Sixteen novels have preceded this latest entry in the Kate Shugak series set in Alaska, and there is always something doing in The Park, this time pretty much between the Memorial and Labor Day Holidays. Since Global Harvest Resources opened up the Suulutaq mine on state property, there has been unrest disturbing the tranquility of the area as more employees are brought in to begin work on what is expected to be one of the largest sources of gold in the world, not to mention deposits of other mineral ores.
Then one employee heads into the woods, leaving a suicide note. When Kate and others go searching for him they find human remains apparently finished off by a bear. The case is ruled “suicide by Alaska,” but Kate keeps turning up evidence that the case is more complicated, with some signs implicating funny goings on at the mine.
The author obviously has a deep feeling for Alaska, and her descriptions of the state and its inhabitants go deep. At the same time, she portrays the problems of the lack of jobs versus the needs of the environment with feeling. And always creating believable characters and a sustainable mystery.
Recommended.
