John Morgan Wilson

I always like to mention a good book I've read or an author whose work I enjoy and this time it's John Morgan Wilson. I actually stumbled on his work while looking for gay-themed books at a local library and now I've read all but one book in his Benjamin Justice mystery series. What's interesting about Wilson is that his main character, Justice, is a seriously flawed individual and he doesn't always make the right decisions, but that's why his voice is so compelling. Justice, who begins the series as a disgraced, alcoholic, former journalist whose fall from grace came after plagiarizing a series of articles he wrote (and won a Pulitzer for), is a broken man. Still, he manages to pull himself together and help solve crimes (with a lot of assistance from friends) and he's never ashamed of who he is. He's gay, he made mistakes in his life and career, and he doesn't always treat people well, but he tries to do better and he wants to do better. Every book was not a winner for me in terms of the mystery to be solved. Some felt convoluted and, at times, some of the secondary characters (Maurice, specifically) got on my nerves, but the voice of Benjamin Justice was worth the read.