Wren, M.K. Wake Up, Darlin’ Corey. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1984.
Reason read: Wake Up, Darlin’ Corey was published in January of 1984.
Wake Up, Darlin’ Corey is a super fast read and the premise is pretty simple as well. Conan Flagg is primarily a bookseller with a private investigator hobby on the side. This time he is investigating the death of his friend, Corey Benbow. Young, vivacious Corey was found dead after a suspicious car accident. Toxicology reports reveal a lack of alcohol or drugs in her system and there were no skid marks at the scene…so was it suicide? Conan doesn’t think so. To make matters worse, the police seem to be wrapping up the case too quickly (no official autopsy?). Considering the number of Corey’s inlaws who stood to gain something from her disappearing permanently, Conan sets out to discredit alibis and sort out motives. The only negative about this story was the sheer number of characters for such a short book.
Note: Since I didn’t find a lot to quote, I wanted to draw attention to the title of the book. Wren quotes an old folk song of the same name (“Darlin’ Cory”). Since the lyrics were so in line with the story I just had to check it out and I’m so glad I did! This is a really cool song. Lots of great artists have covered it over the years: Bruce Hornsby, Bill Monroe, Pete Seeger and Bob Weir, to name a few.
Author fact: Wren also wrote King of the Mountain which I will be reading in February 2037 for the Challenge.
Book trivia: Wake Up Darlin’ Corey is short, only 180 pages long.
Nancy said: “The mystery shelves are packed with tales set in Cascadia” (p 153) and mentions Wake Up, Darlin’ Corey as one such mystery.
BookLust Twist: from More Book Lust in the chapter called “Living High in Cascadia” (p 148).
~*LunaSea*~ 