Dashboard Elvis is Dead

David F. Ross

From Shelf: My Ever-Growing Orenda Books Collection

A failed writer connects the murder of an American journalist, a drowned 80s musician and a Scottish politician's resignation, in a heart-wrenching novel about ordinary people living in extraordinary times.

A failed writer connects the murder of an American journalist, a drowned 80s musician and a Scottish politician's resignation, in a heart-wrenching novel about ordinary people living in extraordinary times. 'A dazzling, time-hopping patchwork of pop and politics, sewn together with wit and compassion' Kirstin Innes 'This amiable and ambitious transatlantic extravaganza is a busy social tapestry pegged to real-life events in Scotland and the US ... Ross's affection for his characters shines through. There's so much going on here that value for money is pretty much all but guaranteed' Daily Mail 'A mesmerising road trip through the America of Kerouac, Warhol and Reagan. Dashboard Elvis may be dead, but this book is full of vibrant, authentic, colourful life' Stuart Cosgrove **David F. Ross was shortlisted for Scottish Fiction Book of the Year in the Scottish Book Awards** ------------------------------------------------- Renowned photo-journalist Jude Montgomery arrives in Glasgow in 2014, in the wake of the failed Scottish independence referendum, and it's clear that she's searching for someone. Is it Anna Mason, who will go on to lead the country as First Minister? Jamie Hewitt, guitarist from eighties one-hit wonders The Hyptones? Or is it Rabbit - Jude's estranged foster sister, now a world-famous artist? Three apparently unconnected people, who share a devastating secret, whose lives were forever changed by one traumatic night in Phoenix, forty years earlier. Taking us back to a school shooting in her Texas hometown, and a 1980s road trip across the American West - to San Francisco and on to New York - Jude's search ends in Glasgow, and a final, shocking event that only one person can fully explain... An extraordinary, gritty and tender novel about fate and destiny, regret and absolution - and a road trip that changes everything... ------------------------------------------------- 'Few do raw, authentic, almost palpably believable characters better than David F. Ross' The Times 'A masterclass in transatlantic intertwining storytelling from one of Scotland's finest writers' Derek Steel, Razur Cuts 'A rich and rewarding novel that takes in the culture and social history of both Scotland and the USA, beautifully weaving stories together over decades ... devastating' Alistair Braidwood, Scots Whay Hae 'An ambitious, sweeping novel ... Taut and gritty, Dashboard Elvis Is Dead interrogates truth, and pulses with life' Donna McLean 'An irresistible story of chances taken and missed, and of last-ditch hopes of redemption ... the writing is exquisite' Katie Allen 'Gripping, gritty and gloriously written, David F. Ross captures characters, places and moods like few other writers ... a triumph of a novel' Martin Geissler 'A rawness and sensitivity that is so visceral ... another extraordinary novel from David F. Ross' Anne Cater 'Simultaneously intimate and epic ... my head and heart are spinning' From Belgium with Booklove