Relatively Dead

Carol Golden #2

by Alan Cook

Carol Golden has recovered her identity if not her memory (lost in FORGET TO REMEMBER) and she would like to find more relatives. She discovers cousins with the last name of Boyd and finds they are apparently being targeted for murder. In addition, her grandmother is developing Alzheimer's Disease and has been a victim of the "Grandparent Scam," losing a lot of money to someone in Los Angeles who is impersonating Carol's dead brother. Carol travels to Los Angeles from her home in North Carolina to attend a memorial service for one murdered cousin and to try and determine whether the scammer and the murderer are the same person. However, she finds out soon after her arrival in L.A. that somone doesn't want her sticking her nose into any of this.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller

238 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 22, 2012

About the author

Alan Cook is an author of mystery/suspense novels and young adult/Children's books. However, his latest novel is a comedy, ROCKY ROAD TO DENVER, set in 1968. His novella, DEATH AT MONKSREST, takes place in England in the 1960s and is the third book of the Charlie and Liz series. EAST OF THE WALL takes places in East Germany in 1963 when the Berlin Wall was up. It is the second book in the Charlie and Liz series. TRUST ME IF YOU DARE, the first Charlie and Liz novel, takes place in 1962 in the U.S. and Cuba. YOUR MOVE is the seventh Carol Golden book. A serial killer is on the loose. FOOL ME TWICE is the sixth Carol Golden book. It deals with scams, and we've all been fooled. GOOD TO THE LAST DEATH is the fifth Carol Golden novel. It deals with junk science. HIT THAT BLOT, with a backgammon theme, is the fourth Carol Golden novel. DANGEROUS WIND is the third Carol Golden novel. It takes place on all seven continents. RELATIVELY DEAD and FORGET TO REMEMBER, the first two, are about a young woman who loses her memory and calls herself Carol Golden. His short story, "Checkpoint Charlie," is in the anthology, MYSTERY WRITERS OF AMERICA PRESENTS ICE COLD: TALES OF INTRIGUE FROM THE COLD WAR, edited by Jeffery Deaver and Raymond Benson. PICTURELAND, is a Young Adult novel that takes place in a dystopian world. DANCING WITH BULLS, his first children's book, takes place at Knossos Palace on the island of Crete 4,000 years ago. YOUR MOVE is he seventh Carol Golden book, in which Carol is asked to help track down a serial killer. RUN INTO TROUBLE has won a Silver Quill award from the American Author's Association and was named best Pacific West book by Reader Views. It is about an ultra-marathon along the California coast in 1969, during the Cold War. But is the Cold War about to heat up? HONEYMOON FOR THREE, has received a Silver Quill award from the American Author's Association and was named best Mountain West book by Reader Views. WALKING THE WORLD: MEMORIES AND ADVENTURES has been named one of the "Top 10 Walking Memoirs and Tales of Long Walks" by walking.about.com

Reviews

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who is killing off the Jasons? In this, the second book of the Carol Golden series, Carol, whose real name is Cynthia Akai, has regained her identity if not her full memory. With her identity, she also has a grandmother much to her delight. As far as she knows, this is her only living relative and she is living with her grandmother who is in early dementia. But her grandmother has a cousin, Jason, in California where much of this adventure takes place.

Somewhat confusing at times with all the Jasons, this book delves into such things as genealogy, Ponzi schemes and murder. Family members are dying off as fast as Carol finds them. She is working with a forensic genealogist and the tension builds as the family dwindles. Are the two seemingly unrelated plot-lines really related? Will she be able to save her Irish cousins? And who is Tom Kelly? The action picks up speed as more cousins come to light, bringing with it a surprise ending

What I like about Alan Cook's books is what are obviously personal interests of his, making the stories read with authenticity. Descriptions of cities and countryside ring true as do his scenarios involving walking and hiking. Logic and mathematics problems, even code-breaking often come into play. I love learning something new from the stories I read and this one ran true to form.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only read this if you read and enjoyed the first Carol Golden book. There are a lot of references to characters from the first book so some readers may miss out if they do not have the background, even though Cook explains Carol's/Cynthia's relationship to each character. The ending was predictable and the premise got a bit far fetched but I still enjoy Cook's style.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this novel, part of the Carol Golden series, the author weaves his knowledge of genealogical research techniques into a story that takes his heroine to interesting places in the USA and the U.K. He and his wife have visited these places on their worldwide travels, so the sites are described in accurate and lively detail.

There’s a little too much genealogy information for the average reader, however. It tends to slow down the story momentum a bit. Also, the inclusion of 3 generations of characters in the family who are all named Jason makes the reader work too hard to keep them straight. The book heats up near the end with a very exciting and suspenseful conclusion.

[Rosalie M. Savano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Not knowing what to expect made it a fun read with interesting characters.

[darlene smith]

Good read

I really enjoyed this book I read the first one
That made me want to read this one to see what hapend

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book, which I got for little or nothing on Kindle, is apparently a sequel to an earlier tale in which the heroine suffered from amnesia, with several people who should have been trustworthy trying to kill her. Now very wealthy, she becomes concerned when her grandmother is a victim of the telephone scam where the old lady's "grandson" calls requesting money to help him out of a jam. The investigation of the scam take the protagonist from North Carolina to California, where she meets more relatives and learns that two young cousins have been murdered. It's a very convoluted plot, and the heroine takes far too long to figure out the real culprit. Not a very polished novel, but it did hold my interest until the end.

[Glenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as book 1 in the Carol Golden series. It was so plodding. I barely finished it.

[Alex]

False

[Elaine]

This one comes after "Forget to Remember"