Category: Murder

Iron Lake, by William Kent Krueger

2012 Book 77: Iron Lake, by William Kent Krueger (5/14/2012)

Reason for Reading: I wanted to read a book set in Aurora, MN 🙂 I’ve been there many times in my childhood.

My Review 4/5 stars
Cork O’Connor, the former sheriff of Aurora, MN, investigates the disappearance of a young boy at the request of a friend. While looking for the boy, he stumbles upon a mystery (and possible conspiracy) within his tiny town. This first book in the Cork O’Connor series was intriguing. Although I sort of guessed who the big baddie was, it was a total mystery to me how Kreuger’d get there. The characterizations were fantastic, and Kreuger did a good job of mood setting (with his cold MN winter). I DID wonder why most of the characters seemed to have redish hair, though? Also, Kreuger might as well have picked a non-existent town for all the similarity his Aurora had to the real Aurora, but I suppose that’s just fiction for you. 🙂 I’m excited to move on to the second book and see how Kreuger manages to fit another mystery into the small town of Aurora.

Columbine, by Dave Cullen

2012 Book 55: Columbine, by Dave Cullen (3/31/2012)

Reason for Reading: It was there

My Review 4.5/5stars
Cullen provides an in-depth look at the events leading up to and following the tragic school shooting at Columbine. He fleshes out the personalities of the people involved, especially focusing on the two shooters. He debunks the myths that confounded the Columbine story for years. This is an amazing work of journalism, as well as a moving narrative. Tears came to my eyes several times while reading. My only qualm about this book is that at the very end Cullen provided some gory details that weren’t necessary. I’m not squeamish, but I think providing those details wasn’t necessary to emphasize how tragic the events were, and gore is much more disturbing when you’re thinking about the real people involved. However, this was only a very short section of the book…and I guess journalists will be journalists.

Iron House, by John Hart

2012 Book 5: Iron House, by John Hart (1/9/2012)

Iron House is a beautifully written mystery/suspense novel that delves into the psychological effects of a childhood of violence and abuse. Michael is an orphan who, after running away from a violent scene at an orphanage, grows up to be an enforcer for a powerful mobster. When he falls in love with a beautiful waitress and retires from organized crime, he is suddenly thrown into a violent mystery leading him to explore things he had left behind. Despite my need to suspend disbelief a few times (and to frown upon a few clichés), I feel that Hart kept up the action (and mystery) throughout the book, making for an engaging read. This is an excellent book for people who enjoy mystery/thrillers (assuming they don’t mind violence). I gave the book 3.5/5 stars…it lost points for violence and small clichés.