Northwest Angle

I have enjoyed every book Ive read in this series. They have all moved me in some fashion. I imagine the later books in the series will continue to develop the characters. So far every book has shown development in some of the protagonists and developed some very worthwhile antagonists. They have also shown some wonderful plot twists. I look forward to reading the later volumes. Though every book has moved me, this book did so most strongly. Highly recommended for mystery fiction fans, Amerindian mystery fans, and just about anyone who enjoys a great read!

I’m a Cork O’Connor fan, and have kept up with him throughout his series, but I was rather disappointed in this one. Cork has traditionally operated more or less by himself, but in this outing he is accompanied by his now-grown family plus several others as they all vacation on the Lake of the Woods in northern Minnesota. Though the writer wrangles them well, the effect is that of an unwieldy mob. The story thus unfolds in many directions. There is an abandoned infant to whom one of his daughters immediately bonds, a near-psychotic young Indian in a cigarette boat, a batch of hostile survivalist “Christians” who occupy a remote island, and a helpful, if not quite straightforward, resort owner who provides water transport. One sometimes wishes for a clipboard. There is a fair amount of bloodshed before everything resolves, but we finally return safely to Square One. It is clear, however, that Cork will soon be completely on his own. How Mr. Kruger will manage this remains to be seen.

I continue to be caught up in Kruegers Cork OConner series. The area referred to as the northwest angle prompted me to study the geography of Northern Minnesota so I could understand and visualize the curious northward projection of the state which pokes into Canada. When Cork and his family encountered lots of trouble – a terrible storm and a clan of evil fundamentalist survivalists they were pretty much on their own to in this isolated area along the international border. I look forward to the next book in the series. David B. Crawley, M.D. Author of ”

Steep Turn: A Physician’s Journey From Clinic to Cockpit

.”

History is replete with examples of good athletes who ate themselves out of a job. This novel seems to parallel that.

The plot and twists are well crafted. Cork takes his family on a lake vacation and stumbles into a deadly conflict between locals. That works except its larded with long and ponderous passages of the inner thoughts of the characters agonizing about their pasts. The author seems to adhere to the practice of never using one word when a hundred will do. You find yourself treading water, waiting for the action to resume. Also, every family encounters tragedies and bumps in the road. But, the litany of kidnapping and killing in this family is a bit much.

There are some details that are a bit nettlesome. A boat speeds by in the dark and its observed that the unique sound of a cigarette boat is unmistakable. In this case, its an outboard and an outboard motor sounds like an outboard, regardless of what type of craft its hanging on. The storm wipes out the forested islands and Cork uses one of the downed trees as a swim float to navigate between islands. Hundreds of pounds of timber and resistance from all the branches doesnt facilitate speed and distance by a long shot and hed probably still be out there swimming to this day. There are enough more examples to be an irritant.

The bottom line is that the basic story is a decent one. But, it often gets bogged down along the way.

I am a definite fan of Krueger. I find the lead character and his family to be “growth” people. I enjoy books where the people evolve and grow over the course of the series and this family has certainly done so. I’d highly recommend starting with Book 1 and treating yourself to a new read whenever you have the time to savor the plot development and the very human qualities of those who populate the novels. I always wait a while before purchasing my next one because I like to look forward to a good read.

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