by John Morgan Wilson
Beach Book of the Week
GAY JOURNALIST BENJAMIN JUSTICE WAS stripped of his Pulitzer after the couple he movingly depicted in a series on AIDS proved to be fictitious. Now, six years later, as this tantalizing whodunit opens, his old editor offers what may be his only shot at redemption—helping a promising cub reporter probe the apparently random murder of a wealthy Los Angeles family's son outside a gay bar.
But this could be a tougher assignment than Justice wants—and not because of a shortage of suspects (including the club's behemoth bouncer, a former NFL player with a nasty past; a closeted lesbian tennis pro; and a charismatic senator's son). The real problems lurk in the murkier corners of Justice's own past—and the painful I question of whether the I sensitive reporter is finally ready to confront them.
As its subject matter suggests, this moody first mystery from Wilson, a West Hollywood freelance journalist, isn't your typical day at the beach. But with its vivid dissection of Los Angeles low life and intriguing characters, you may find it tough to put down, even as the surf beckons. (Doubleday, $21)
Your Reaction
