Q&A with Josh Lanyon discussion

Hi Everyone,

Here is our October 2021 BOM discussion thread for Simple Justice! Feel free to start discussing the book whenever you're ready. Just be aware of spoilers here.

Interesting article-cum-interview from October 2020: https://lambdaliterary.org/2020/10/jo...

In 1997 Mystery Writers of America honored Simple Justice with an Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel, reportedly the first Edgar given to a gay-themed novel written by an openly queer author. The Lambda Literary Foundation added a nomination for Best Gay Men’s Mystery, the first of six Lammy nods for the Benjamin Justice series during its eight-book run, three of them winners.

In September 2020 ReQueered Tales published a revised, 25th anniversary edition, with a Foreword by Christopher Rice. Here what John Morgan Wilson says about the new edition:

You’ve made fairly heavy revisions to Simple Justice, so it’s not exactly a reprint. What prompted that?

Except for passages at public readings, I hadn’t read the entire book since galley proofs in 1996. As I turned the pages again last year, I was shocked by how sloppy some of the writing was, not to mention errors of fact, plot inconsistencies, and creative choices that caused me to cringe. I began my edits with wholesale trims, always a good place to start. I cut two minor subplots and two characters and added a new character I felt strengthened the story. Also, more background detail to sharpen time and place. It entailed months of hard work and several new drafts. Facing deadlines, I had to finally accept that it would never be perfect or even close to that, and let it go.

So now I don't know whether to read or not the first edition I've got on paper...

Thanks for posting that! I recalled seeing it somewhere a short while ago, but didn’t remember where.

I bought all the original hardcovers of the entire series years ago, so regardless of his changes, that’s what I will be reading. That said, read whatever version you want or can get your hands on.

Jordan wrote: "Thanks for posting that! I recalled seeing it somewhere a short while ago, but didn’t remember where.

I bought all the original hardcovers of the entire series years ago, so regardless of his cha..."

Oh, thank you for your answer.

Then I'll read the original, I can always buy the new edition later on.

I think it could be interesting if some of us read the original and some read the new one. We can compare notes!

I have the revised 25th anniversary edition, so I guess we will see.

I've read the first 30 pages: I love it.

I’m going to start it next! Either tonight or Tomorrow. Gotta finish something else first, as usual. Lol.

I started reading last night. I have the edited/revised 25th anniversary edition. I like what the author wrote about revisiting and revising his work. I wonder what readers who read the original book think/feel, especially as that version was the award winner. I appreciate the notion of looking back, correcting, adding detail.

I also like comparing two versions of a book to see what I notice and think about it. Not sure I'd do that in this case. Among other considerations, a 1996 HC is listed on Amazon at $49 and the 2008 PB edition offers start in the $45 range...

Also my memory of details in most books I've read has become unreliable. I've found more than ever this year that memory is very subjective. :)

Speaking of memory glitches, when I first read the blurb for Simple Justice, I thought I'd already read it. Reporter, LA, murder(s) involving young gay men... but I was thinking of Christopher Rice's Light Before Day which I started reading in 2017, then set aside, either distracted by other books or finding its noir-ishness not a good fit for me at the time.

I’ve got old hardcovers, but I definitely didn’t pay that much for them!

My memory is terrible, but I just realized this year that it’s because I have ADHD, which explains so much about my life! But I can easily reread a murder mystery without remembering who the killer is not long after I read it the first time. Sigh...

Karen wrote: "I started reading last night. I have the edited/revised 25th anniversary edition. I like what the author wrote about revisiting and revising his work. I wonder what readers who read the original book think/feel, especially as that version was the award winner. I appreciate the notion of looking back, correcting, adding detail."

Now that I'm in the middle of the original book I resent the remarks of the author in the interview I posted above.

I almost didn't start the paperback I owned because of that negative judgment, but the original book is beautifully written, the main character full of humanity, also ironic and self-ironic. I'm loving it.

I bought and read these ReQueered Tales editions shortly after they were republished:
Stan Leventhal's The Black Marble Pool
Lev Raphael's (Nick Hoffman series) Let's Get Criminal and The Edith Wharton Murders
Grant Michael's (Stan Kraychik series) Books 1-3, starting with A Body To Dye For
I also got Murder and Mayhem: An Annotated Bibliography of Gay and Queer Males in Mystery, 1909-2018, which I haven't "read" but have referred to on occasion.

I looked up emails received from them and realized I haven't received anything since December 2020, so checked their website and the last releases were in late 2020. Did I miss their closing or hiatus announcement? I was hoping they could find a way to reprint Robert Bentley's Here There Be Dragons.

For a bit of fun go to the Q&A home page and type "Bentley" or "Here there be dragons" in the search box. There's a discussion that starts on pages 3-5 about members of this group reading and trying to find Bentley's book, starting with a May 4, 2015 post from Jordan (about her vintage gay detective book collection):
"... ETA:
Here we go, I'd forgotten the titles!
Here There Be Dragons is the standalone I ordered.
Simple Justice is the series I added to buy someday."

Also here's a link to Drewey Wayne Gunn's (2013) Top 10 lists for series and standalones. Both Simple Justice and Here There Be Dragons are listed. https://lambdaliterary.org/2013/01/gu...

I finished it this morning. It kept me engaged all the way through. It was well written.

I think I was mostly unaware of Requeered, or I’d simply forgotten about them.

Here There Be Dragons is such a good book! It would be great to have that reprinted.

Thanks for posting that article! I’ve not read it in quite some time and I now find that I’ve read only a select few of the titles mentioned when I thought I’d read more! I’ll have to hunt more of them down.

I just found The Heart in Exile has been republished! I must have missed this, or I would have bought it years ago! https://smile.amazon.com/Heart-Exile-...

Also I see a copy of Here There Be Dragons on Amazon for $16.00, which is a sweet deal for this hard to find hardcover! https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/0...

At some point, hopefully later today, I’m planning on updating this booklist from that article: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.... That might make it easier to see and find things quickly.

I’ve gotten into the book. Not too far though. Honestly, my reaction is that the kid would be scared, no matter how much bravado he’s faking. I’m not sure I see what Ben’s seeing yet. Guess I’ll just have to keep reading. Lol

Still haven’t gotten to page 100 yet. I didn’t read much on vacation last week. It’s good, but not gripping. At least, not yet. And it feels familiar to other older gay mysteries. I think the “I’ll just have sex with this random guy at the drop of a hat” is getting old for me. Lol.

Jordan wrote: "Still haven’t gotten to page 100 yet. I didn’t read much on vacation last week. It’s good, but not gripping. At least, not yet. And it feels familiar to other older gay mysteries. I think the “I’ll..."

Hmmm... Maybe the revised version is different in tone from the original? I do know that how a book affects me does depend on my mood, expectations, and state of mind. I was expecting my reaction to this book to be similar to yours. Then it wasn't. But I did read the revised version. :)

After I read the new ebook version, I happened to snag a very reasonably priced first edition 1996 hardcover copy, with a cellophane wrapped dust cover and Like New condition... with one quirk which is a note/(dedication?) on the title page, "Margaret Moseley Edgar finalist for Bonita Faye 1996." Mysterious... especially as her nomination was for a 1997 edition in the same year (1997) that John Morgan Wilson won in the First Novel category for his 1996 edition of Simple Justice.

So at some point I'll try to read the original and compare... of course I'll have to re-read the revised version by then.

It’s true! A lot goes into how I feel about a book too.

I’ll be interested in your thoughts when you do read the original!

Paused this for a couple of days to read a Moomin book. I'll be back at this one tonight!

"If I'd killed a woman, 'stead of a man, I mighta done a year or two for attempted manslaughter and been back playin' in the pros. Ain't that rich?"

This says a lot about a thing, but I have a feeling the character, Bellworthy, probably didn't get the real truth about it.

Still reading this!

I'm in a creative output mode and it's rather difficult to be doing any creative input at the moment. I have this same problem with my other book group at the moment! argh! lol.

14 pages left!!!! So sad I couldn't finish this before work this morning, so hopefully on my dinner break later on I'll get to it. I have some ideas of what's going on on several fronts, and I can't wait to see how they play out.

Antonella was right, this is a very tightly written mystery. I'm not sure why the author felt the need to edit it at all.

I also wanted to say that I really wanted to smack Harry upside the head with his talk of "that doesn't sound realistic" as Ben is talking about what it's like to be gay and other minorities. OMG.

Also Templeton STILL hasn't gotten a freakin' clue yet as to Ben's sexuality?!?!?! Why is she still trying to tempt him in the end, I don't get it. ugh. I like her, except for this.

Finished it! Not quite how I thought it would end, but very close!