cover image Return to Sender: The Secret Son of Elvis Presley: A Novel

Return to Sender: The Secret Son of Elvis Presley: A Novel

Les Fox. West Highland Publishing Company, $21.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-9646986-0-4

Readers of this debut thriller, which neither rocks nor rolls, may be muttering the title in a way not intended by the authors after concluding its adventures of a secret son of Elvis. Jamie Randolph, 18, is a straight-A student and wrestling champion living an ordinary suburban life in Tenafly, N.J., when a New York bank informs him that he has inherited $4 million. Jamie's quest to find the source of the cash takes him to Tennessee, where he talks with the widow of Elvis's old lawyer, who was murdered shortly after setting up the anonymous trust. The trail then turns to Florida, where the young man hooks up romantically with the daughter of a well-known National Enquirer reporter to pursue clues to a strange conclusion that involves a futuristic medical plot that will convince few. The narrative remains lifeless throughout, a surprise given the lurid nature of the subject matter, while the authors' seemingly bottomless supply of Elvis trivia is used largely for window dressing. Ultimately, the Foxes turn what could have been an over-the-top trip through Elvis World into a dull and reverential ride suitable for only the most fanatical followers of the King. (Jan.)