Kindle-fied Review 7: CADILLAC'S COMIN', by Mike Dennis

CADILLAC'S COMIN' is Mike Dennis’ love letter to rock’n’roll, that’s what it is.
Memphis, 1958, and rockabilly piano stomper Ike Thacker is on the verge of the big-time. A sort of cross between Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Gene Vincent, Ike has just released his hit single “Cadillac’s Comin’” and the world is opening up to him. Until a horrible and tragic accident derails everything…
The story picks up in the eighties, with a wanna-be musician whose life spirals out of control when he gets involved with the wrong people and finds himself immersed in the world of the Dixie Mafia. Ike Thacker, now an old, largely forgotten has-been, appears in a peripheral role.
I found the second part of CADILLAC’S COMIN' just a little bit weaker than the first, even though the actual crime story happens there—I just got so wrapped up in Ike’s career, and the wonderful atmosphere Dennis created. It felt very historically accurate, with appearances by real-life characters like Sam Phillips and Gene Vincent. Still, Dennis does a great job of weaving the two stories together so that by the end everything comes together nicely. I’d recommend this one, especially if, like me, you have a soft spot for roots music.