Forsaken Country by Allen Eskens

 In Forsaken Country (Max Rupert, 6) by Allen Eskens that came out in September, former Minneapolis homicide detective Max Rupert has left the job, secluding himself from the rest of the world as a self-imposed punishment about how he wrapped up his last case.

He continually mourns the loss of his wife while getting through just one day at a time in his isolated cabin near Grand Rapids, Minnesota. When former local sheriff Lyle Voight’s daughter Sandy and grandson Pip disappear, Voight summons Rupert back into the role of detective. Voight knows the kidnapper has to be Sandy’s ex-husband and former deputy Reed Harris who lost custody of Pip after beating both Sandy and Pip and went to jail. The current sheriff, a friend of the ex-con’s,  refuses to accept Voight’s theory, doing nothing to investigate.

Knowing his son-in-law’s patterns, Voight is convinced Harris has taken the two north to the Boundary Waters wilderness to escape into Canada. Rupert and Voight prepare to follow the trail to find the captives. What they don’t know is that Harris has an accomplice who begins to rebel against Harris as he sees more and more that the father is not good to the son. Risking their own lives in this treacherous terrain, the forbidden country, Rupert and Voight track the outlaw and his captives.

I became a fan of Allen Eskens’ writing with his unforgettable debut novel, The Life We Bury, which may have a future in film. Eskens grew up in the hills of central Missouri. He lives with his wife in Cleveland, Minnesota, where he retired after practicing criminal law for 25 years.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting December 3, 2022.

I would like to thank Mulholland Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.