I was attracted by the Elmore Leonard recommendation and can see why Leonard liked Williford.
Although I prefer Leonard as well as Jim Thompson, I will read a few more of this Hoke Moseley series.

Yay! Pretty good book. When I was first reading the description about it, it was mentioned that a movie had been made from it. I always like to see the movie before I read the book. Movie was pretty good too but the book was different enough that the spoilers didn't matter. Basically it's about this psychopath guy gets out of prison and immediately turns again to crime. Eventually he has a run in with a Miami detective and the story is about what happens then.

Fantastic novel.

It starts off ultra-strong. Perhaps with a stronger personality than any other third person-narrated detective novels and kind of meanders after a while, but it went above and beyond of what I expected. Charles Willeford writes like Elmore Leonard meets Quentin Tarantino meets Dashiell Hammett. He has a keen sense of observation, tremendous humor and originality. If you're going to read one detective novel this summer, read this one.

Original crime story where we get to know the criminal and the detective. Not a whodunit because we know that already.
A cat and mouse game between the two. First Junior, an ex-con, is the cat, but eventually...Yes you got it! You know how these thing go.

We follow both Junior and Hoke on their path. We get to know them. They are fairly well fleshed out.

It’s like a watered down crime and punishment. The law against the villain. The villain is not totally bad, but is ruthless. Cruel really. The law, Hoke, divorced, two teenage daughters, is a good cop. Down on his luck. In need of money. Living in a derelict hotel. Perfect for the crime noir genre.

What starts out as a seemingly innocent crime by ‘Junior’ escalates quickly. Junior is too much into his way of life to stop and before he knows it, he is in way over his head. Only he doesn’t know it yet. He does not know Hoke. And that is a big mistake. And when Hoke gets involved, he enters a maelstom of events of which he cannot see any connection. But soon it gets very personal.

A good story. Even some society critical remarks about Miami in the ‘80s.

I will read the 3 other books with Hoke Mosely.
They seem to become more personal. He gets a new partner in the end of this book and that looks promising for interesting interaction.

Hilarious. Strange. Full of wonderful coincidences and intersecting characters. There are a few issues, but this is such a home run for me that I'm torn between 4 and 5 stars on this one. Loved this.

"Even when people talk about the weather, fair doesn’t mean anything."
- Charles Willeford, Miami Blues



The first of Willeford's Hoke Moseley mystery novels, Miami Blues introduced the world (obviously not the world, I don't think Willeford was that widely read until late in his life) to one of the best characters in modern crime fiction. Hoke Moseley is depressed, with dentures, a dad bod, in debt, living in a crappy dive down by the Beach. But he's a fantastic detective.

In this novel, Hoke's path crosses with Frederick J. Frenger Jr. a psychopath who has recently relocated to Miami. The novel is surprising in parts, violent in many parts, and like John D. MacDonald's John McGee novels, addictively readable. I read somewhere that Willeford has been a big inspiration for Quentin Tarantino, which makes a lot of sense.

perfect weird short crime novel. burned through it in maybe 3 hours of reading time. involves dentures, a creepy bad guy who gets most of the face time, hare krishnas, threadbare late 1970s social-fabric-in-tatters tropes, bent dialogue. for people who find elmore leonard books too dry (if there are any people like that)

seven years later re-read: this book is still pure pleasure. ends with a vinegar pie recipe. all of the food that susan prepares for freddy fenger jr in this novel is note-perfect 1980s fancy-but-actually-garbage cuisine.

Reading this, I felt like I was going through an anthropology journal. The quick pace and dark humour make it perfect as an enjoyable, quick read.

La dentiera di Hoke Moseley che vola giù dalla finestra o che riposa nel suo bel bicchiere rimarrà per sempre nei miei pensieri :).

Ho davvero apprezzato questo romanzo atipico che del giallo o del crime canonico ha ben poco, ma che comunque riesce a insinuare nel lettore la curiosità di sapere come andrà a finire. La storia ha una trama strampalata che Willeford riesce a tenere in piedi con mano sapiente, avvolgendola di humour caustico e sottile. Dalla sua penna personaggi che potrebbero risultare 'di cartone' (il detective sfigato e depresso, lo psicopatico con ambizioni di redenzione, la puttana ingenua che ama cucinare) escono invece vivificati, come illuminati da una nuova luce che ce li rende molto umani anche quando compiono atroci nefandezze.

L'ambientazione è resa molto bene, l'atmosfera intrisa di violenza delle strade di Miami la senti addosso. Insomma, mi è piaciuto e credo che leggerò altro di questo autore.

This was great. It is like a police procedural with strong existential elements. This novel gives a slight indication of what Willeford intended to do with the vastly superior sequels of Miami Blues. Unlike Sideswipe, the barbarian in Miami Blues is not described from somebody else's point of view. Here his accomplice - a seemingly stupid prostitute is described from his point of view. So we don't know how reliable his account of her is, especially when you consider the ending. The book is off to a great start with Freddie Fenger killing a Hare Krishna at the airport.

There is the detective Hoke Moseley, who cuts a sorry figure. He is almost like a supporting character. He has false teeth which gets thrown out of the window twice :) and cannot seem to loose weight. The very opposite of the token tough cop hero.

Willeford goes into great detail about how much everything costs and how much everyone earns and spends. Money and its acquisition is the main motive of all the characters. But no amount of money seems to be enough. Everyone is screwed and is involved in some desperate scheme to make a handsome amount of cash which can be used to finance a scheme which they expect would make their life easier.

Dare un dito e...

Da un lato abbiamo la morte accidentale, quasi ridicola, dell'Hare Krishna Martin, causata dal gesto di uno psicopatico appena uscito dal carcere, Freddie, che nell'occasione nemmeno si accorge di aver tolto la vita ad un uomo.
Dall'altra, incontriamo Hoke Moseley, un detective sgangherato, atipico, con un gran fiuto per le situazioni che non quadrano e con problemi di denti; anzi, di protesi dentaria.

Per tutta una serie di coincidenze, le loro strade si incrociano dando vita a situazioni squinternate che sfociano nel pulp — c'è anche la sorella dell'Hare krishna morto, Susie, prostituta ingenua che si tuffa in un'improbabile love story proprio con Freddie — tenute insieme da un senso generale di ironia che fa da collante ad una storia in cui pochi brillano per onestà e acume.

Leggero e a suo modo divertente, nonostante la violenza aleggi sempre nell'aria.

Potete vedere questa storia grazie all'omonimo film: con Alec Baldwin a interpretare Freddie; Jennifer Jason Leigh — incantevole ingenua — è Susie; Fred Ward nei panni di Hoke.

4,5*

My first Willeford and certainly won't be my last Filled with memorable characters, some of which have ridiculous names, dealing with crime in South Florida. Really compelling and well-written. Its difficult to say much more without giving too much away.