Moth and Flame : A Benjamin Justice Novel (Benjamin Justice)

Rating:
Summary: Benjamin Justice On The Rise
Review: "Moth and Flame" is the sixth and, for me, the most enjoyable of the Benjamin Justice detective series. The novel combines a tight mystery story with the effective beginning of the detective's rise from the depths of depression, which were depicted earlier in the series.

The basic set-up is that gay, HIV-positive, disgraced journalist, and occasional detective Benjamin Justice has been stabilized by Prozac. He feels able to step in to complete a city-sponsored brochure on historic structures in West Hollywood. The research and intial writing had been done by Bruce Bibby, a gay, disabled, former TV sitcom star, who had just been found bludgeoned to death in his apartment. It turns out that there was a lot of interest in whether Bibby's brochure would lobby for historical status for some pre-1910 plains cottages. Was Bibby a victim of greedy developers? What would a young hustler from Russia have to do with it? Does something from history have a role?

Having Benjamin Justice slow down from his past adventures to actually take a look at the history and architecture of West Hollywood, to see how his own family history has similarities to what other people face, and to having him react to the aggressive journalism ethics of his best friend, Alexandra Templeton, all show him to growing and interacting more compassionately with others. He is still depressed but is markedly less self-pitying and self-centered.

I applaud the emerging humanity of the protagonist, as well as enjoying the mystery plot.


Rating:
Summary: WeHo mystery is Wilson's best!
Review: Benjamin Justice, a semi-retired journalist who often becomes a reluctant amateur private eye, is hired by the City of West Hollywood to finish a brochure about its historical buildings, following the apparent murder of the man originally entrusted with that job. Since his last run-in with crime, which cost him severe injuries including loss of one eye, Justice has vowed not to "get involved" in investigations, and relies on his daily dose of Prozac to keep him minding his own business.

But, as regular readers of the series are well aware, circumstances involve him. His best friend, LA Times reporter Alexandra Templeton, gets an exclusive with a scientist who presents a study that the police's suspect, a 20 year old Russian immigrant, may have beeen genetically predisposed to become a murderer. Benjamin meets the young man, and believes him to be innocent, although circumstancial evidence and his presence at a second murder seems to indicate otherwise. As Justice researches the brochure, he becomes deeply involved in the politically-charged battle between historical preservationists vs real estate developers, with both sides aggresively soliciting his support, and gets a deeper sense that these groups are somehow involved in the murders. He also keeps coming across the name of a handsome bisexual drifter who was involved with some of these people, and who disappeared thirty years before. When Alexandra stubbornly refuses to believe his theories, largely due to her involvement with the scientist who believes the young man is the murderer, Justice becomes an intentional thorn-in-the-side of some of these dangerous characters, to see if they reveal their roles.

With this, his sixth Benjamin Justice mystery novel, John Morgan Wilson seems to just get better and better. His books are uniformly well-written, original, intelligent in tone, offering realistic characters in first-rate mysteries. Author Wilson has a guest column in a current issue of the Advocate, commenting on the 20th anniversary of the incorporation of the City of West Hollywood, his place of residence which is featured almost like a character in many of his Benjamin Justice novels, especially this one. His writing, both in the column and this book, reveal a genuine respect for the city's history, diversity and tolerance, as well as a wink at the colorful characters and celebrities who frequent its streets, shops and cafes. I consider this book his best in the series, and give it a plump five stars out of five.

Rating:
Summary: terrific tale
Review: By the time he was thirty-two, Benjamin Justice won the Pulitzer, but soon saw his stature crumble to the ground when his sources proved fake. He lost his job, credibility and with few exceptions, no one in the newspaper world will have anything to do with him.

About a decade has passed since his fall from grace; Benjamin is HIV positive, has lost an eye, his lover died, and remains a journalistic pariah. Needing work, Benjamin agrees to complete a booklet that West Hollywood contracted with freelancer Bruce Bibby who was murdered in a burglary that turned tragic. Benjamin concentrates on the WeHo booklet that cites historical buildings, but stays out of the police investigation as tempting as that is thanks to Prozac. However, he soon is the center of a dispute over dilapidated cottages that preservationists claim are historically valuable while developers want to build condos on the site. Both sides tug at Benjamin because his project includes significant historical locations might influence the final decision. Benjamin ties the booklet back to the murder of his predecessor so begins his own inquiries.

MOTH AND FLAME is a terrific tale as the former superstar continues to seek stability not status. The story line is action-packed, but as with the previous novels belongs to Benjamin. His efforts to stay out of the official inquiries are intriguing for series followers as he desperately wants in, but cannot afford the rush. Events force him into investigating with his life on the line from whichever group feels he will fail them. John Morgan Wilson who was ahead of his time with this fallen hero provides another winner.

Harriet Klausner


Rating:
Summary: Justice Tempered with Mercy
Review: Having been thrilled by the harrowing misadventures of my favorite down-and-out journalist, Benjamin Justice, I've come to liken him to Job. How much punishment can one man take? In the first five novels of the series, Justice has been beaten, stabbed, carved up, raped, infected with HIV, and had an eye plucked out. As if all this misery wasn't enough to be getting on with, add Justice's being a recovering alcoholic who, as a boy, was victimized by a [...] priest. In my mind, the only thing left to do to Justice was to bump him off; put the man out of his misery.

With "Moth and Flame," however, readers will find a genteler, more reflective Justice. Prozac has reigned in his more pugnacious impulses, leaving him without much urge to come out fists first. At 45, Justice is feeling his age, has rejoined a gym, and seems to be making some effort to clean up his act. Still in disgrace in most journalistic circles, his talent remains unquestioned. He continues to eke out a living through freelance writing assignments.

The ill wind that brings Justice a much-needed writing commission is the murder of Bruce Bibby, a former child actor turned writer. Justice is to complete the final in Bibby's series of brochures on aspects of West Hollywood. Justice wants to write the brochure, collect his check, and get on with his life. Yet, harking to the novel's title, Justice finds his need to know the truth drawing him, like a moth to a flame, into learning who killed Bruce Bibby.

As much as I hate to jump on the five-star bandwagon, the Justice novels are sublime. At last, a detective series that continues to grow stronger with each successive installment. In the character of Justice, author John Morgan Wilson has created a multi-faceted, not altogether likeable, yet fascinating hero. Though the novels have an undeniable gay sensibility, it is hoped this quality will not narrow the audience of those who, like myself, will also find hours of pleasure in the novels' pages.



Rating:
Summary: Justice Is Back And On Prozac
Review: In John Morgan Wilson's sixth novel in this series Benjamin Justice is back with not much libido because of the Prozac he is taking to help him get through the day with less dread and apprehension. When the writer working on a booklet on West Hollywood's historically important buildings is murdered, Justice steps in to complete the assignment. Of course, never one to leave well enough alone, he gets intangled in that murder and subsequent murder as only he can. Justice is still renting from his beloved landlords, Maurice and Fred--Maurice takes a much larger role in this story than he has previously-- and he is still friends with Templeton, whose own private life takes an interesting twist here. Justice, too prozacked out for much else, delves into late night cybersex here, surfing the many porn sites, an endeavor that ultimately helps him with his murder investigation.

Wilson has the geography of West Hollywood down; as we have grown to expect from him, there are references all around to live actors and writers-- and the usual tribute to Walter Mosley: "I continued on past Book Soup, where the latest Walter Mosley mystery was displayed in the window, with Tower Records just across the street." Additionally he names a fictional street after the deceased gay writer Paul Monette, a fitting memorial to him.

As always, Mr. Wilson comes across as the most decent of individuals, letting his characters speak poignantly and sometimes wisely about what living is all about. For example, here's Maurice on long relationships: "'Fred is the great gift of my life, Benjamin. That probably sounds funny, especially to those who see Fred as an old grump, a stick-in-the-mud who's not that much fun to be around at times. But I know him differently, you see. . . the way only two people who have devoted themselves to each other for most of a lifetime can. That's the beauty of growing old, you know. The chance to experience a special kind of love that only comes with time.'" I can name a half dozen writers of "serious" gay fiction who cannot hold a candle to this author. His novels always rise about the mystery novel formula to become serious, thoughtful and often very moving commentaries on what it means to be gay in America.

With the recent death of Joseph Hansen and the apparent retirement of Michael Nava I know of no writer of gay mysteries better than Mr. Wilson.

Rating:
Summary: A dissatisfying read
Review: The latest Benjamin Justice mystery finds our hero still struggling to write his autobiography. Unfortunately, his reliance on Prozac to help him deal with his depression is also making it difficult for him to put any life into his writing. When a freelance writer is murdered, Justice is asked to take over the project on which he had been working, a booklet about West Hollywood's historic and architecturally significant buildings. There is, naturally, a fight over certain of the buildings, between developers and preservationists. And when an ardent preservationist is also murdered, Justice gets involved.

While I generally enjoy these books, I found myself a bit dissatisfied here. Some behaviors just didn't ring true, particularly with regard to journalist Alexandra Templeton (a continuing character). She is thinking about making the jump to television (and here Wilson indulges in some smacks at TV news, not entirely undeserved). To promote this, she allows herself to be used by a quack scientist, and in the process is ready to smear a murder suspect (on evidence that wouldn't get an arrest warrant in the real world, much less a conviction). And her sudden engagement in a lesbian relationship with the detective on the case made no sense; aside from the ethics of it, she's been straight in all the other books.

There is also a thread in this book of "people looking for their fathers". It was so heavy-handed! Coincidences just hitting you over the head.

And I am extremely tired of otherwise intelligent people doing incredibly stupid things - like waltzing out into the night knowing someone is out there waiting to jump them when they could just as easily have gone back where they'd been to get help. Oh, please.

But I did enjoy reading about the history and architecture of West Hollywood.

Rating:
Summary: "Old places, they remind us where we came from"
Review: We last met the resourceful Benjamin Justice just six months ago in Blind Eye where he suffered a terrible beating and was violently blinded in one eye. In Moth and Flame, Benjamin is on the mend, but he continues to be haunted by the scandal, which long ago cost him the Pulitzer Prize and his job as a journalist. Approaching middle age, HIV positive, and existing hand to mouth, Ben is still living in the studio apartment behind his older friends Maurice and Fred in West Hollywood, and relying on the support of his best friend, Los Angeles Times journalist Alexandra Templeton.

Forced to rely on Prozac to give him some emotional stability, Ben has had six months of peace, but his creative drive has been dulled along with his libido. He's just "a washed up reporter who's facing middle-age, with a receding hairline and a bank account." But when Bruce Bibby, a West Hollywood city worker and paraplegic is brutally murdered in his apartment, Ben is given the opportunity of taking over his job. Bruce was writing and researching a controversial booklet on the city's historically relevant buildings, and Ben throws himself into the task of finishing the booklet with all the enthusiasm he can muster.

Initially, he is reluctant to get caught up in Bruce's murder inquiry, but as usual he can't resist delving into the mystery, and is soon drawn into an investigation that involves shady real estate deals, dirty local politics, the Russian Immigrant community, and the fate of a series of run-down cottages. Some members of the community - led by a local activist woman - think the cottages are historically worth preserving, while others, in particular a couple of wealthy local gay businessmen, want to tear them down to make way for a new condominium project.

Lots of wonderfully three-dimensional characters are woven into the narrative, as Ben, along with Alexandra Templeton, and Mira De Marco, a feisty gay cop, work against time to uncover the murder and stop the young, impressionable Victor Androvic from being framed for Bruce's murder. Author, John Morgan Wilson just keeps getting better and better with this series. Moth and Flame is marvelously structured with a terrific sense of pacing as it tells an often-enthralling story of the rootlessness of families and neighborhoods, and the sometimes-tenuous alliances that different members of the community engage in for survival.

Moth and Flame is just as violent, emotionally honest, and sexually frank as the other books in the Benjamin Justice series, but now Justice is getting a bit too old to be beaten up and thrown around. Ben's a rough, troubled, contradictory, and sometimes complex guy who lives in a tough world, and Wilson doesn't mince words in writing about his life. Ben is still trying to come to terms with his violent murder of his father and also make sense of the complex web of issues that have had to do with the relationships he has fallen into.

Moth and Flame is also a novel about West Hollywood, and its often-disparate, mismatched community. Ben has been having a love-hate relationship with this city, but by the end of the novel, he seems to have come to terms with his hesitations and uncertainties. Maybe in the next installment, Justice - at forty-five, who views himself as middle aged and balding - may even find true love again. But he is going to have to watch himself and stay away from the conflicted and troubled young men that have so often plagued his life. Mike Leonard February 05.