Rating: 
Summary: Chillingly Closer to Cussler than Christie
Review: This 3rd installment of former Deputy Sheriff Carl Harstad's Nation County series is heavier on the "thriller" side of the police procedural scale than "who-dunnit" (or is that donut? As in the previous books, there's a whole lot of coffee and donuts being consumed ;-) It could be subtitled: "Known Dead - Book II." I sure am glad that I read "the Big Thaw" immediately following "Known Dead" and strongly urge you to also get and read the former first because "The Big Thaw," more than other serial procedurals, is a continuation of the saga started last time, and it really helps to know the players and have them fresh in your mind. This time, there are some dead burglars at the home of "snowbird" farmers. Deputy Houseman is on the case. His Cohort, Hester Gorse, is stationed on the floating casino on the Mississippi. Volont and Gabriel are back as foiIs. Readers on "the Coasts" may get a warped view of the Heartland with Harstad's sustained focus on militant extremists who are actually a minute portion of the mostly hard-working and level-headed folks that produce our nation's food. But most of the characterizations are "dead on," showcasing the humour and self-effacing good nature of many rural mid-western law enforcement folks. It's another "BINGO!"
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