Charles Willeford chose not to face Sergeant Hoke Moseley with an enigmatic sociopath killer or white supremacists or Cuban drug lords in New Hope For The Dead -- a follow-up to his 1984's novel, Miami Blues. There were no blood-splattered crime scenes or Tim Dorsey-esque ways of killing people or a mystical art of erasing all signs of death. Willeford kept the story on the ground.For those who wants to know, the original title for Miami Blues was Kiss Your Ass Good-Bye.Hoke Moseley had his plate full at work. He had to train Ellita Sanchez, his new partner. The two might have a homicide case when they found the body of Jerry Hickey, even though early signs showed that Jerry O.D'd. Jerry's step-mom, Loretta, was a possible love interest for Hoke. At the office, Major Brownley was angling for a promotion so he assigned Hoke, Ellita and Bill Henderson (Hoke's old partner) to work on cold cases.So what was Hoke's problem? Real life.One, housingThere was an official rule: all Miami cops MUST lived in MIami. And though Hoke's office was only 15 minutes away from his place, he technically lived in South Beach. Brownley told Hoke he had to move to Miami, A.S.A.P. But half of Hoke's income was for alimony. So Hoke had to use that 50% to pay taxes and food and stuff. So a new place downtown with his dough, he was going to have to live in a seedy neighborhood.Two, the sudden arrival of his daughters, Sue Ellen (16) and Aileen (14).Hoke's ex-wife got married with a baseball player and moved to California. She sent the kids to Hoke without telling him first. He hadn't seen them since Aileen was a baby. So he had no experience in parenting. He didn't have a girlfriend or a close friend to watch them. And Hoke lived in a crummy room in a crummy hotel, the Eldorado. He also worked there as the security officer so he didn't have to pay rent. It was an okay-ish deal when he was just on his own. He couldn't live there with the girls.You know what Hoke did? He tried to find a temporary place to live by house-sitting. And there were a lot of houses in Miami that needed house-sitting.The novel's story tended to revolve around everyday life. Hoke at work, Hoke with the girls, Hoke reading files at the office. Let me warn you this: there was zero action scene. Pacing was slow. But the book was far from being charmless and monotonous. What stopped it from being that way was Willeford's writing. He showed you the story. He put you inside these characters's shoes. For instance, when Hoke was outside the office, doing legwork, he never used the payphone. He'd go into a shop or a diner, flashed his badge and asked the clerk to borrow the phone. That room at the Eldorado. He also encouraged his daughters to get a job. Sue Ellen at diners, Aileen washing dogs.This was Willeford showing us how money was tight at the Moseley household.Honestly, reading this was like watching a good documentary (although the ending would be too controversial. What Hoke did, the public must never knew. The crew might have to fabricate and film a new ending). Willeford's Miami was not shiny and glittery like in Miami Vice but 'twas like de Palma's Miami in Scarface. Unsafe streets, rundown buildings, small-time crooks lurking in alleys. And from time to time, when you least expected it, you found parts that were funny or realistic or heart-breaking or unpredictable.My favorites were when Capt. Monrow told his story and Hoke's advise to his girls -- which was the craziest part of the book. Hoke told them about sex and STDs and how guys would persuade them (first just handjobs then blowjobs) and how they should NEVER do it. He encouraged them to masturbate. Told it all with a straight-face. Willeford didn't try to be funny, thus creating one of the funniest scenes I'd ever read.That's good writing.
New Hope for the Dead is Charles Willeford's follow up to Miami Blues, the debut appearance of series detective Moseley. Except it's an entirely different beast of a novel. Willeford clearly didn't anticipate Moseley becoming a repeat performer in that first outing, making him secondary to the crazy Freddie Frenger Jr. and so this second novel gave him an opportunity to really flesh out the character, establish his world and really outline where this series of books is headed.This time out Moseley is far less of a buffoon for example, instead of actively wallowing in how far he has fallen as a man Hoke is proactive, he knows things are bed and he wants to be a better man for his partner, his daughters, himself. It's an interesting flip but written in such a way, with such skill and heart that it feels less like artifice on the part of the author and closer to a natural progression of the character.Instead of focussing on a particular crime or series of crimes for his detective to solve Willeford uses the novel to critique the politics and social development of Miami in the 80s and this combined with the fascinating character study that is the portrait of Sergeant Hoke Moseley marks the series as unique and worthy of a place in any crime aficionados collection.
What do You think about New Hope For The Dead (2004)?
New Hope for the Dead, uscito nel 1985 (in Italia l’ha pubblicato Marcos y Marcos col titolo Tempi d’oro per i morti), di Charles Willeford, è la seconda puntata, dopo Miami Blues, delle avventure di Hoke Moseley, sergente della polizia di Miami con un’aura ben poco da “maledetto”, tutt’altro: i suoi guai sono molto meschini, prosaici, ma affrontati con uno spirito pratico che lascia poco spazio all’autocommiserazione o, appunto, al “fascino” dell’antieroe perdente e in lotta con la società.Qui la storia inizia con Hoke che deve indagare su un caso abbastanza banale, la morte di un ragazzo che, a tutta prima, sembra essere solo un’overdose accidentale di eroina. Se non che il capo decide di scaricare su lui, la sua partner Ellita Sanchez e il collega Bill Henderson il compito di occuparsi dei cold cases irrisolti che potrebbero fruttargli una buona pubblicità e una promozione (non a Hoke, al capo). Nel frattempo l’ex moglie Patsy gli scarica senza tanti complimenti le due figlie adolescenti che non vede da una decina d’anni. Per giunta, si ritrova anche ad aiutare Ellita che, (view spoiler)[rimasta incinta (hide spoiler)]
—Moloch
The sequel to his late-career surprise hit MIAMI BLUES, this is a typically colorful Willeford tale, but lacks his typical taut sense of story construction. Its somewhat meandering and unfocused plot tracks Miami PD Homicide Det. Hoke Moseley as he simultaneously copes with his assignment to a new cold case division and the unexpected arrival of his teenage daughters after his ex-wife dumps them on his doorstep before splitting for California. The main narrative drive is a fairly weak storyline about the apparent overdose of a youthful junkie from an upscale family and the disappearance of $24,000 belonging to a drug cartel. It's well worth reading for Willeford's colorful insights into Miami's seedy side, and to watch the peculiar evolution of his sad-sack detective who seems to be given new purpose by a flood of estrogen into his life. (Circumstances also redefine and draw him closer to his Cuban female partner, Ellita.) However, the book has a long seventh inning stretch where the story seems to wander a bit aimlessly before getting back on track. The lack of focus isn't that surprising, given that this was Willeford's second attempt at a sequel to MIAMI BLUES -- the first pass was the notorious, unpublished GRIMHAVEN in which a desperate Hoke Moselely quits the force and kills his daughters. It's clear this ragtag novel repurposes at least some of the ideas and materials with much more optimistic results -- I'm curious how much overlap there ultimately is between GRIMHAVEN and NEW HOPE.
—Steve
I like Hoke Moseley and all ... but this follow up to Miami Blues was dull. It was a like a very odd episode of Father Knows Best. Hardly anything happens except for conversations with Hoke's coworkers, Hoke searching for a place to live, and a weak-ass mystery.There were some funny quotes and conversations that saved this from a one star review. The biggest difference between this installment and Miami Blues was the back and forth plots of Hoke and the main criminal character. I must say I preferred the dual narratives of the first book. Maybe that was because Junior was such a great villain. I hope the series picks up.
—Piker7977
