Copper River

Cork O’Connor lies in a cabin, recuperating from a bullet wound. He’s suspended from his duties as Sheriff of Aurora and he worries for his family, who he hasn’t seen since going on the run. Men have wanted Cork dead before, but none of them ever placed a half-million dollar bounty on his head. And even though Cork left town to keep a low profile, he’s not the kind of man who can stay still when people around him start turning up dead. Cork’s strong sense of justice drives him to fix the situation, even if his involvement is like waving a red flag in the faces of the men on his trail.

Cork O’Connor is a Timex. The man takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’. This is only book six and I’ve already lost count of the gunshot show more wounds and how many times he’s been beat bloody. But, that resiliency is one of the reasons I love the character – no reader is going to come back six times for a quitter. Wounded or not, Cork is the ultimate lawman. He doesn’t need his badge or his gun, or even jurisdiction, for that matter. He is in charge, he will hunt down the bad guy and justice will prevail, amen.

That said, this book wasn’t a five-star for me, for several reasons. First off, we’re not in Aurora anymore, and Cork’s family is largely out of the picture, giving this book a different feel from the previous ones. All the backstory and relationships we’ve cobbled together and are invested in are put aside for new characters we know nothing about. Secondly, Cork really isn’t as introspective as he was in the earlier books and I missed the growth I’ve seen in him previously. It’s important to me to know that in all he’s been through, he hasn’t lost his humanity. But, rest assured, these things were not enough to put me off the series. I’m looking forward to see what happens to Cork next. show less

Comfortable and secure with his protagonist, William Kent Krueger allows Cork O’Connor to sit on the sidelines for much of this story, allowing previous peripheral characters as well as new ones take the forefront. Listening, observing, guiding and directing, Krueger through O’Connor turns the flashlight on a morally reprehensible social issue that deserves so much more attention than what we enlightened people give it. Another great story with strong and interesting characters and a not so subtle taunt to look inward and find the answers to help the homeless kids of the world.

Copper River by William Kent Krueger is the 6th book in his excellent Cork O’Connor series. This book picks up right after the preceding one as a contract for his life has been put out and in order to keep his family safe, he leaves and goes into hiding. He knows this is temporary as the man who blames him for the death of his sons will soon find out the truth.

Before Cork gets away completely though he is attacked and wounded. He makes his way to the remote Upper Peninsula of Michigan where he has a cousin, Jewell. She is a widow with a son called Ren, and she agrees to look after him. He doesn’t realize that he has run into even more danger here as there is an on-going conspiracy that includes multiple kidnappings, rape and murder. show more Keeping Ren and his friends safe becomes Cork’s number one priority.

I can’t gush enough about this book, or indeed, this series. The writing is absorbing and suspenseful, the characters well developed and interesting and the author’s sense of place gives us a strong feeling for the north woods that stand alongside the shores of Lake Superior. Copper River was a wonderful read and I am looking for more from this creative and versatile author. show less

Summary: Cork hides at a cousin’s from hit men who have wounded him only to be drawn into a search for killers preying on runaways.

They had done unspeakable things to her. She knew she was going to die. A young girl who had not yet had her first period. A runaway who had embarked on a path to a better life. She had escaped but her captor was after her. In his clutches on a cliff edge, she wrests free only to fall into the waters of the Copper River far below.

This was the same river running near an old resort where Jewell Dubois and her fourteen year old son Ren live. Then her cousin, who once had arrested her now deceased husband, turns up with a leg wound and a shot-up car. Jewell is a veterinarian and dresses his wound and gives him show more one of the old resort cabins for a place to hide out. That cousin is Cork O’Connor, still on the run from hit men from a Chicago family, even while a potential murder rap hangs over his head. Hopefully, some police friends can exonerate him.

Ren is good friends with Charlie Miller, an edgy friend with a rough home situation and “Stash,” whose nickname reflects his penchant to stash weed in a variety of hiding places including a shelter near the river. They go to the shelter one night and Stash sees what he thinks is a body floating by. Ren and Charlie return to the river, only to spot a boat with two men looking for something. Charlie moons them and taunts them about the body and the men give chase. Thinking they’ve eluded the men, they go to the shelter and pull out Stash’s box (with his name on it) to roll a joint. But the men are still in pursuit. However, Charlie and Ren know the woods and get away.

By this time Dina Willner has hunted Cork down. A private “security consultant” and former FBI agent, she had saved Cork’s life recently from the hitmen still seeking his life. Ren goes to pick up food for them, stopping by Charlie’s on the way and finds her father dead, his skull bashed in by Charlie’s baseball bat. But Charlie is nowhere to be seen. As Ren reports the murder, another body is found washed up in the town harbor. But not Charlie. Then Stash, a skateboarder, is nearly killed by a hit and run driver.

Charlie is the “person of interest” in her father’s death though Ren is certain she wouldn’t do it. He and Cork, Jewell, and Dina, (and eventually Charlie) try to piece together what’s going on. Charlie knows the girl in the river, found in the harbor. They spent time together at a runaway shelter. A lot of runaways have just disappeared from there, like the girl found dead. Who is preying upon them?

Meanwhile, there are other predators to reckon with. A cougar has been leaving tracks around the resort. And the hit is still out on Cork. How long will he remain hidden. Can Dina protect him, and those he has taken shelter with?

There is lots of suspense on these pages. Meanwhile, the relationship between Cork and Dina develops. And we wonder if this is the last we will see of Jewell, Ren, and Charlie. Plenty to keep one turning the pages! show less

Copper River is the sixth book in a series featuring Cork O'Connor, sheriff of Tamarack County, Wisconsin. Following events that happened in the prior book, Mercy Falls, we find Cork hiding out at a cabin in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. There's a contract out on him and he's suffering a terrible gunshot wound. Fortunately, his cousin, Jewell, is the local veterinarian and can help patch him up. She and her teenage son, Ren, don't know why he's being pursued, but they know they need to help him. As he begins to recover he's drawn into helping find out why someone seems to be after Ren's best friend, Charlene (Charlie).

I am a huge fan of this series and find the audiobook, narrated by David Chandler, to be particularly good. Cork is a show more somewhat flawed character but a man of integrity. In this book, his vulnerability shows another side of that character, which I felt made him even more relatable. No one is better at capturing the feel of the upper Midwest the way Krueger can. His books never fail to mesmerize me and I'm really looking forward to my next Cork O'Connor book, Thunder Bay. show less

The Cork O'Connor series is my favourite series right now. Every book is exciting and suspenseful. The characters are realistic, and in each book we get to experience another chapter in Cork O'Connor's life. In this book we pick up right where the last one left off. Cork escapes to a small Michigan town called Bodine. He's got a gunshot wound in his leg from the encounter he had with a gangster back home, and he heads to the home of a cousin that he has lost touch with over the years. Her name is Jewell DuBois, and she's a widow living with her young son, Wren. Jewell is a vet so Cork thinks that she can look after his injury, and he can hide out for a bit from the gangster who has put a $500,000 bounty on his head. Things aren't so show more quiet in Bodine either. It seems that trouble is following Cork around, and this trouble has nothing to do with the Bounty on his head. Young homeless girls are going missing from the area, and when a young girl's body washes up on the shore of Lake Superior, it opens up the whole can of worms in Bodine. One that has been going on for years in the area. In this book we see Cork's friend Deena who we met in the previous book, and it's lucky that she has followed him to Bodine because Cork and Jewell need Deena's help tracking the killer in the County. The tension ratchets up right until the end of the book, and when the book ended I wanted to open up the next book in the series and continue the story. They are very addictive. This is a great series to listen to on audiobook and David Chandler does a great job of narrating. Highly recommend this series. show less

Somehow it's taken me nearly 20 years to discover William Kent Krueger and his protagonist Cork O'Connor. It's a discovery I am extremely delighted over and these mysteries are among some of the best I have ever read.

Copper River starts with a young girl fleeing from an pusuer and the book is a dead sprint from there on. Cork is hold up with a wounded leg at a cousins house in U.P. - shot by a rich man who blames him for the death of his sons. While convalescing he stumbles into something entirely different and all of his unique skills are called into action.

Keueger is that rare writer with the ability to master dialog, plot, and character development. I can't wait to continue my exploration of his works and invite you to join me.