Dana Stabenow is an award winning author who sets books in her home state of Alaska.
Less Than a Treason (2017) is just one of many in her Kate Shugak series.
I enjoyed it.
The book opens four months after the dramatic cliffhanger of the previous novel, Bad Blood, where Aleut private investigator Kate Shugak was shot in the chest and nearly died,
Kate’s self-imposed isolation is shattered when a group of wilderness hikers stumbles near her territory. One hiker tumbles down a ridge and lands on a scattered heap of human bones. Realizing it is time to return to society, Kate packs up the remains, escorts the hikers back, and re-enters the town of Niniltna—shocking locals who assumed she was dead.
Once back, Kate is drawn into a complex web of corporate crime involving a lucrative secret gold mine: [1]
- The Geologist: Kate is hired by Sylvia McDonald to find her missing husband, Fergus, a seasoned geologist who disappeared near the Suulutaq Mine. Fergus was known for taking solo treks into the wilderness with his rock hammer, but this time, he hasn’t returned.
- The Bootlegger: Simultaneously, Jim Chopin begins a search for Kate’s cousin, Martin Shugak—a petty criminal and bootlegger who has also mysteriously vanished.
Rick McCharles 