Red Knife: A Cork O'Connor Mystery
by William Kent Krueger
Published by Atria Books
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Reviewed by Andrea Sisco
I am a mystery junkie. And I think my list of favorite male mystery writers is topnotch: James Lee Burke, Michael Connelly, Robert Crais, and Lee Child. But included in that list is Minnesota’s own William Kent Krueger. His Cork O’Connor novels are Minnesota at her best and worst. Krueger’s knowledge of the Ojibwe is deep and respectful and his beliefs about violence are thoughtful, if not naïve in some respects. But it is the story, the characters that reach out and grab you and compel you to keep turning the pages.
“It was not yet dawn and already he could smell death.” The reader is thrust immediately into the story with Krueger’s first sentence–and it’s a wild ride to the conclusion.
Kristi Reinhardt died as a result of a meth overdose. Her father, Buck Reinhardt, wants revenge. He believes Lonnie Thunder is responsible for his daughter’s death, and he’s going after him and the Red Boyz, a gang of Ojibwe, whom he believes shares in the responsibility.
The head of the Red Boyz, Alexander Kingbird, requests that former sheriff, Cork O’Connor (who is part Ojibwe), arrange a meeting with Buck. He wants to give Buck justice. Before the meeting can be set up, Alexander and his wife, Rayette, are brutally murdered at their home. Their young daughter is left alive and found crying in her crib. But a message was left at the scene and the murder itself suggests the Kingbirds were executed.
When another murder occurs, tensions heat up further between the Native Americans and the white folks living in Tamarack County. It’s up to Cork to mitigate the building tension and avoid the bloodshed that is bound to occur. The toll on Cork changes him forever.
Violence, secrets, alienation, fear, hopelessness, honor, redemption and justice are all a part of Red Knife. It’s a thoughtful and compelling novel. You won’t be able to close the covers of Red Knife without examining your own beliefs about violence. Red Knife may be Krueger’s best yet.
Armchair Interviews says: A must read.
Author’s Web site: http://www.WilliamKentKrueger.com