Lola and Keno Barton seem to have the idyllic Marin County existence. Lola, a stay-at-home mom, has two healthy teenagers and an active social life. Keno is a San Francisco-based real estate executive with a thriving business and all the upward mobility that implies. But when Keno goes missing on a surf trip in remote Baja, everything starts to unravel. With the cloud of the 2008 Great Financial Crisis complicating the situation, the extended Barton family tries to pull it together long enough to solve the mystery of Keno's disappearance. Leading the charge is Clay, the oldest brother, who materializes out of decades of obscurity to offer assistance. Find out if the Bartons can overcome the challenges of infidelity, PTSD, addiction, and financial instability in this modern day whodunnit.
ONLY THE TRYING is the second book in a two-part series. The first is DONUTS ARE MEANT TO BE EATEN.
In this follow-up to DONUTS ARE MEANT TO BE EATEN, the author (Alex Cook) explores further the themes of ambition, romantic relationships, intimacy, and loss as his characters confront the issues that threaten to tear them apart. Readers will recognize the author's flamboyant and irreverent style which includes regular references to modern culture, history, and literature, often with a tongue-in-cheek bent.
