I wanted to love this book and sadly I did not. It takes the histories of Marilyn Monroe, JFK, and Elvis and creates a sort of parallel universe if that's the right term. Just didn't work for me.

Termed as an alt-history noir detective novel, Jimmy Dean's Last Dance is alternate imagining of history involving Marilyn Monroe's death and the assassination plot of President John F. Kennedy. A lot of famous names make an appearance in completely different avatars. Jimmy Dean is still very much alive in the 1960s although still struggling as an actor while Elvis Presley is a long distance trucker and both get sucked into government conspiracies while trying their hand at sleuthing to find out if Marilyn death was really a suicide or murder.

The narration was the best part and the six different narrators-Johnny Heller, Neil Hellegers, Bill Lord, Joya Colucci Lord, Jo Anna Perrin and Anneliese Rennie- did an excellent job of bringing both the narrative and characters to life with their dramatic performances. It felt like I was listening to a radio drama rather than a normal audiobook.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publishers AudionMedia/Kelly Rinne/Stopwatch and the author A. K. Alliss for providing both the ARC/ALC of the title although I ended up listening to only the audiobook.

Magic Carpet Ride of Reimaginings!

If you love Quentin Tarantino movies you are bound to love this book! Author AK Alliss takes the reader on a magic carpet ride of reimaginings surrounding some of the historic events and famous figures of the 1950s and1960s to create a fantasy filled and fictional—highly fictional—treat. Jimmy Dean, who in real life would have been dead at this period in time, investigates the death of his friend Marilyn Monroe. Not believing that she died by suicide, Dean enlists the help of his former business partner and Mississippi truck driver, Elvis Presley to help solve the mystery which stretches as far as the highest office in the land. Along the way they contend with obstacles like the secret service and a drug cartel. These plot twists and the pairing of Dean and Presley, along with some violence and a whole lot of action, give this alternate reality noir a Tarantino vibe. For me, the layout read almost like a diary. It starts with a very dramatic and action-packed scene that I adored! But the opener is only one example of the author’s masterful hand at creating a fast paced edge-of-your-seat fictional ride to reader heaven! So, abandon all of what you think you know about James, Dean, Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe and the Kennedys and their stint in the White House and hop aboard the AK Alliss carpet—then, fasten your seatbelt—it’s going to be a delightful ride!

What if Marilyn, Jimmy Dean and Elvis all had been sharing a friendship in an alternate universe. It sure is a nice daydream, and lends itself to this very interesting book, totally in an alternate universe.
READ IT!!
It's really cool, and what if it happened?? I mean there are, all of a sudden alternate facts, right???
It's completely fun to read!!

Jimmy Dean, bit part actor, befriends famed actress Marilyn Monroe. When Marilyn is found dead in her LA home, the ruling is suicide, but Jimmy thinks otherwise. As he starts digging, he comes up against those who wish to stop him from uncovering the truth. Realising that he's in over his head, Jimmy calls former business partner, Mississippi truck driver, Elvis Presley. As Jimmy and Elvis begin to search deeper, they uncover a potential link between Marilyn's death and the highest office in the land.

Jimmy Dean's Last Dance is an alt-history Noir Detective novel in the tradition of The Big Sleep, Chinatown and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Reads like a Quentin Tarantino film. I really enjoyed this story. Will recommend to others.

I don't usually read books of this type, but the title intrigued me, and being of an age, and being a great fan of Jimmy Dean....;. But Jimmy Dean is not all you get - there is Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, Jacki Kennedy and the President - spun into a very entertaining and fun (sometimes violent) on the wild side of doggy history.
Love it and and I'm glad I read it. Thanks you NetGalley and the publishers for the DRC

A clever and entertaining rethinking of what might have been. I loved the effort put into making known characters as credible as possible and enjoyed the relationships between them.

4.5 rounded up
Loved this portrayal of characters. Elvis and Jimmy Dean are great together. Read in a day, could6put it down. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

This is a hilarious romp of a historical murder mystery! I need more of Jimmy Dean and Elvis Presley the truck driver! This was so cozy and such a great escape.

I was given an early book to review. From#NetGalley Opinions are my own. ,I went into this knowing it was alternative history. However, I found there was too much you just had to accept that I was unable to do. Jimmy Dean and Elvis Presley working together. Please. I tried several times to get into the book. Each time worse than the last. That said, I didn’t need to read any further. Book was not for me nor will I recommend

3.5 stars

This fictional story is a work of alternative history set in 1962 when (real life) Hollywood actor Jimmy Dean was already deceased. The author A.K. Alliss notes that the novel contains many splits from the real world timeline in the areas of music, movies, people, and events 'to highlight the spirit of the early sixties and the celebrity and political culture of the time.' So readers who like to reconcile historical fiction with real life are out of luck. 🙂

*****

As the story opens Jimmy Dean and his pal Elvis Presley are in Mexico, having been sent by a Vegas gangster called Dominic Frazini to bring back a shipment of money and weed. Things go badly wrong and the partners decide to go home, lie low, and try to keep off Frazini's radar.

Skip ahead five years and Elvis is a truck driver in Mississippi, and Jimmy is a small-time actor in Hollywood. Jimmy is friends with Marilyn Monroe, a troubled actress whose private life has been the subject of catty gossip for years.

Over drinks one evening, an anxious Marilyn tells Jimmy the studio is trying to fire her....but she won't say why. The next morning Marilyn is found dead in her house, and the authorities announce that she killed herself. Jimmy is skeptical about the alleged suicide and decides to investigate. He finds Marilyn's diary, but is soon mugged and beaten by thugs who take the journal, and the message is clear: 'Stop diggin' kid, or you'll end up dead.'

Jimmy knows he needs help and calls his friend Elvis in Mississippi, saying he's in trouble and it's worse than Mexico. Elvis immediately leaves for Los Angeles, and Jimmy and Elvis's adventures begin.

Jimmy is chased by a Secret Service agent sent by President Jack Kennedy, with whom Marilyn was having an affair; and Elvis is abducted en route to L.A. and brought to Dominic Frazini, who says Elvis owes him for Mexico, and he has to kill Jimmy. Elvis can't help but think, 'Why now?'

As Jim and Elvis look into Marilyn's death they're repeatedly followed and attacked and even find a Hollywood bigwig murdered in his home. Finally, a man named 'Hank' - purportedly with the CIA - grabs Jim and Elvis, and says they'll be framed for murder if they don't assassinate President Kennedy.

There's a lot going on in the book with blackmail, murder, and suggestions of a huge conspiracy involving government agencies and the mob. There are also appearances by Dean Martin, George Cukor, Harvey Weinstein, a man called Lee, a woman named Priscilla, Fidel Castro, and more. Jim and Elvis know they're in WAY over their heads, and will need to be clever and lucky to survive.

I enjoyed the story, which is action-packed, with break-ins, kidnappings, brawling, wrestling, martial arts, shooting guns, and more. There's also plenty of humor, and a little bit of nooky as well.

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Johnny Heller, Neil Hellegers, Bill Lord, Joya Colucci Lord, Jo Anna Perrin, and Anneliese Rennie, all of whom do a good job.

Thanks to Netgalley, A.K. Alliss, and Spectrum Publishing for a copy of the book.

You must go into this book ignoring known history of Marilyn Monroe, Jimmy Dean, Elvis and the Kennedy. This is more of a fan fiction mystery over the death of Marilyn and Jimmy Dean searching for answers… with the help of his truck driving buddy from Mississippi - Elvis. They get in way over their head.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC/Audio and Spectrum Publishing,

Thank you NetGalley and Audion Media, Stopwatch for accepting my request to read and review Jimmy Deans Last Dance, Hollywood Mysteries, Book 1.

Published: 01/26/2023

Alternate History

This would be a miss for me. I found the alternate history trope too much. The story while short length wise, was long on my nerves. Elvis, Marilyn and the gang need to rest peacefully in my humble opinion. There is just nothing more for me to say.

I believe there is a market for this style of writing, and the characters. If my father were living, I would have purchased this for him, and pointed out it's going to be a series.

I found it fascinating how easily you could get sucked into the world of characters you already knew, like Jimmy Dean and Elvis Presley. Going back in time was immensely enjoyable.

Jimmy is not sure that Marilyn committed suicide because she is dead. He began by looking at what he believed to be her diary as he didn't believe it to be a suicide. The narrative took a direction I certainly was not expecting, which was excellent.

this was a great start to the Hollywood Mysteries series, it had what I wanted from this type of book. AK Alliss has a great writing style and I enjoyed the use of Old Hollywood for this. It had a great concept for one of these Hollywood Detective novels. I enjoyed the use of Jimmy Dean and Elvis Presley and thought it was really well written. I'm excited for more in this series and the author.

"Elvis was going to be pissed, but Jimmy knows that their only chance out of this is to get outside of the police station walls. The Captain's man returns with a glass of water, and Jimmy sees that it's yellowed. Things float lazily in the water, magnified by the curve of the glass. He coughs as the guard holds it up to his lips and turns his head."

This book came highly recommended, and I was told I would like it a lot, not only were they right but I will take it up a notch and say I loved everything about it, from AK Alliss’ wonderful writing style to the interesting characters and storylines he created to the perfectly cast team of narrators who brought it all to life from the pages to my ears. This is my first alt-history Noir Detective Novel and I enjoyed AK Alliss imaginative rewrite of history, not only of his use of well known historical icons bit the way he manipulates and changes the way some newsworthy and historical events occurred. Jimmy Dean, a small-time actor whose career never took off, he friended Marilyn Monroe and when she died, he refused to believe it was a suicide and he looks into it further, starting with what he thinks is her diary