In this second novel in the 'Cork O'Connor mystery series' the former sheriff helps search for a country singer. The book works fine as a standalone, though knowledge of previous events is helpful.
*****
Corcoran (Cork) O'Connor, whose ancestry is Irish and Anishinaabe Indian, has been living separately from his wife Jo and their children since the couple had some troubles a couple of years ago. (You can read about it in book one, Iron Lake).
Cork is now living in the rear part of - and running - a hamburger shack, where his daughters work part time.
Cork was once the sheriff of Aurora, Minnesota, where he lives, and many people still value Cork's investigative skills.
Thus it's not a surprise when country singer/record producer Willie Raye approaches Cork for assistance.
Willie Raye's daughter Shiloh, who's also a country singer, has isolated herself in the Boundary Waters between Minnesota and Canada, and winter is approaching.
The Boundary Waters are a vast scenic wilderness navigated by canoe and hiking, and since Cork knows his way around the region, he might be able to locate Shiloh before the frigid weather sets in.
Shiloh, who's also part Anishinaabe Indian, has had a rough life. Shiloh' mother was killed 15 years ago, when Shiloh was six years old. Little Shiloh saw what happened, but had amnesia about the incident. Now, regression therapy has restored Shiloh's memory, and she's in isolation, seemingly writing about the murder.
An elderly Anishinaabe man, Wendell Two Knives, has been helping Shiloh. Wendell loaned Shiloh his isolated cabin in the Boundary Waters, and he's been bringing her food and batteries for her tape recorder. Wendell has now disappeared, and this means big trouble all around.
There seem to be many people looking for Shiloh, besides Willie Raye. These are:
• The person(s) who killed Shiloh's mother, who don't want Shiloh to identify them.
• FBI agents who want to arrest the murderer(s).
• Miscellaneous people whose motives are unclear.
As things turn out Cork goes into the Boundary Waters with Willie Raye; two FBI agents; and an ex-convict named Stormy Two Knives and his 10-year-old son Louis Two Knives. The FBI agents coerced Stormy and Louis to come along, because Louis knows the location of his uncle Wendell's cabin and how to get there.
Meanwhile, Shiloh realizes Wendell Two Knives isn't coming back to the cabin, and she decides to make her way back to 'civilization' by herself. Shiloh has access to a canoe and some supplies, but it's a rigorous and dangerous journey that takes days.
The book is largely an adventure story as Cork and his group make their way into the rugged Boundary Waters, to find Shiloh, as people try to kill them; and Shiloh attempts to make her way out of the rugged Boundary Waters, to get to town, as people try to kill her. As you can imagine, the body count in this book is very high.
Meanwhile, back in Aurora, Cork's wife Jo, a successful lawyer, also gets involved with the hullaballoo surrounding Shiloh when she discovers that not everything to do with Shiloh is as it seems.
All this leads to an exciting hair-raising finale, and maybe a slight warming of the relations between Cork and Jo. Some of the highlights of the book are the snippets of Anishinaabe culture and mythology, a mysterious wolf, and the descriptions of the panoramic (if dangerous) Boundary Waters.
I enjoyed the book, but I'll admit I got a bit confused by all the men chasing after each other and trying to kill each other, and all the people who claim to have a connection with Shiloh and her deceased mother. I felt like I needed a scorecard to keep them straight. Still, I'd recommend the book to mystery lovers.
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