Cork O’ Conner loves the quiet beauty of Northern Shores of Minnesota.
Most of the time.
During a blizzard one cold December night, the wife of a prominent Judge disappears. All that is found is her abandoned car on a road she shouldn’t have been on and of course with the blizzard, no signs of a struggle… no signs of anything at all.
Cork O’ Conner is the ex- Sheriff of Tamarack County and he notices details of the disappearance that others miss. When a dog that is owned by a friend is brutally killed, Cork starts to see a disturbing pattern that brings up an old case where quite possibly the wrong man went to prison. A pattern so disturbing that its trail leads right to Cork’s own family.
With the cold winter continuing and no sign of letting up, Cork knows he only has so much time before someone else is going to pay for the sins of others.
This would be my first of William Kent Krueger’s books that involve his continuing protagonist, Cork O’ Conner. In fact, I have only read one other book by this author and that would be Ordinary Grace. (Excellent read).
Cork is an interesting character. His wife was killed (probably details of this in an earlier book), and he has three almost grown children. Even though this is the 13th mystery with Cork O’Conner, I did not feel like I needed the previous books to understand what was going on or who people are. Krueger does an excellent job of making you want to know these characters better but at the same time you can read his books as standalone and be just fine with that as well.
I enjoyed the story line and the mystery itself. As Cork travels through the pages I liked the comfort of the familiar areas he explored. I do plan to read more of this mystery series. Windigo Island is on my shelves right now just waiting to be read.
Cop bases mystery lovers will enjoy this book with its masculine flavor. Women to will enjoy this read due to the family aspect and a little light romance.
- Series: Cork O’Connor Mystery Series
- Paperback: 320 pages
- Publisher: Atria Books; Reprint edition (July 1, 2014)
Book Journey 
I love William Kent Krueger! And he makes me love Minnesota. But….I really think you need to buy ‘Iron Lake’ and start from the beginning of the series.
I really enjoyed this book. I love all of his books.
I haven’t gotten to read Windigo Island. ENJOY!!
Nice to see you are reading. HUGS.
I have read Ordinary Grace and it was indeed wonderful. I’ve read maybe the first 4 or 5 Cork O’Connor books. Another series that I keep meaning to get back to. It’s a good one.
I really liked OG but haven’t read any of the series books. Good to know they can stand alone.
I’ve never read this author at all but the book sounds interesting.
I have read ALL of William Kent Krueger’s books. FANTABULOUS! One hint, tho, you should read the books in order. Everything makes so much more sense!!