Author: Pat Cook

Publisher: Outskirts Press

ISBN: 1-4327-0236-X

Faux Elvis, the newest addition to the alternate history Elvis genera that I find myself a fan of, a “young reporter fresh from journalism school” stumbles across the story of a lifetime. Rather than dying in such an undignified manner back in the late 70’s, Elvis is indeed alive and well and living out his years in a quite little community under an assumed name.

Pat Cook’s story unfolds from the eyes of Kasey Costello, a determined young woman who is trying to prove to herself as much as to everyone around her that she has the instincts and knowledge to be a great reporter; she just needs that first big break. As with most things of this nature, it’s an ironic string of events that leads her to her “story of a lifetime.

I found the preamble to be an interesting story in itself, but to me the meat of it was when Jesse Garon started telling his story. To me, that’s where Cook found her passion - the “what if” that each and every Elvis fan has played in some shape or another since his death. It makes you wonder if some of the hypothetical thoughts he had were ones that did pass through his mind during that time. Elvis was such a lost soul after the passing of his mother that it’s nice to think that in another place, another time, he could have found his peace. In Cook’s book we do get to see how that option might have played out for the good and the bad, depending on your view of the situation.