Midnight Come Again

by Dana Stabenow

Book Overview

Edgar Award winner Dana Stabenow has written nine atmospheric crime novels featuring the very prickly, very human Kate Shugak, but her novels also have a scene-stealing costar: Alaska, unforgiving, breathtaking, dangerous, and beautiful. Stabenow's evocation of this wilderness, combined with her talent for bringing characters to life and creating knuckle-whitening suspense, has made her "one of the strongest voices in crime fiction." (Seattle Times)...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312205961
• ISBN13: 9780312205966
• Release Date: May 2000
• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Length: 291 Pages
• Weight: 1.13 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

Spectacular Ending

I didn't think I would be very interested in a story concerning the Russian Mafia, but Stabenow changed my mind. Although I missed reading about the folks back in Niniltna, the introduction to the people of Bering was a true joy. Jim Chopin has a prominent role here and the insights into his character are very reveling. I also enjoyed a surprising revelation concerning Kate's grandmother, Ekaterina. The descriptions of Kate's dog, Mutt (one of my favorite characters) are, as always, vivid and alive. A word of warning: if you are a big fan of the FBI, you should know that the two FBI agents in this story are not portrayed in a very favorable light. I have read all of Stabenow's previous Kate Shugak mysteries, so it was easy for me to pick up where the story left off last time, but this probably isn't where a reader new to the series should begin. For a true understanding of Kate, it would be best to start at the beginning (A Cold Day For Murder). It was easy getting into this story and it held my attention throughout. The ending was spectacular.

Gutsy

In the best Shugak tradition this one goes straight for the gut and then kicks you in the crotch. Unlike other Shugak books this one spends more time from Jim Chopin's point of view than Kate's, but it gives a better feel for the action that way. Like all mysteries there has to be some difficulty in solving the crime and this time it's Kate and her grief. That is when it's not Chopin's emotional issues getting in the way.I knew after "Hunters Moon" that the next book would be a real emotional wringer and this book did not let me down in the least. While the mystery here is easy to solve the reason I couldn't put down the book until I finished it is that Kate is so real and so spell binding. I can't wait for the next one. I rate Dana Stabenow up there with Dick Francis and Kate Shugak with Travis McGee.

Dana Comes Through Again!

After reading Hunter's Moon, I went back and bought all of Dana's previous Kate Shugak books, as well as those in Dana's Liam Campbell series. I got up-to-date only a couple of months before Midnight Come Again. Dana has come through again with another great story about Alaska and some very interesting and sometimes (in the cases of the "good guys") endearing charcaters. If you haven't read Dana's books, give them a try -- but be forewarned -- you, too, could become hooked on her wonderful books. (PS: I'd like to marry Kate Shugak, but I'm not sure I could keep up with her.) (PSS: Thanks, Dana, for the email recommendation for the bar near the Anchorage airport where you can sit and watch sea planes land and take off -- I'm coming back to AK in August and plan to go there again.)

Heartwrenching mystery

No one seems to know where Kate Shigak is. The Aleut private detective owns and normally homesteads one hundred and sixty acres in the Alaska National Forest. However, Kate has disappeared. She still struggles with the loss of her beloved thanks to a maniac's bullet, a situation that has left her feeling empty and barren. Kate has traveled to an isolated fishing village in the Bering Strait under an assumed name. She fills her entire day working double shifts and more handling freight for Baird Airlines.Her life changes again when her boss hires someone to work the second shift. Kate recognizes the new employee as State Trooper Jim Chopin, who is working undercover for the FBI. He is looking for the plutonium that the Russian Mafia has apparently smuggled into the area. When Jim is hospitalized with a bullet wound, Kate takes over the investigation.The star of a Kate Shugat novel is usually Alaska, but in MIDNIGHT COME AGAIN the emotionally raw lead protagonist takes center stage. Kate is in transition as she grieves her loss while struggling to learn how to live life without her heart. Dana Stabenow serves up a fascinating and emotionally moving story line that keeps the reader's interest from first page to last. Fans of unpredictable, event-laden tales with plenty of regional color will gain much pleasure from Ms. Stabenow's latest achievement.Harriet Klausner

excellent reading

I cried at the end of Hunter's Moon so I impatiently waited the release of her new book. Kate hid herself very well, but Chopper, Jim Chopin finds her by accident and the sparks fly. Involvement in a new mystery helps her regain her old self and to start to put her past tradegy behind her. We are also introduced to new characters, which we are sure to read about in the future. Also, there is a physical attraction between Jim and Kate which neither one is willing to accept. Finding the killers, fighting her feelings for Jim, believing herself reasponsible for her friends death, comforting her friend's daughter,and uncovering the reason for the murders has Kate slowly emerging from existing to living. The ending is as riveting as all the others have been. The next book I'm sure,will be as excellent as the one's preceding Midnight Come Again.