Gorman’s ‘Marilyn Tapes’ on Kindle

Ed Gorman’s 1995 detective novel, The Marilyn Tapes, joins the growing list of Monroe-related books being reissued in E-book format. Available on Kindle for just $1.13.

But according to David Marshall (author of The DD Group and Life Among the Cannibals) it’s not exactly Shakespeare…

“The premise is old. Every hack writer, (and some good ones), has already jumped on the same wagon as Mr. Gorman. It seems that Marilyn’s bedroom really was bugged and everything that went on in there was captured, (gasp), on tape! So sets off this Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World chase with J Edgar Hoover, Bobby Kennedy, Jack Kennedy, Louella Parsons, Johnny Rosselli, and Clyde Tolson grappling for the tapes with assorted maniacal lesbians and tabloid columnists along for the ride…

So if the book is such rot and the author gets so much wrong, why on earth did I keep reading it? Because, simply put, sometimes even crap can be addictive. Why we were all transfixed by the O.J. Simpson trial? Why do I love schlocky 1950s sci-fi? Why does anyone watch Fear Factor? Because, as much as we hate to admit it, sometimes there’s nothing like a big dollop of sleaze. And it doesn’t get much sleazier than ‘The Marilyn Tapes’.

If you really want to read a fictional account of Marilyn and the Kennedy Boys, find a copy of George Bernau’s ‘Candle in the Wind’, Michael Korda’s ‘The Immortals’ or Sam Stagg’s ‘MMII: The Return of Marilyn Monroe’. If you want hardboiled fiction about the convoluted plots and skullduggery of the Kennedy years, pick up a copy of James Elroy’s ‘American Tabloid’ and his follow up, ‘The Cold Six Thousand’. But, should you happen upon a copy of ‘The Marilyn Tapes’ do not, if you respect Marilyn’s memory or your very own self, read that first page. Because, believe me, if you read that first page, you’re going to find yourself on page 320, embarrassed, slightly ashamed, and feeling in need of a shower. Next you’ll be wondering not only why you read it but if there is a 12 step program for people who actually read such crap.

Or, even worse, admit that they did and enjoyed it.”


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