In this 21st book in the 'Cork O'Connor' series, Cork re-investigates his first murder case as sheriff, which may have sent the wrong man to prison. The novel works for long-time fans of the series as well as newbies.
*****
As Halloween approaches, Corcoran (Cork) O'Connor, whose ancestry is Irish and Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) Indian, is approaching his 60th birthday.
Looking back, Cork has had an eventful life. Cork grew up in Aurora, Minnesota and was a Chicago cop before returning to Aurora to become sheriff of Tamarack County, following in his father's footsteps.
After being sheriff for many years, Cork became a private investigator and ran a hamburger shack called 'Sam's Place', inherited from Sam Winter Moon.
Sam and 'medicine man' Henry Meloux - whom Cork still goes to for advice - were foster fathers to Cork after his dad was killed in the line of duty.
In his personal life, Cork and his wife Jo raised their children - Jenny, Anne, and Stephen - in Aurora, experiencing joy and tragedy along the way.
Cork's son Stephen is now in his second year of law school, and is an intern for the 'Great Northern Innocence Project', whose aim is to overturn wrongful convictions. One afternoon, as Cork is closing up Sam's Place, Stephen calls to say, "Dad, I'm pretty sure you sent an innocent man to prison."
The innocence project believes Axel Boshey, an Anishinaabe Indian, was wrongly convicted for killing his wife Chastity. Chastity's murder was the first major crime Cork investigated as sheriff, and he was skeptical about Axel's guilt at the time. But Axel confessed, and Cork's hands were tied.
*****
From here the story goes back 25 years.
One morning, Cork has just arrived at his office when a 911 call comes in. Cork's dispatcher, Bos Swain, tells him, "Timber Lodge and Resort. One victim, multiple stab wounds. The caller was female, hysterical, didn't give her name."
Cork speeds to the lodge, which is closed for the season, and hurries to the only occupied residence, the caretaker's cabin. When Cork trots in, he sees Chastity Boshey, lying in a small lake of blood.
Chastity's mother, Aphrodite McGill, is sitting on the floor, in shock - and Chastity's toddler Moonbeam is crying in her crib.
After Cork's deputies, the paramedics, and the coroner arrive at the crime scene, Cork goes to find Chastity's husband, an Anishinaabe Indian called Axel Boshey. It turns out Axel took his son, called Sundown, to his mother's house.....
......and then Axel hid out on the rez, where people don't give information to law enforcement officials.
It takes a few days, but Cork finally catches up with Axel, and brings him to the station to be questioned. In an interesting twist, Cork's wife Jo - an attorney - is Axel's lawyer, and she doesn't let him say much.
Axel claims, however, that he was blackout drunk on the night Chastity was killed, and doesn't remember anything.
As Cork continues to investigate the homicide, he learns that Chastity's mother Aphrodite, the town beauty, has regular wild parties/orgies at her home.
Aphrodite is also reputed to have slept with half the population of Aurora, both male and female. Moreover, Chastity and Aphrodite fought like cat and dogs; Chastity claimed her mother stole her high school boyfriends; and Chastity wouldn't allow her children to go to Aphrodite's house.
The investigation is also clouded by one of Cork's deputies, Rocky Martinelli, a racist Indian-hater who attacks Axel in his cell, and insists that Axel confess to specific details of the homicide.
Unfortunately for Axel, there's evidence pointing to him as the perp: Axel and Chastity had frequent vicious arguments; Chastity dallied with other men; Axel wanted to divorce Chastity, but she threatened to take the children; Axel has not provided an alibi; and Axel's bloody clothes were found hidden in a woodshed near the crime scene.
When Cork goes on to question Axel's relatives and friends, Axel suddenly admits to killing Chastity. Cork remains unconvinced by Axel's confession, but the case is closed, and Axel is sent to Stillwater Prison for life.
*****
Returning to the present, Cork blames himself for not pushing harder when he investigated Chastity's death.
So Cork visits Axel in Stillwater Prison, where Axel admits he made a false confession, though he still has no memory of the night of the murder. Still, Axel doesn't resent his imprisonment, and feels he's found a mission in jail. Axel leads the White Bison Wellbriety program, which helps other prisoners get their lives on track.
The upshot is that Cork decides to re-investigate Chastity's homicide on an unofficial basis, with help from his daughter Jenny. Jenny is now married, with a seven-year-old adopted son Waaboo, who has mixed blood heritage. Jenny is a successful novelist, and hopes to use the 'Chastity Boshey' case as fodder for her third book.
Soon after Cork begins re-interviewing witnesses, he's mugged, beat up, and warned off. This makes it clear SOMEONE doesn't want Cork opening the old case.
There's a 'mystical' element to Cork's new investigation as well. Since it's Halloween season, homes are decorated with coffins and cobwebs, and children are drawing jack-o'-lanterns and ghoulies in school.
When Waaboo proudly shows his picture to Cork and Jenny, it's a Windigo (evil spirit from Indian folklore). Waaboo, who 'senses things', announces the Windigo is here, and bad things are going to happen.
It appears Waaboo is right, because the new search for Chastity's killer leads to murder and mayhem.
Windigo
After Cork and Jenny sneak into Aphrodite's erotic Halloween party, there's a great deal of action, and all is revealed in the end.
The theme of this novel is righting wrongs and exacting vengeance, and it's gratifying (to me) to see bad people get what they deserve.
Other Cork O'Connor books I've read had more adventures in the Minnesota boundary waters and various exciting escapades, and I missed that in this novel. Still, this is a satisfying thriller and a fine addition to the series.
Thanks to Netgalley, William Kent Krueger, and Atria Books for a copy of the manuscript.
Rating: 3.5 stars
No comments:
Post a Comment