When it opens, Rob Franklin’s debut novel Great Black Hope feels like just another one of those books skewering the American elite and their dissolute New York lives. The types of books that Americans have been doing since Henry James and Edith Wharton and that have seen modern counterparts in authors like Taffy Brodesser-Ackner and Jean Hanff Korelitz. But while Rob Franklin has no trouble with this aspect of his novel, he quickly moves on to other, broader themes and concerns, and in particular what it means to be Black in modern America.
When the book opens, (David) Smith is being arrested at a party in the Hamptons for drug possession. Smith comes from an upper middle-class family and they rally round to find him a lawyer. Smith takes the opportunity to come out from under an addiction that began long before but has worsened in the few months since the unsolved murder of his flatmate Elle. Franklin goes on to dig deeply into Smith’s life but along the way the lives of his parents (who are both professionals living in Atlanta) and grandmother (one of the earliest Black lawyers and still practicing in Texas).
As already noted there is plenty of skewering here of the New York party scene. Smith’s history with Elle and his other good friend Carolyn, also a recovering addict, take him to all night parties, exclusive clubs and celebrity chef dinners. But Great Black Hope is much more than this, Franklin considers a much broader range of issues faced by Black (and gay and transgender) communities in modern America including the pervasive broad stereotyping of their lives and experiences. And he does this not just through Smith himself but through his family and their connections, and all the people that he interacts with be it the Black detective assigned to Elle’s case, or the Black artist he meets and who goes out to provide support the homeless.
The title itself is a signpost to the irony and the challenge that Franklin is exploring. Smith’s grandmother was a trailblazer and his parents have fashioned upper-middle class comfortable lives in Atlanta. Smith is in some ways their “hope”, the third generation who wants for nothing as a result of their hard work. While he in some ways represents their success, Smith is also drifting, working for a New York start-up, unsure what to do with his life, recovering from addiction. But despite the irony there is real hope here, both in Smith’s story and in the stories of those he encounters.
Great Black Hope draws on a tradition of American writing that has mainly focussed on the white upper classes. Franklin manages to reflect some of the themes and tropes of those novels through the lens of the Black community experience, creating a very different type of narrative. And in doing so he delivers an insightful, affecting novel. And an incredibly assured debut.

This book turned out to be not my cup of tea. I found the writing quite slow and monotones with no real highs or lows. I feel the writer has potential and is obviously well educated but I just didn’t care for Smith who was somewhat two dimensional despite being the central character of the book. I appreciated the education of how the American legal system is skewed and is more of a barter system than I had previously known. However I felt the story dragged and it look me longer than usual to complete.

Beautifully written, quite heavy. We follow Smith, a young, queer Black man with wealthy parents, whose flatmate Elle, daughter of a big music producer and a singer, dies in an apparent drug overdose. As Smith is later arrested for drug possession and is preparing for his court date, we follow his grief, friendships, etc. The descriptions of NY and its nightlife are incredible, the novel feels very atmospheric and the characters are well fleshed out. I enjoyed the writing immensely, found the novel a bit too slow at times, but would definitely recommend it still.

I think this is yet another example of a book which will be marketed as a thriller and will then leave in its wake a trail of disappointed thriller fans.
I really liked this book, but it’s not a thriller at all.
Great Black Hope is a mediation on what it means to be young, black and affluent in white New York. It’s about addiction and grief and growing up. It’s about the end of the party when you’re starting to feel like everyone is giving up and going home and you’re the last person to want one more drink, one more dance, one more song.
I really liked this. So many of these novels of upper-middle class society are so white it was really interesting to see this from a new perspective. I love any book about a New York party scene and it made me think of books I like What I Loved (one of my all-time favourite books).

It’s a shame this is going to focus on Smith’s arrest and Elle’s death because I don’t think that’s at all what this book is really about.

4 stars.

Great Black Hope is a reflective story that focuses on how the life of its protagonist shifts in times of trouble. It has the feel of a late coming-of-age story, with its youthful main character being delivered a one-two punch of misfortune, starting with the death of his roommate and compounded by his arrest after a party gone wrong. A real highlight of the novel is how it shows Smith’s development over the course of the story, and starts taking control of his circumstances.

The book has quite a slow, meandering quality that I reckon is down to its lead character. Smith is an unusual perspective for a story to be told from; accustomed to a life of luxury, he comes across as quite a weak personality and is easily led by others into their own dramas, slowing down the pace of the story. It may be a deliberate choice for the character, but it definitely made the book less focused, and it took me longer to read than usual given the relatively short length. Great Black Hope tackles themes of both class and race over the course of the story, though personally I felt the former played a much bigger role than the latter. Unfair racial stereotypes are explored at times through the book, particularly in scenes involving the justice system, but the themes of class and privilege felt far more poignant and ever-present in the narrative.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and to NetGalley for an advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review!

Great Black Hope is a novel about a well-off Black man living in New York City who is arrested for possessing cocaine in the aftermath of his roommate's death. Smith is always looking for the next party, previously with his friend Elle whose recent death has shocked him and their circle of friends and acquaintances. When he's arrested in the Hamptons, he suddenly sees a different side to the system, as well as the position he holds as a Black man who is also a graduate and from a well-off family.

This book dives deep into the world of the protagonist, Smith, and his life as a young queer Black man in New York City, surrounded by the potential for downward spiral amongst the great expectations for his life, and others living in similar circumstances. At a simple level, it explores race and class, and how they both impact each other when it comes to how people are treated and exist in the world. There's also New York City nightlife and the stark reality of the court system in the US, there's addiction and sobriety and what we do and don't do for our friends. I liked how Franklin builds up this picture of Smith's social circle, feeling like an updated version of 80s and 90s stories centred around New York City parties and restaurants, but also people and communities outside of this, and how Smith's world in New York is only one snapshot.

There's not that much of a narrative to this book, despite elements of mystery and investigations, and it feels far more focused on character and vibe, which is does well. Great Black Hope is an updated version of the New York City party novel, in which intersections of race and class are explored to consider who can progress up and who can be in a downward spiral.

Great Black Hope follows Smith who is in turmoil after being arrested for possession of cocaine. He is struggling after being pulled into the court system as his friend Elle dies at the same time. As a black man his race does not protect him but his class does. Smith returns to his hometown of Atlanta but ends up going back to New York and back to his old ways.

This really wasn’t for me. I can see this appealing to many people and I have to say the writing was really technically good, it felt high brow and classy. The story was quite dull to me and I was looking forward to the commentary on class and race as to how this affects the criminal justice system but I just don’t connect to this. I found it flat and just don’t have strong feelings towards this.