Tamarack County, Minnesota -- a land that's been watered
with historic blood and violence. Two hundred plus years in
the past, one of many massacres occurred; violent whispers
still whistle between the wind and the trees. Fast-forward
to the future, where that same patch of ground has become a
hall of learning, a place where many cultures should be
shared and understood. In this 9th book of the Cork
O'Connor series, the enigmatic Corcoran O'Connor returns to
solve the mystery surrounding the senseless death of a
teenage girl in Aurora, Minnesota, and the subsequent
revenge-styled killings. Cork, the former town Sheriff, is
now working steadily as the only private investigator for
three counties around. Because of his Irish/Anishinaabeg
heritage, he seems to be the logical choice as moderator
between the "white government Anglos" and the "Original
People," in a town erupting with violence and seething with
hate.
Cork is thrust into the middle by the leader of the Red
Boyz when he's asked to arrange a meeting between Alex
Kingbird and Buck Reinhardt, the father of the murdered
teenage girl. Reinhardt is promising revenge unless the
perpetrator, one Lonnie Thunder, is turned over to him to
undergo his form of justice. When retaliation's bullets
start flying, Cork and his family are caught in the
crossfire, adding strain and worry into the family mix.
Then too, there is Alex's brother Uly, a young man living
within the oasis of himself, with only his music and the
fragile friendship offered by Cork's daughter, Annie, to
keep him from withdrawing totally from society. There are
secrets simmering within families and a man willing to take
the fall for a murder he didn't commit in order to atone
for past mistakes. Cleansing rituals combine with the wise
words of Henry Meloux, a Native American healer, seeking to
bring balance and enlightenment to a people trying to
survive their blurred cultural identity. Tensions mount as
revenge rears its ugly head, threatening to tear not only
the young Ojibwe Red Boyz from their older tribesmen, but
also Indians from Anglos, fathers from sons, mothers from
their children.
Few books have the power to reach out and touch you with
their elegant fingered words triggering an explosive
emotional response within your soul; RED KNIFE does just
that and more. Mr. Krueger's characters are real and
varied, showcasing the many areas of gray within family,
community and humanity. It sings of lost heritage and the
fight to reclaim the joy of being. It takes "a hawk's-eye
view" of the paths one chooses to travel, while showing how
choices are indeed layered individual truths thereon. It
shows how just one drop of blood, one violent act, can seed
itself in such a way that everyone suffers from its miasmic
touch. This book is beautiful and haunting, with an honest
straightforward lyricism -- and it's a darn good story to
boot. This was one of those books I could not put down
until the explosive end. Because of that, I am going to be
hunting down the other books in this series. I'm not
ashamed to say I cried -- because with the tears came a
deeper understanding and empathy for all those lost to
violence's Miskwaa-Mookomaan, or RED KNIFE.
The charismatic private investigator Corcoran O'Connor
finds himself caught in the middle of a racial gang war
that's turning picturesque Tamarack County, Minnesota, into
a bloody battlefield.
When the daughter of a powerful businessman dies as a
result of her meth addiction, her father, strong-willed and
brutal Buck Reinhardt, vows revenge. His target is the Red
Boyz, a gang of Ojibwe youths accused of supplying the
girl's fatal drug dose. When the head of the Red Boyz and
his wife are murdered in a way that suggests execution, the
Ojibwe gang mobilizes, and the citizens of Tamarack County
brace themselves for war, white against red.
Both sides look to Cork O'Connor, a man of mixed heritage,
to uncover the truth behind the murders. A former sheriff,
Cork has lived, fought, and nearly died to keep the small-
town streets and his family safe from harm. He knows that
violence is never a virtue, but he believes that it's
sometimes a necessary response to the evil that men do.
Racing to find answers before the bloodshed spreads, Cork
himself becomes involved in the darkest of deeds. As the
unspeakable unfolds in the remote and beautiful place he
calls home, Cork is forced to confront the horrific truth:
Violence is a beast that cannot be contained.
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