Sheriff Cork O'Connor is hiding out at his cousin Jewell DuBois' home, waiting for a gunshot wound to his leg to heal. Jewell didn't exactly welcome him with open arms -- she's angry at police in general because she blames them for her husband's death. But her son, Ren, is lonely and is fascinated by Cork.
When Ren's friend, Charlie (shortened from Charlene by this tomboy!) Miller finds herself in trouble, it seems the whole town becomes involved. And it's difficult for Cork to keep a low profile as the mysteries emerge. When a young girl's body is found and Charlie vanishes, Cork must move to help his family, even though surfacing may make his presence known to the hit men who are still looking for him.
This is the sixth book in the Cork O'Connor series and the second one I've read. Krueger's vivid characterizations and intricate plots make these crime novels an excellent choice. In COPPER RIVER, the relationship between Charlie and Ren, both sad loners, adds a dimension that increases the suspense. A well-done book.
The sixth novel in William Kent Krueger's award-winning
suspense series finds Cork O'Connor running for his life --
straight into a murderous conspiracy involving teenage
runaways.
The latest in the series finds the sheriff running for his
life from professional hit men who have already put a
bullet through his leg. Desperate, he finds sanctuary
outside a small town called Bodine on the Upper Peninsula
of Michigan in an old resort owned by his cousin, Jewell
DuBois. Though Jewell, a bitter widow whose husband may
have been killed by cops, keeps Cork at arm's length, her
14-year-old son, Ren, is looking for a friend. But being a
father figure to Ren will prove more difficult than Cork
could possibly imagine.
When the body of a young girl surfaces along the banks of
the Copper River and another teenager vanishes, Cork must
choose between helping to solve these deadly mysteries and
thwarting the hit men who draw closer to him with every
hour. Recklessly, he turns from his own worries and focuses
on tracking the conspiracy of killers before Ren and his
best friend, Charlie, fall victim. It's an error -- one a
good man might make -- but as the contract killers who are
hunting him close in, Cork realizes too late that it may be
the last mistake he'll ever make.
The trail left by the dead girl eventually leads to a
shelter for homeless youth and into the grim reality of
children lost and abandoned, who become easy prey for the
perverted appetites of human predators. All small towns
have buried secrets but, as Cork soon learns, this one has
more than its share.
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