Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger

I have been meaning to read another novel by this author since I read Ordinary Grace several years ago. I decided to start at the beginning, with Iron Lake, his first novel. I am not sure what I was expecting, but Cork O'Connor was a little more "flawed" than I thought he would be! But, his life experiences were real, which made him real. Shooting and killing someone (even as the sheriff) is obviously going to affect a man. I can see how that would cause a chain-reaction: losing his job, losing his marriage, losing his way. I guess this book explains the end of his old life and the beginning of a new life.

Since Cork is part Anishinaabe Indian, the book explores different Indian beliefs, myths and superstitions. Some of the story takes place within an Indian Reservation and details the ownership and rights of Indian Casinos. Cork is respected by the Indian population and because of that, he is able to investigate things that other people would not be able to. Of course Cork is also part Irish, so he is not 100% welcomed onto the Reservation, Casino and Indian politics, which made it more difficult for him to figure out what was going on after the Judge was murdered and the paperboy disappeared.

At first I was shocked that Cork was sleeping with Molly, when his intelligent, beautiful wife was living at home with their children. After awhile though, I really started liking Molly and understanding where she fit into Cork's life. Especially after finding out about Jo and Sandy! I was genuinely shocked and saddened about what happened to Molly. I think she was really good for Cork. I guess I wish that would have ended differently. I am actually looking forward to reading the next book in this series to see where things are between Cork and Jo. Good riddance to Sandy! I trusted Cork's instinct about him, even though Jo didn't (at first). What a scumbag.

I am already attached to Cork, flawed as he is. ;) I guess that's what makes a good mystery series. 

Wendy's Rating: ****

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

For some reason, I had a hard time reading this novel even though everyone I know who has read it, loved it. I think it's because I have a hard time reading about custody battles between birth mothers and adoptive parents. There are no "happy endings" in these cases and my heart always breaks for the child involved and the mothers/parents involved. It was hard for me to keep reading after finding out the details of the McCullough's infertility issues and how much they loved Mirabelle and what good parents they were to her. But finding out how difficult it was for Bebe, not knowing the language, not having any support or knowing there were available resources to help her, well, that broke my heart too. I wasn't sure I could stomach the custody battle results! After a few days break, I picked up the book again and read the last 200+ pages straight through. I can't say I was completely surprised by the judge's decision (on the other hand, I was), but I was certainly surprised by Bebe's response! I thought it was ironic that the McCullough's decided to adopt a baby from China after all of that, knowing that it would be unlikely for any birth parents to try to get their baby back. In the end, I felt good about both Bebe and the McCulloughs I guess. At least satisfied.

I am not sure how I feel about Mia and the Ryans though. Again, my heart breaks for the Ryans! I wonder if they believed Mia when she told them the baby had died. Do they have any idea that they have a daughter?? Being a mother, who could never donate my eggs to someone else because that would be "my" child, I understand why Mia took Pearl away from her "parents". I think surrogacy is a wonderful thing for women to do for people with infertility issues though - and Mia had a contract with the Ryans. Also, Pearl is the biological daughter of Mr. Ryan! I guess Mia was naive and desperate for money, but it wasn't right for her to take the baby and run. The Ryans have as much of a right to Pearl than Mia does. So that makes me sad.

Finally, the Richardsons. Although I understand the reasoning, from Izzy's perspective, behind burning down the family home, I find it deeply disturbing that she would do so. I also find it odd - and concerning - that Mia would take in a 15 year old who has run away from her family. Elena loves Izzy as much as Mia loves Pearl. You would think that someone as intuitive as Mia would know that! I wish that Elena could have expressed her fears about losing Izzy to Izzy - or at least her husband - so that the family better understood the relationship between Elena and Izzy. Fortunately, I believe whole-heartedly that Elena will find Izzy. She is a good investigator!

So, in the end, I guess I liked the book. It's not an ending that wraps everything up with a nice little bow, but I can live with that. Some future decisions were inferred, which made things better (like Pearl meeting the Ryans and her grandparents; Elena finding Izzy).

Wendy's Rating: ****