The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger
Published by Atria Books
Publication date: September 5, 2023
Genres: Book Clubs, Fiction, Historical, Mystery
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Summer is just beginning in the small town of Jewel, Minnesota when the body of Jimmy Quinn, one of the town’s wealthiest citizens, is discovered in the nearby river. Given that he was also one of the most disliked there are plenty of people in William Kent Krueger’s The River We Remember who wanted him dead and little enthusiasm on the part of Sheriff Brody Dern to find the killer. Especially as the man most of the town’s whites want to pursue is Noah Bluestone, a Native American recently fired by Quinn. A man who once he’s been arrested refuses legal aid or to speak in his own defense, leaving Brody to unravel the mysteries of Quinn’s death, while Krueger explores the mysteries in the living.
It’s the late 1950s and the specter of WWII still looms over Jewel and in the minds of many of its residents. Brody is haunted by the brutality he witnessed and Noah, although he fought for his country, has had his return marred by the same racist slurs and discrimination he’s always experienced. He’s endured additional isolation and distrust by bringing back a Japanese wife. A woman Brody now has to turn to for answers despite the psychological scars he bears from his years in a Japanese POW camp.
At the forefront of the novel is the murder case, but what stands out most is the ease with which Krueger summons a world so completely, with even a river as a key element. The care and reverence with which he crafts The River We Remember is evident on every page; the clean, quiet lines of a skilled artist letting the story reveal itself. Even as additional plot lines unfold it’s naturally and with perfect pace.
Nowhere is this clearer than in the novel’s characters. Each and every one, from Quinn’s family and Noah’s wife to the owner of the local diner and her son, are perfectly rendered with the motivations, emotions, prejudices, and stories found in the real world. But it’s in the moments within Krueger’s prose, the sentences that cause pause, that make The River We Remember an immersive, not-to-be-missed gift for readers.
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*I received a free copy of this book from Atria Books in exchange for an honest review.*
Heard you talk about William Kent Krueger on Sarah’s Bookshelves Live pod this morning. I definitely think you’d like some of WKK’s other books. Ordinary Grace and This Tender Land are 2 stand-alone novels that sound very similar to his new book. And if you like his writing style and midwestern/Minnesota setting, I think you’d also enjoy the Cork O’Conner series. I accidentally started with book 17 and then went back and started at the beginning. I enjoyed it on it’s own, but see the benefit of having the backstory from earlier books. If you want a new crime series, this is a good one to try (18 books). Audio narrator on the series is not great. Lots of weird pauses, swallowing and lip smacking. Excellent on the page though.
Sorry for the delay in this reply. I bought a copy of Tender Land!
I’ve made note of the Cork series- but not on audio. Yuck!
I’m looking forward to reading this one. I loved Ordinary Grace (my fav) and This Tender Land by Krueger.
I feel like I have so much to catch up on with his books- which is one of the best parts of reading: discovering authors you haven’t read!
I just finished The River We Remember which is the first book I’ve read by William Kent Krueger. What a great writer! The story had me captivated from the beginning. I can hardly wait to read his other books.
You and me both! My mother has been begging me to read him for decades and I’ve put her off and now all I want to do is read This Tender Land (I bought a copy!).