![]() In a star-studded lineup of bestselling authors writing under the Atria Books imprint at Simon & Schuster, William Kent Krueger continues to build his case for the most talented of the bunch. but also leave them with a greater sense of who Cork is, and what drives him moving forward. The larger problem for him is getting his father to believe that as well, and as the two set out together in search of answers, Kruger masterfully weaves in a number of surprises that’ll hold readers on the edge of their seats. Taking matters into his own hands, Cork goes poking around in his free time, and it doesn’t take long for him to become convinced that he’s found a clue suggesting Big John was murdered. But for 12-year-old Cork, things are less clear. But did he actually hang himself in the forest? The evidence certainly suggests so, and initially, that’s how Liam sees the situation too. He was, after all, a former alcoholic who recently fell off the wagon, among a host of other issues the man was facing. Big John Manydeeds, a family friend to the O’Connors, was rumored to be struggling before his apparent suicide. ![]() Set in the summer of 1963, Cork O’Connor, son of legendary Tamarack County Sherif Liam O’Connor, comes across a dead body while hiking in Minnesota’s Superior National Forest. (You could blink and think that Frank and Joe Hardy have a new brother.) One possible murder suspect surfaces and then, wham, Krueger yanks away that comfortable rug you’ve been standing on and the stakes catapult and you realize the darkness is even more stark when it’s set off against all those cheery small-town touches.What events helped shape Cork O’Connor into the beloved character that has starred in seventeen previous New York Times bestselling novels? To answer that question, author William Kent Krueger takes readers back to the beginning with this powerful prequel to his mega-popular franchise. A second trip to the scene turns up a clue and there is a stray fragrance that bugs Cork. Cork is part Irish and part Anishinaabe Indian, for starters, and the Krueger layers-in plenty about the delicate nature of the relationship between the two cultures.Ĭork, literally, has a nose for clues and Lightning Strike lets the young O’Connor quiz the facts and ponder theories. There is plenty in Lightning Strike, too, about relationships between the new residents of Aurora, Minnesota and the Native Americans. The result is a fuller picture of the setting and deeper glimpses of Cork and Liam as son and father. He’s not afraid to weave in ample amounts of “regular” life-the non-plot stuff. ![]() Krueger’s pace, as others have noted, is measured and methodical. The discovery carries extra weight for Cork, who looked up to Big John Manydeeds and was also the uncle of one of Cork’s best friends. Suicide or murder? If the former, why? If the latter, who? If a murder, who staged it to look like a suicide? Lightning Strike becomes a dual track of young Cork’s prodding and curiosity along with dad Liam’s official work on the case. The questions around the death of the well-known Big John Manydeeds are many fold -and obvious. Where’s Andy Griffith?Įxcept one thing is out of place, that “grotesque, rotting figure” hanging from the tree at Lightning Strike, a sacred place for the Ojibwe deep in the forest in the ironing mining country of northern Minnesota. There’s, meat loaf simmering in the oven, a swing waiting on the front porch, and so on. There are elm trees, lilac hedges, and blueberries to be picked. There are newspaper routes, Boy Scout troops, and sandlot baseball games. There’s a quaint, small-town flavor here. We get chapters from Cork’s point of view and we see the case from the perspective of Cork’s father Liam, who is the sheriff. So Lightning Strike is back-story or prequel (and maybe the start of a new series?). We’re deep in the world of 12-year-old Cork O’Connor, who will lead the charge through 17 Krueger novels when he grows up. (Don’t drop your guard.) Krueger is matter-of-fact seductive in his storytelling. There are times when William Kent Krueger’s Lightning Strike feels and reads like a young adult novel. It never overflows its banks and goes crazy, even with a few walloping juicy twists along the way. In fact-character first, character always. Here are a few more things to like about Lightning Strike:
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