≡ PDF Though Not Dead A Kate Shugak Novel Kate Shugak Novels Dana Stabenow Books

Though Not Dead A Kate Shugak Novel Kate Shugak Novels Dana Stabenow Books

Download As PDF : Though Not Dead A Kate Shugak Novel Kate Shugak Novels Dana Stabenow Books

Though Not Dead A Kate Shugak Novel Kate Shugak Novels Dana Stabenow Books

I've read every Kate Shugak novel more than once, and this one immediately vaulted to my Top 3 list. Though Not Dead is the most ambitious entry in the series. The usual framework of Kate and her trusty wolf-dog Mutt solving a murder continues, but this is the richest of the Shugak novels, weaving together threads of Alaskan history, the power of family, and the revelation that even the people we know best are never exactly who we thought they were. As Kate explores the past of her just-deceased surrogate father, Old Sam, she finds many new and often unsettling truths about her own family and how her life was shaped by Sam's adventures and friendships. The family twists and turns, as well as the story thread about an unknown manuscript by a famous American writer, would have seemed contrived in the hands of a writer of lesser skill, but Stabenow makes them all seem natural in Kate's world. If I have a quibble, it's the number of times Kate's head gets clubbed or grazed by a bullet without lasting effect: no matter how tough the lady is, it's hard to believe she doesn't even get a concussion. (After 19 books, her MRI should look pretty scary.) As I said, though, that's a quibble. Kate is as absorbing as ever, if not more so. Kate's lover, Jim Chopin, learns some things about his own fractured family in a parallel story that's interesting all by itself. At the end of this beautifully plotted book, Kate, Jim, and even Mutt are all wiser, more sure of who they are, and ready for the next adventure. I can't wait.


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Though Not Dead A Kate Shugak Novel Kate Shugak Novels Dana Stabenow Books Reviews

Dana Stabenow delivers her 18th Kate Shugak novel, THOUGH NOT DEAD in a cannot put down style. I have read and own all of her books (not the fantasy), no matter how short you are on shelving space these are the ones you keep and reread to savor the complexity of each book.
THOUGH NOT DEAD has Kate on a treasure hunt to solve the riddle of Sam Dementieff's last instructions. Jim Choppin is in California to attend his father's funeral and Kate is on her own against some desperate men who are hunting to same goods and will stop at nothing to accomplish their goals.
Old Sam lived his life against the panorama of Alaskian history and his story is astutely interwoven with Kate's quest.
This is one you will want to read a second time while you wait to see where Ms. Stabenow will propel you next in this outstanding series that does not disappoint.
Nash Black, author of Indie finalists WRITING AS A SMALL BUSINESS and HAINTS.
Read this as part of a book club. It was great! The only thing I regret, but which I will correct soon, is that I haven't read the first books in the series. There are many references to prior events. The bok really brings out the wildness that is Alaska, the toughness of its people - Outsiders as well as Native. The relationship between Kate and Mutt is epic and totally believable. There are so many story lines going at one time, it's amazing that the writer, let alone the reader, can keep them straight. They are woven together seamlessly - and come together in a totally believable way at the end. I thoroughly enjoyed this escapade into the frozen north a
We are all fortunate to have Dana Stabenow's gift of writing in our time. She makes the Alaskan land and the people come to life even for those of us land-locked Midwesterners who may never step foot on those docks or those trails. If you love the natural side of life and real people with heart, soul and human issues- if you love peaking over the shoulder of a cook like Kate Shugak as she cooks hearty, crusty savory meals-- if you love the bonds between man and animals and you can handle strong women--then the Kate Shugak series is for you. You will love Mutt, her dog-wolf; you will love Kate's Aunties- Native American elders wrapped in lore and unending kindnesses. In Though Not Dead, Kate indeed has a load of head injuries but I don't find the head injuries any less plausible than the accounts of Mutt's travels in domestic life- on board planes, in offices and as faithful as Lassie ever was. In this tale, Stabenow weaves a complex story and her back and forth style between ages and voices works for me- even the third part of the "braid" which is Jim's story back home in sunny California seems to "go together" with practiced ease. It's rich with Maritime antiquities, Alaskan history, the conflicts between people and classes and families, the love and hate between sure, staid ways and progress. Even the loss of Old Sam, but look how much Kate came to know him through his dying. I didn't want the book to end. I left the last few pages unread just because I didn't want to be away from these characters. To me a writer exceeds their books' cover' when the characters stay with the reader and days later, the reader finds herself asking quietly- I wonder what's cooking in Kate's cabin tonight?
The great thing about any sort of series is that if you enjoyed a part of it, there is still more waiting. Dana Stabenow's Kate Shugak series is one of those that from the first will have you wanting more. As always, I would encourage the reader to get the full list and start with the first, "A Cold Day for Murder." I think you will be hooked from the first chapter and it isn't just because Kate is an Aleut women living in Alaska with a half wolf named Mutt for a companion. Which brings me to another of the main characters - Alaska. I've spent more time on Google Earth, pouring over maps, and following the Iditarod than I ever expected to. Now, 60 years later, I'm rereading "Call of the Wild."
Kate's story and that of her life in an Alaska park where she is the perfect "crime solver" now covers 20 books and like her many other followers, I'm eagerly awaiting the next. If you are a mystery lover and many are starting to seem "old hat", The Kate Shugak series will be the perfect fix.
I've read every Kate Shugak novel more than once, and this one immediately vaulted to my Top 3 list. Though Not Dead is the most ambitious entry in the series. The usual framework of Kate and her trusty wolf-dog Mutt solving a murder continues, but this is the richest of the Shugak novels, weaving together threads of Alaskan history, the power of family, and the revelation that even the people we know best are never exactly who we thought they were. As Kate explores the past of her just-deceased surrogate father, Old Sam, she finds many new and often unsettling truths about her own family and how her life was shaped by Sam's adventures and friendships. The family twists and turns, as well as the story thread about an unknown manuscript by a famous American writer, would have seemed contrived in the hands of a writer of lesser skill, but Stabenow makes them all seem natural in Kate's world. If I have a quibble, it's the number of times Kate's head gets clubbed or grazed by a bullet without lasting effect no matter how tough the lady is, it's hard to believe she doesn't even get a concussion. (After 19 books, her MRI should look pretty scary.) As I said, though, that's a quibble. Kate is as absorbing as ever, if not more so. Kate's lover, Jim Chopin, learns some things about his own fractured family in a parallel story that's interesting all by itself. At the end of this beautifully plotted book, Kate, Jim, and even Mutt are all wiser, more sure of who they are, and ready for the next adventure. I can't wait.