Thunder Bay

From Publishers WeeklyStarred Review. The deftly plotted seventh Cork O'Connor novel represents a return to top form for Anthony-winner Krueger after 2006's disappointing Copper River. Henry Meloux asks Cork, who's now working as a part-time PI in his hometown of Aurora, Minn., to find a son the aged Ojibwe healer has never met from a relationship with a white woman, Maria Lima, seventy-three winters earlier. Armed with just two clues, a location in Canada and a gold watch with a picture of Maria, O'Connor soon finds the son, a retired mining entrepreneur, but arranging a meeting between son and father proves to be a challenging and surprisingly dangerous task. The book's middle third focuses on Meloux's past: how he became a guide for white men looking for gold in Canada, how he met and fell in love with one of their daughters, and the events that separated the young lovers. Despite the preponderance of back story, the action builds to a violent and satisfying denouement. (July) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From BooklistIn the latest Cork O'Connor mystery, Henry Meloux, Cork's friend and spiritual advisor, asks the Minnesota sheriff turned private investigator to find Henry's long-lost son. Cork tracks the man to the Canadian town of Thunder Bay, Ontario, where it turns out he's a prominent (if reclusive) industrialist. When someone tries to kill Henry, and the evidence points to his son, Cork digs deep into his old friend's personal history, where he uncovers truths that might be best left buried. As usual, it's Krueger's insightful portrayal of small-town life and his deepening exploration of Cork's character that propel the story. David PittCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved