Other Fiction

Ruth Ecklund—seventy-something and settled in life—enjoys a peaceful, predictable routine…until the day she sees a man standing across the street next to a yellow Cadillac. And suddenly, her world turns upside down.

But is it really him? Is he really Elvis Presley—with whom she had a brief romantic encounter as a teen, and who’s been dead for years? Or is he Bobby Wayne Pugh, an Elvis impersonator on the run from Las Vegas hit men?

Only the Red Moon knows the answer but to find it Ruth must survive an unsettling journey into the memories of her past, a madcap jaunt across Florida, and a wild ride into the imagination of the stranger with the yellow Cadillac.

Jack Frazer is an award-winning New York journalist, but he’s in a slump. And his wife is fed up with life in the big city. With his marriage in trouble, and his career stalled, Frazer is on the hunt for a big story that will turn things around. A friend suggests he investigate an art gallery where the deals seem too good to be true. At first, Frazer is reluctant—he isn’t an art critic—then he meets the art dealer’s wife and the story gets more interesting.

Before long, Frazer is swept up in a dangerous web of intrigue and desire. A Russian mob boss using art as a means of laundering money. A Holocaust survivor obsessed with recovering the family art collection that was stolen by the Nazis. And Truman Slater, a young artist, who just wants to survive.

Their stories are on the path to a tragic collision and Frazer wants to write about it. But can he survive long enough to tell the tale, and will his wife be waiting for him when it’s over? The art dealer’s wife holds the key.

Dell Briggers was born in Vidalia, Georgia—or so he said—and I believed him, too. When we were growing up, he was my best friend and we told each other everything. But then he died and at his funeral I learned he was actually from Hot Springs, Arkansas that his father had never worked at a top secret Navy base and that his mother had never even been to Hollywood—much less acted in movies or been mentored by Tallulah Bankhead. So, after the funeral, I decided to find out who he really was. And that’s where story begins.

Using vivid characters, superb writing, and unforgettable stories, Joe Hilley brings us tales that read like a front porch conversation—gossip we’ve longed to know, questions we’ve wanted to ask, memories we’ve tried to forget. The Legend of Dell Briggers presents contemplative fiction at its finest. ​

In this collection of short fiction, Joe Hilley presents variations on two of his constant themes-the nature of human existence and the quest for purpose and meaning. His concise narration and vivid characters give a perspective on life that challenges readers to consider those topics at their deepest level. The writing is reminiscent of Walker Percy and Albert Camus.