(10/25/2022)
“Lightning Strike” by William Kent Krueger has outstanding storytelling and suffers only from our knowledge of other similar novels: if Native American elder Big John’s death is a suicide, we would have no story. Instead, we get meditation and explore a culture’s opinion of the Afterlife and what mystical beings believe about someone who ends their life. A father and son investigate, turning up more questions than answers.
As an SVU addict, I loved the way that this unfolded. Liam, the patriarch, tries to collect evidence while his son also involves himself. Since this is a prequel to novels involving Cork O’Connor, part of the adventure lies with a kid learning the craft. A good murder mystery involves just the correct number of characters so that we have enough suspects to keep it exciting but not so many that we do not know the perpetrator. We love and hate enough people here to make it work.
The brains of murder-mystery fans could serve as an exciting study. Novels like this must introduce facts and evidence slowly and efficiently to keep you interested without giving too much away. We have two apparent villains and the suicide explanation, but we anxiously await a few more details. The true sign of a successful whodunit is when you speculate about the guilty parties after putting down the book.
I “cast” the film version of books I read and have a few in mind for young Cork, his father, Liam, and his grandmother, Dilsey. Think Meryl Streep, Ethan Hawke, and Asher Angel. The villains would require more nuance. When the narrative changes based on a shocking murder, Krueger takes this from a murder mystery to a much deeper piece about social justice, prejudice, and history that will make you sad.
The 12-year-old lens frames the conflict nicely. Yes, we know from the previous novels that Cork will grow up to become a famous investigator, but he has trouble keeping evidence to himself or understanding why he must do so. When we arrive at the truth, we are sad, but the racism and prejudice we encounter along the way do the damage. The ending is satisfying, as in realistic, but disheartening, nonetheless.