wegmarken2006's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
jimmypat's review against another edition
4.0
This was more of a day-in-the-life story than a crime novel, but it was very good. Excellent dialogue and great characters- but not for the faint of heart. Hoke Moseley is quickly becoming my favorite crime/mystery protagonist.
pandasekh's review against another edition
4.0
Recensione pubblicata originariamente sul mio blog Arte della Lettura
Tempi d'oro per i morti è il seguito di Miami Blues, dal quale però si distingue nettamente per via del cambio di protagonista. In questo libro torna infatti l'ispettore Moseley Hoke, che stavolta si trova al centro di tutta la storia.
La trama è semplice, più tendente verso il genere di narrativa che quello thriller. Non si tratta di nulla di eccezionale, ma rimane comunque coinvolgente e interessante.
I contenuti di questo libro, così come nel caso del precedente, sono a volte volgari e sconci.
Stile di scrittura
Lo stile di scrittura semplice e rapido di Charles Willeford si avvicina molto a quello di Charles Bukowski. Le descrizioni sono ridotte all'essenziale, ma sono comunque sufficienti a creare l'atmosfera adatta per il libro.
Un ottimo libro se già si apprezza Charles Bukowski, per stile e contenuti.
Altre recensioni sul mio blog Arte della Lettura
Tempi d'oro per i morti è il seguito di Miami Blues, dal quale però si distingue nettamente per via del cambio di protagonista. In questo libro torna infatti l'ispettore Moseley Hoke, che stavolta si trova al centro di tutta la storia.
Trama
La trama è semplice, più tendente verso il genere di narrativa che quello thriller. Non si tratta di nulla di eccezionale, ma rimane comunque coinvolgente e interessante.
I contenuti di questo libro, così come nel caso del precedente, sono a volte volgari e sconci.
Stile di scrittura
Lo stile di scrittura semplice e rapido di Charles Willeford si avvicina molto a quello di Charles Bukowski. Le descrizioni sono ridotte all'essenziale, ma sono comunque sufficienti a creare l'atmosfera adatta per il libro.
Conclusioni
Un ottimo libro se già si apprezza Charles Bukowski, per stile e contenuti.
Altre recensioni sul mio blog Arte della Lettura
bundy23's review against another edition
4.0
Burned through it in an afternoon. More hard as nails noir from Willeford, probably not as good as Miami Blues as it lacked the brutality of the first book in this series. Even without that extra edge it was never boring and hopefully it's setting up the later books in the series to return to the mayhem of book one
silviaamaturo's review against another edition
3.0
Soffre un po' dell'età, questo poliziesco. Scritto negli anni '80, i riferimenti alle discriminazioni razziali, al matrimonio, al ruolo della donna sono invecchiati malamente. Scorre facilmente però, ed è anche piuttosto semplice provare simpatia per questo protagonista poco ortodosso ma generoso. Il tutto è poco realistico, credo, ma non pretende di essere un romanzo verista, quindi va bene anche così.
3,5
3,5
franchescanado's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nickdleblanc's review against another edition
4.0
Charles Willeford is really so good and has a great understanding of characters. I liked this book a bit better than Miami Blues. It was a little shaggier and gave us some more time with Hoke and his personal life. There's some cringe-inducing misogyny and racism in this book, but most is coming from a character perspective or is working to inform that character's worldview. Granted, most of the time that racism and misogyny goes unchallenged, but in those cases it is also working to build the setting and the supporting characters which is unlike a lot of other pulp writers who use it solely for exploitation. Hoke Moseley is a weird central character for a story like this and it's in his narrative that Willeford's bizarro sense of humor really shines through. It's hard to understand sometimes why Willeford chooses to give the reader certain bits of information about his characters and sometimes it makes me wonder if he was just padding his manuscript a bit to make sure he got it up to where the publisher would like to see. But even when the information is extraneous, it works. Because it's ultimately a mystery/detective story, these bits of information feel important even if they aren't and at the very least, they add more depth to his characters. Willeford's understanding of character psychology and skill to write both shaggily and clearly at the same time are impressive and make for a far better pulp read than anyone would ever expect. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
papastach's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
jakewritesbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I discovered Charles Willeford’s work last year and he’s become one of my favorite crime writers. Cockfighter was the best crime book I read in 2017 and his first Hank Moseley story Miami Blues will be chalked up to one of the best I’ve read this year. A raucous tale of the worst cat-and-mouse game ever played between cop and criminal.
Willeford has a skill for three-dimensional characters, good-but-not-flashy dialogue, wry humor, and measured cynicism. All of those are on display for New Hope for the Dead, a book I enjoyed but didn’t like as much as I wanted to.
This is less of a conventional mystery or crime story and more of an exploration into Hoke Moseley’s life. As we know from the first book, it’s not a good one. His wife takes half his salary in child support for daughters he barely knows, he lives in a dumpy motel and is being squeezed by his department to move to Miami city proper in order to meet regulations and, while a competent detective, he’s far from Sherlock Holmes. Hoke is basically a Miami-transplanted Jimmy McNulty with WASP sensibilities.
But suddenly, he gets stuck caring for his daughters as their mom runs off with a ballplayer to California. And on top of that, he’s given cold cases to solve with a woman he’s not always a fan of. But things work out well enough. Willeford allows him to take to being a father without resorting to tired cliches. And he helps his partner in a jam too. There’s an empathy to the character that I appreciate and it doesn’t feel forced. Willeford’s writing style creates the most organic atmosphere possible for this kind of story. In the hands of a lesser writer, this is a Hallmark movie. Fortunately, Charles Willeford is not a lesser writer.
Unfortunately, I came to this for the crime aspect and that’s lacking. Instead of one case providing the narrative, there are several that Hoke and his partner Ellita have to work on. So rather than sail smoothly from beginning to end as Miami Blues did, this one bounces around too much and it’s tough to be invested in all that’s going on. There is one major case throughout that provides the spine for the book and sets the stage for an excellent conclusion. But that’s not enough to save it.
And then, there’s the racism. Oh boy. Now, I don’t like retroactively going back to old crime novels and judging them on “wokeness” (tongue-in-cheek). Willeford’s Hoke Moseley isn’t a klansman. But he definitely has a white cop’s worldview of bad neighborhoods and black/brown skinned/poor white folk likely being criminals. It’s uncomfortable and it can’t help but put a wedge between the reader and the character.
Nevertheless, I like these books and will likely swallow that pill again in order to keep reading them.
Willeford has a skill for three-dimensional characters, good-but-not-flashy dialogue, wry humor, and measured cynicism. All of those are on display for New Hope for the Dead, a book I enjoyed but didn’t like as much as I wanted to.
This is less of a conventional mystery or crime story and more of an exploration into Hoke Moseley’s life. As we know from the first book, it’s not a good one. His wife takes half his salary in child support for daughters he barely knows, he lives in a dumpy motel and is being squeezed by his department to move to Miami city proper in order to meet regulations and, while a competent detective, he’s far from Sherlock Holmes. Hoke is basically a Miami-transplanted Jimmy McNulty with WASP sensibilities.
But suddenly, he gets stuck caring for his daughters as their mom runs off with a ballplayer to California. And on top of that, he’s given cold cases to solve with a woman he’s not always a fan of. But things work out well enough. Willeford allows him to take to being a father without resorting to tired cliches. And he helps his partner in a jam too. There’s an empathy to the character that I appreciate and it doesn’t feel forced. Willeford’s writing style creates the most organic atmosphere possible for this kind of story. In the hands of a lesser writer, this is a Hallmark movie. Fortunately, Charles Willeford is not a lesser writer.
Unfortunately, I came to this for the crime aspect and that’s lacking. Instead of one case providing the narrative, there are several that Hoke and his partner Ellita have to work on. So rather than sail smoothly from beginning to end as Miami Blues did, this one bounces around too much and it’s tough to be invested in all that’s going on. There is one major case throughout that provides the spine for the book and sets the stage for an excellent conclusion. But that’s not enough to save it.
And then, there’s the racism. Oh boy. Now, I don’t like retroactively going back to old crime novels and judging them on “wokeness” (tongue-in-cheek). Willeford’s Hoke Moseley isn’t a klansman. But he definitely has a white cop’s worldview of bad neighborhoods and black/brown skinned/poor white folk likely being criminals. It’s uncomfortable and it can’t help but put a wedge between the reader and the character.
Nevertheless, I like these books and will likely swallow that pill again in order to keep reading them.