struggling to hold onto life when this case lands in his lap and pulls him back to his feet with his need to free an innocent kid. His humanity shines through the darkness, as does that of every other character here.
I highly recommend this first book in the series and am looking forward to diving into the rest of the books!
October 7, 2020
NOTE: This book was provided by the author via GRRT for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Early 90s. Benjamin Justice, former prestigious LA Times reporter, has become a virtual outcast of his profession. Six years before, his on-and-off boyfriend Jacques died of AIDS, and he wrote a series of articles that won him the Pulitzer Prize. But he was soon exposed as a fraud because his articles were invented from scratch. What he’s been doing ever since is sit in the lodgings his friends Maurice and Fred provide him for free, get drunk, and wail in remorse and self-pity. Then one day his former boss Harry Brofsky shows up; he’s now working for the much less reputed Sun and wants Benjamin’s help. In fact, Billy Lusk, in his late twenties, handsome and gay stepson of a renowned golf player, has been shot to death on the parking lot of a local gay bar, and a young Mexican-American guy has been arrested for the murder. Harry asks Benjamin to work on the case as a freelance consultant together with the Sun’s new crime reporter Alexandra Templeton, to guide her and to show her the ropes.
As Benjamin owes Harry a favor, he grudgingly accepts. Together with sharp Alex, they dig into the story, check and countercheck the facts, and soon stumble upon several inconsistencies that lead them to interview a whole series of people: the owner of the gay bar as well as his boyfriend, a former football player with a shady history of violence; Billy’s roommate Derek Brunheim, a forty-something, pockmarked, and paunchy drama queen; Billy’s mother, a cold LA socialite; and the presumed murderer’s family. Their research even makes them meet former US Senator Paul Masterman, “a scandal-tainted candidate running for a House seat in Sourthern California’s most influential Congressional district”, as well as his son and daughter-in-law. As they proceed, Benjamin’s past comes back in painful bits and pieces, and he is forced to face his demons if he wants to get to the bottom of Billy Lusk’s death…
Masterfully written, this was an amazing book. First of all, kudos for the main character, whom I liked despite some morally doubtful actions he commits in the story (actions he isn’t proud of, himself, which commended him to me even more). Benjamin is a haunted man with an intriguing past, once upon a time up so high, now down so low; a man with edges, weak spots, ghosts that the author explores with great subtlety, handing out short snippets here and there so that the reader can slowly get to know him better. Benjamin is no pale, lifeless creation, but feels like a man of flesh and blood. The secondary characters are all just as three-dimensional, which makes them intriguing, even those I disliked at a glance. Wilson succeeded in making me “get” them, i.e., making me understand their goals and motivations, their ambitions, and their errors. Nothing (and nobody) is sketched in black and white; there’s color everywhere, shadows and light.
Together with these characters, the author also created a plot that in itself would have drawn me in, no matter what. As it were, the combination of both solid plot and interesting cast made me rush through the book in no time. For once, I had an inkling who the culprit might be quite early into the read (which is usually not the case), but Wilson managed to throw me off the scent midnovel (naughty, naughty!) only to confirm my suspicions toward the end. For those who like their murder mysteries gay, strong and straightforward, well-written and perfectly paced, with characters one can easily relate to, this is a must-read.
Early 90s. Benjamin Justice, former prestigious LA Times reporter, has become a virtual outcast of his profession. Six years before, his on-and-off boyfriend Jacques died of AIDS, and he wrote a series of articles that won him the Pulitzer Prize. But he was soon exposed as a fraud because his articles were invented from scratch. What he’s been doing ever since is sit in the lodgings his friends Maurice and Fred provide him for free, get drunk, and wail in remorse and self-pity. Then one day his former boss Harry Brofsky shows up; he’s now working for the much less reputed Sun and wants Benjamin’s help. In fact, Billy Lusk, in his late twenties, handsome and gay stepson of a renowned golf player, has been shot to death on the parking lot of a local gay bar, and a young Mexican-American guy has been arrested for the murder. Harry asks Benjamin to work on the case as a freelance consultant together with the Sun’s new crime reporter Alexandra Templeton, to guide her and to show her the ropes.
As Benjamin owes Harry a favor, he grudgingly accepts. Together with sharp Alex, they dig into the story, check and countercheck the facts, and soon stumble upon several inconsistencies that lead them to interview a whole series of people: the owner of the gay bar as well as his boyfriend, a former football player with a shady history of violence; Billy’s roommate Derek Brunheim, a forty-something, pockmarked, and paunchy drama queen; Billy’s mother, a cold LA socialite; and the presumed murderer’s family. Their research even makes them meet former US Senator Paul Masterman, “a scandal-tainted candidate running for a House seat in Sourthern California’s most influential Congressional district”, as well as his son and daughter-in-law. As they proceed, Benjamin’s past comes back in painful bits and pieces, and he is forced to face his demons if he wants to get to the bottom of Billy Lusk’s death…
Masterfully written, this was an amazing book. First of all, kudos for the main character, whom I liked despite some morally doubtful actions he commits in the story (actions he isn’t proud of, himself, which commended him to me even more). Benjamin is a haunted man with an intriguing past, once upon a time up so high, now down so low; a man with edges, weak spots, ghosts that the author explores with great subtlety, handing out short snippets here and there so that the reader can slowly get to know him better. Benjamin is no pale, lifeless creation, but feels like a man of flesh and blood. The secondary characters are all just as three-dimensional, which makes them intriguing, even those I disliked at a glance. Wilson succeeded in making me “get” them, i.e., making me understand their goals and motivations, their ambitions, and their errors. Nothing (and nobody) is sketched in black and white; there’s color everywhere, shadows and light.
Together with these characters, the author also created a plot that in itself would have drawn me in, no matter what. As it were, the combination of both solid plot and interesting cast made me rush through the book in no time. For once, I had an inkling who the culprit might be quite early into the read (which is usually not the case), but Wilson managed to throw me off the scent midnovel (naughty, naughty!) only to confirm my suspicions toward the end. For those who like their murder mysteries gay, strong and straightforward, well-written and perfectly paced, with characters one can easily relate to, this is a must-read.
September 17, 2012
Benjamin Justice is a disgraced reporter -- he falsified a series of story about AIDS, which won him Pulitzer Price. He must returned the Pulitzer and now he worked grinding out press releases and became a secluded alcoholic, after his lover for years died of AIDS. Until his former boss, Harry Brofsky, who now worked at Los Angeles Sun asked Benjamin's help to do research for the main reporter, Alexandra Templeton about a murder of Billy Lusk, in front of a gay bar....
----
Back in 2009, I read Michael Nava's "Henry Rios series" (The Little Death) when I was still trying to find some great mystery fictions featuring gay character -- I was on a high after Josh Lanyon's "Adrien English series. After then, however, I was more into romance than pure fiction.
Now, I was struck with a string of bad-luck in form of so-so books, all of them with romance notion in it. So I figured, I should go back to my first love in books, mystery fiction. This "Benjamin Justice" series has been in my radar for awhile, simply because the main character is a gay reporter, a fact that I always welcome.
And I loved it.
I liked the melancholia of it -- written in the end of the 1990s, there were still a lot in this story regarding AIDS. I loved Benjamin's background -- a disgraced reporter, a lover who died of AIDS, and a past that might be a little over-the-top dark, but still enjoyable to read anyway. The mentions of music of Monk and Davis also reminded me of early Michael Connelly's Bosch series. I loved the emotion it provoked and I enjoyed the mystery ...
Will definitely check out the second book.
----
Back in 2009, I read Michael Nava's "Henry Rios series" (The Little Death) when I was still trying to find some great mystery fictions featuring gay character -- I was on a high after Josh Lanyon's "Adrien English series. After then, however, I was more into romance than pure fiction.
Now, I was struck with a string of bad-luck in form of so-so books, all of them with romance notion in it. So I figured, I should go back to my first love in books, mystery fiction. This "Benjamin Justice" series has been in my radar for awhile, simply because the main character is a gay reporter, a fact that I always welcome.
And I loved it.
I liked the melancholia of it -- written in the end of the 1990s, there were still a lot in this story regarding AIDS. I loved Benjamin's background -- a disgraced reporter, a lover who died of AIDS, and a past that might be a little over-the-top dark, but still enjoyable to read anyway. The mentions of music of Monk and Davis also reminded me of early Michael Connelly's Bosch series. I loved the emotion it provoked and I enjoyed the mystery ...
Will definitely check out the second book.
April 16, 2018
After losing first his partner to AIDS, then his journalism career to a scandal of his own making, Ben has withdrawn into living hand to mouth and seeking consolation at the bottom of a bottle. Then, years later, his former boss drops by for an unexpected visit and proceeds to badger Ben into helping do some off-the-record background work for an ambitious young reporter working on a story about the murder of a young man outside a local gay bar. Despite inital protests, Ben begins to look into the matter and soon notices a number of things that don't add up and lead him to believe that there's a lot more to the case than it seems at first glance.
I pretty much suspected who was behind the murder the second the character in question first stepped on the page, but nevertheless I enjoyed this book a lot with its gritty yet melancholy atmosphere and deeply flawed protagonist.
I pretty much suspected who was behind the murder the second the character in question first stepped on the page, but nevertheless I enjoyed this book a lot with its gritty yet melancholy atmosphere and deeply flawed protagonist.
May 29, 2016
Very enjoyable first mystery in a series featuring an interesting anti-hero as the protagonist, Benjamin Justice. He is a gay man who was a reporter who won a Pulitzer Prize for Journalism but was then found to have falsified the story. His old editor, Harry, finds him in his alcohol-fueled broken down life and asks him to help do background for a story about a gay man shot outside of a club in Silver Lake, CA, by a young Latino. During his investigation into the shooting, Justice has to face many of his own demons from his past and present. Absorbing story though - won an Edgar award for best first novel. Looking forward to reading others in the series.
July 24, 2013
I love this book, and Mr. Wilson's style of writing is tight and exciting, but his main character Benjamin Justice is an unlikable bastard. He's a disgraced ex-journalist who won a Pulitzer prize six years earlier while working for the L.A. Times but then was forced to give it back when it was discovered that his story was fake. That, coupled with the loss of his lover Jacques due to AIDS, sent him into an alcoholic spiral that he still hasn't recovered from. If it wasn't for his friends Maurice and Fred letting him live rent-free in one of their houses, he'd be homeless because he now doesn't work. His former boss, Harry Brofsky, persuades him to come back and write a news article for him again at a smaller, less reputable paper called the Los Angeles Sun. He's supposed to cover the murder of a gay man named Billy Lusk that occurred outside of a gay bar called The Out Crowd - the police have a suspect in custody who even confessed to it, but Justice doesn't believe it and decides to go rogue and find the truth for himself. His methods are less than admirable, especially when he threatens to out the deeply-closeted lesbian tennis player Samantha Eliason if she won't tell him what he thinks she knows. Also, he ends up basically raping the Korean man Jin, who was at the bar the night Lusk was murdered. Of course, he finally does find the real killer, who isn't the 18 year old Mexican boy who falsely confessed and found himself in jail for a crime he didn't commit.
All in all, a really good book but I can't stand Benjamin Justice.
All in all, a really good book but I can't stand Benjamin Justice.
April 21, 2013
A violent shooting outside a WeHo gay bar, a very young hispanic perpetrator with hate-crime/gang initiation motivation. The police think it's a cut and dry case. The editorial head of a smaller newspaper drags disgraced and discredited investigative journalist Benjamin Justice back from a booze-tainted existence to help a less experienced female journalist (Alex Templeton) uncover the real facts behind the case.
This book does a very credible introduction to a whodunnit series for me. I know it was written quite some time ago but this didn't hinder my reading pleasure. I liked the slow uncovering of Ben Justice's inner demons and repressed emotions ... the author nicely balances these with the crime solving parts of the story. The author doesn't resort to distracting readers by having a plethora of suspects or red-herrings - the storyline moves at a decent pace.
As the MC, Ben Justice is imbued with just the right amount of emotional depth and conflict (whenever the ghost of his deceased lover crops up); I warmed up to him quite early on. The working dynamics between Ben and Alex (and even with Brofsky the editorial head) is nicely developed - some secondary characters are given enough depth of their own rather than merely being action-figures.
I'm pleased to find another mystery series to get my teeth into and am looking forward to getting to know Ben Justice better.
This book does a very credible introduction to a whodunnit series for me. I know it was written quite some time ago but this didn't hinder my reading pleasure. I liked the slow uncovering of Ben Justice's inner demons and repressed emotions ... the author nicely balances these with the crime solving parts of the story. The author doesn't resort to distracting readers by having a plethora of suspects or red-herrings - the storyline moves at a decent pace.
As the MC, Ben Justice is imbued with just the right amount of emotional depth and conflict (whenever the ghost of his deceased lover crops up); I warmed up to him quite early on. The working dynamics between Ben and Alex (and even with Brofsky the editorial head) is nicely developed - some secondary characters are given enough depth of their own rather than merely being action-figures.
I'm pleased to find another mystery series to get my teeth into and am looking forward to getting to know Ben Justice better.
July 25, 2014
Stumbled across this book when I was looking for a good murder mystery to read and thank goodness I did because it was a brilliant read ! From the first chapter I was hooked as the writing was excellent (no wonder the author won an award). Premise of the book is a young gay man is murdered outside a gay club and a hispanic youth is found by the body covered in blood who immediately confesses to the murder, the police think it is an open and shut case and close any further investigation. Enter Benjamin Justice (a discredited journalist who had previously fabricated a series of stories) but is persuaded by his old editor to help and up and coming young black female journalist with the story. Justice's instincts tell him that something is wrong and that the police have got the wrong guy and so follows a complex and fascinating story of his investigation into this murder.
As stated the writing is terrific with all characters and bystanders characters well fleshed out and an utterly intriguing story to boot.
Five star read and the best recommendation is that I have already purchased the second book in this series!
As stated the writing is terrific with all characters and bystanders characters well fleshed out and an utterly intriguing story to boot.
Five star read and the best recommendation is that I have already purchased the second book in this series!
April 30, 2017
I wandered over to this series from the Dave Brandstetter series by Joseph Hansen. So, my expectations were quite high, and maybe that's why I didn't cotton on to the MC as I did with the Brandstetter series.
Benjamin is an alcoholic who drinks white wine because he hates it, thinking it will keep him from going off on a bender. He fell apart after the death of his boyfriend, and you know there is more to that story than what he is telling. There is also a hardness to him that was a little difficult for me to take. . Finding out about his childhood explained it, but didn't necessarily excuse it for me. But, he does have an epiphany at the end of the book, so I do plan to read the next one, hoping that more redeeming qualities will shine.
Benjamin is an alcoholic who drinks white wine because he hates it, thinking it will keep him from going off on a bender. He fell apart after the death of his boyfriend, and you know there is more to that story than what he is telling. There is also a hardness to him that was a little difficult for me to take. . Finding out about his childhood explained it, but didn't necessarily excuse it for me. But, he does have an epiphany at the end of the book, so I do plan to read the next one, hoping that more redeeming qualities will shine.
July 1, 2020
I liked this book, and I kept wondering exactly why I did. I guessed who was the killer from the beginning, although there certainly were various worthy red-herrings and my sticking to my suspect has more to do with a gut instinct than with anything else.
I didn't really like Ben, although I pitied him but, as the story advanced and I got to know more of his background, I at least understood him. I still find abhorrent his last night with Jin. Nor booze not Jin's games justify what he did.
But I enjoyed the story. I liked to see the investigation done from a journalist's POV, and I like stories with characters that are complex and not totally black or white. I like characters that struggle to be better, and Ben seems to be heading to be one of them.
So I'll be reading more of this series, now that I finally managed to sit and read this one *laughs*
I didn't really like Ben, although I pitied him but, as the story advanced and I got to know more of his background, I at least understood him. I still find abhorrent his last night with Jin. Nor booze not Jin's games justify what he did.
But I enjoyed the story. I liked to see the investigation done from a journalist's POV, and I like stories with characters that are complex and not totally black or white. I like characters that struggle to be better, and Ben seems to be heading to be one of them.
So I'll be reading more of this series, now that I finally managed to sit and read this one *laughs*
July 4, 2007
This is a completely other universe than Stevenson's. Where Stevenson is witty, fun and smart aleck, Wilson is angsty, dark and cynic. Benjamin Simple is a reporter with a tainted past, who's lost his lover and his reputation. Prone to alcohol, dark mood, melancholy, Simple is brought back into the news world by his ex-boss to help a rookie reporter out. This is the opening book of the Benjamin Simple series set in Los Angeles, West Hollywood. It's dark, it's raw, it's angsty. It's an interesting reading experience and I found myself turning the pages and going one more chapter. It was a nice surprise.
July 15, 2012
Just coming off 4-day ThrillerFest where a lot of discussion concerned series thrillers. This is first book in one of my favorites that began back in 1997. Benjamin Justice thought he'd taken the biggest hit in his life when he is stripped of his Pulitzer Prize before the first novel begins. But the hits keep on coming, the stories get darker, as the edgy 8-book series progresses. Justice's judgement gets worse as well. Uncomfortable. But no doubt that Wilson is a cut above the rest in the gay thriller niche. Thought it was time to add it to my shelf here.
September 21, 2020
One of my all time favorite protagonists!
Flawed Benjamin Justice is such an amazingly written character... I love John Morgan Wilson’s series not only for the great mystery and suspense, but because I feel like I know Benjamin Justice personally... and care what he is going through. I am so glad requeered tales is bringing him back and I hope Benjamin Justice finds a new generation of friends and followers. This series is one of my all time favorites and it is so fun to read again. Can’t wait for the next rerelease!
Flawed Benjamin Justice is such an amazingly written character... I love John Morgan Wilson’s series not only for the great mystery and suspense, but because I feel like I know Benjamin Justice personally... and care what he is going through. I am so glad requeered tales is bringing him back and I hope Benjamin Justice finds a new generation of friends and followers. This series is one of my all time favorites and it is so fun to read again. Can’t wait for the next rerelease!
October 18, 2014
It's not an mm book more a crime novel that happens to have a gay MC in it and the murder took place at a gay bar. There is no romance at all in this book.
I quite liked it, it feels a bit old fashioned. The reporter has no phone (land line!). I can't imagine anyone in a professional capacity without a phone these days. But it adds a charm to this book.
So the solving of this crime is through old fashioned leg work and no fancy crime scene techno stuff. I'll watch CSI for that.
I quite liked it, it feels a bit old fashioned. The reporter has no phone (land line!). I can't imagine anyone in a professional capacity without a phone these days. But it adds a charm to this book.
So the solving of this crime is through old fashioned leg work and no fancy crime scene techno stuff. I'll watch CSI for that.
August 2, 2016
I'm not sure why I'm only now discovering incredible gay mystery writers; first Michael Nava and now John Morgan Wilson.
Ben Justice as a protagonist is seriously flawed, but willing to admit those flaws and attempt to live fully in spite of them. The writing is convincing and the mystery doesn’t cheat you at the end. I’m looking forward to the next installment for the further character development that began here.
Ben Justice as a protagonist is seriously flawed, but willing to admit those flaws and attempt to live fully in spite of them. The writing is convincing and the mystery doesn’t cheat you at the end. I’m looking forward to the next installment for the further character development that began here.
Read
October 7, 2020Dnf at 17%.
Yeah this is not working for me.
Stilted dialogue? Check.
Flat characters? Check.
Did I figure out who the killer was as soon as the killer first made an appearance? Check.
Was it dark? Check.
I was so excited going into this one since I had heard excellent things about it. Sadly they can't all be winners. I have too many books I want to read so I admit defeat.
Yeah this is not working for me.
Stilted dialogue? Check.
Flat characters? Check.
Did I figure out who the killer was as soon as the killer first made an appearance? Check.
Was it dark? Check.
I was so excited going into this one since I had heard excellent things about it. Sadly they can't all be winners. I have too many books I want to read so I admit defeat.
November 23, 2008
This is the first book in a mystery series with a homosexual detective. I found it to be a little slow in places, but not enough to make it unenjoyable. I also found ther was a bit too much about relationships in it. I'd be willing to read the next one in the series if I could find it.
March 22, 2015
This book was really good. A great mystery, diverse and flawed characters, bad behavior. My only complaint was how so many people seemed to be attracted to Justice. Did this alcoholic ex-reporter look like a supermodel or something?? I look forward to reading more works by this author.
March 17, 2016
Took me a while to get into it. Some of the dialogue was a bit tinny, and I didn't like the interaction between Justice and the reporter at all--can't quite put my finger on why, but she felt a bit underdone to me. By the end I was enjoying the ride.
July 9, 2016
Really fantastic mystery about what it's like to be gay in a straight world and what you will do to protect your family. Really one of the best mysteries about abuse, forgiveness, politics and the media that I've read in awhile.
December 24, 2012
Good book. Maybe look for this series?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews