Fox Creek by William Kent Krueger

FOX CREEK by William Kent Krueger (This Tender Land and Lightning Strike) is the latest Cork O’Connor mystery, once again set near the Boundary Waters area of northern Minnesota. Dolores Morriseau is concerned about her missing husband, Louis, and asks for help from the tribal elder Henry Meloux. Others (including government officials, some ruthless criminals and a tracker named LeLoup) are looking for Morriseau, too. Henry senses the danger and guides Dolores and Cork’s wife, Rainy, into the wilderness to avoid capture. Soon, Morriseau’s brother, Anton, and Cork team-up to find the hunters and help protect Henry and the women. Meanwhile, Cork’s son Stephen meets other Morriseau family members and discovers issues related to tribal rights and environmentalism. Since this mystery is number nineteen in the series, it builds on previous events and character development, but FOX CREEK also works well as a stand-alone. The story is complex and the suspense is palatable as Edgar award-winner Krueger alternates perspective amongst major characters, often slightly shifting in time so as fill in details. On a recent road trip we listed to Recorded Books’ audiobook version narrated by David Chandler – it was excellent. FOX CREEK received starred reviews from Library Journal and Publishers Weekly.