Book Review – Apostle’s Cove by William Kent Krueger

I’ve been reading Krueger’s Corcoran O’Connor series of books for the better part of twenty years. Most of them are great, a few of them not so much, but what remains the same is Krueger’s ability to draw me in so I can’t put the book down until I finish it. This newest novel is no different.

This novel follows Cork O’Connor as his son, Stephen, currently trying to get a law degree, informs him that a case he worked on a couple decades earlier sent the wrong man to prison. The first half of the novel shows how Cork handled the case in the past – a murder case where the husband confesses to a crime he does not remember committing. Many details aren’t fully investigated even if Cork did all he could to make sure that the husband was the guilty party. Fast forward to present day and Cork and his daughter, Jenny, go on a new investigation of the old cold case to find out who the real murderer is.

What Krueger has build within the context of these novels is something truly special. A small northern Minnesota town populated by characters that fade in and out of these novels so that while they may not make appearances in every novel, the reader certainly gets to know them. Native American folklore weaves it’s way into every story. Cork’s family history always seems to affect the case in some meaningful way, usually so he can learn some lesson about anger or patience. And his friendship with Henry Meloux, a hundred year old Indian, is as reliable as the sun coming up in the east.

This particular novel is unputdownable. A quick read. It deals with the generational family saga of a family whose matriarch is in the middle of a mess of her own making. Characters hold on to secrets because they will either incriminate them in some way or they simply cannot tell them to another person – like a Catholic priest. As with any religion, there is always evil people to counteract the good ones. And in many ways, it’s not always a solid line. Cork has to sift through all of this to get to the truth and on Halloween, no less. His grandson is also sensing a wendigo, a Native American legend of evil origin. The autumn setting is great for the story he is telling in this novel about people hiding who they really are.

I’ve said this after the last few of Krueger’s novels, but I’ll say it again here. Eventually, Krueger is going to have to deal with Henry Meloux can’t live forever. His death will be unbelievably sad and I hope when it finally arrives that Cork isn’t stuck having to investigate it as a murder. Until then, I’m going to enjoy these novels while they last. The offer great mysteries in a familiar setting – Northern Minnesota.

4 out of 5 stars.