Run into Trouble - Softcover

Cook, Alan

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1438923503 ISBN 13: 9781438923505

Publisher: AuthorHouse, 2009

Synopsis

Awards:

--Silver Quill Award from the American Authors Association
--Named Best Pacific West book by Reader Views

Drake and Melody are teamed up to run a race along the California Coast for a prize of a million dollars-in 1969 when a million is worth something. Neither knows the other is in the race before it starts. They once did undercover work together in England, but this information is supposed to be top secret. The race sponsor, Giganticorp, is a large and very profitable government military contractor, whose ambitious CEO, Casey Messinger, is connected to the powerful in Washington, which must give him access to classified information.

The nine other pairs of runners entered in the race are world-class marathoners, including a winner of the Boston Marathon. If this competition isn't enough, somebody tries to knock Drake out of the race before it begins. But Drake and Melody also receive threats calculated to keep them from dropping out. The stakes increase when startling events produce fatalities and impact the race, leading them to ask whether the Cold War with the USSR is about to heat up. If so, is it safer to line up with the hawks or the doves-because a wrong choice may mean giving up valuable freedom for questionable security.

With their previous training and their own contacts in Washington, Drake and Melody are in the best position to figure out whether various events are connected and who is behind them. Their other challenge is to keep themselves in good physical condition to be able to compete for the prize money while running through the spectacular scenery of the California coast from the Mexican border to San Francisco.

About this title

From the Author:

My novels don't usually star crime fighting professionals. The protagonist is everyman--or woman--thrown into a situation new to him or her, involving suspense, and often murder. They must rely on their wits and newfound courage to put their shattered worlds back together. The partial exception to the amateur theme is Run into Trouble, in which Drake and Melody are former undercover operatives.
I use both male and female protagonists, and in some cases, a combination. Following is a one-liner about the sex of the protagonist(s) and theme in each of my mysteries:
 
Dangerous Wind--(Carol Golden)--female--trying to stop world chaos.
Relatively Dead--(Carol Golden)--female--finding relatives who are dying and possibly scamming.
Forget to Remember--(Carol Golden)--female--amnesia mystery. Facing the world as a non-person.
Run into Trouble--couple--the Cold War turns hot on the California coast.
Honeymoon for Three--(Gary Blanchard)--couple--honeymooners with a stalker.
The Hayloft--(Gary Blanchard)--male--murder in high school in the fifties.
Hotline to Murder--couple--murder on a crisis hotline.
Aces and Knaves--male--murder in San Francisco.
Catch a Falling Knife--(Lillian Morgan)--female--sexual harassment and murder in college.
Thirteen Diamonds--(Lillian Morgan)--female--murder in a retirement community.


Series? Carol Golden is the protagonist in Dangerous Wind, Forget to Remember and Relatively Dead. Gary Blanchard is featured as the protagonist in The Hayloft, and ten years later, in Honeymoon for Three. Lillian Morgan, a retired math professor, is the protagonist in Thirteen Diamonds and Catch a Falling Knife.

About the Author:

Alan Cook's mystery novels have received a number of awards. Honeymoon for Three and Run into Trouble have won Silver Quill awards from the American Author's Association. Honeymoon for Three was named best Mountain West book by Reader Views while Run into Trouble was named best Pacific West book by Reader Views. Alan's nonfiction Walking the World: Memories and Adventures  was named One of the Top Ten Walking Memoirs and Tales of Long Walks by walking.about.com.

About this edition

• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1438923503
• ISBN 13: 9781438923505
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 256