To Die Alone in the Yukon

by Lynn Berk

After five months of teaching in Alaska, Lydia Falkner is back in the Yukon Territory. She is anxious to return to her beloved wilderness cabin. The salmon are running, the bears are afoot, and the fireweed is in bloom. Lydia longs to embrace it all. But, at the request of Teddy an old and dear friend, she will first visit a salmon research project on the Yukon River. The researchers share a camp with a group of mushroom pickers, a diverse and interesting group. Lydia befriends a small boy and together they wait for Teddy to return to camp. Teddy never arrives. A search ensues and it is not until evening that the body is discovered at a hundred year old mining site. It is murder. There are no clues and no obvious motives. Was Teddy assaulted by one of the mushroom hunters? by the archeologist who lives at the mining site? by the placer miners who live nearby in the woods?

Lydia is obsessed by Teddy’s death and travels the Territory searching for information. Three more bodies are discovered in very different environments, under very different circumstances. There is no obvious connection between these four deaths and yet one name keeps surfacing. As the summer wears on, more details emerge but none of them are illuminating until an astonishing answer comes from an astonishing source. This revelation nearly costs Lydia her life.

271 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 7, 2017

Reviews

[Susan P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Murder mystery that takes place near Dawson City, Yukon. Particularly interesting to me because we've visited the area so many times. Needs some editing.

[Amanda Sheridan · Rating 5 out of 5]

To Die Alone in the Yukon by Lynn Berk is an excellent drama set in northern Canada. When Lydia’s friend, Teddy, disappears she begins searching for the missing woman and, in doing so, uncovers some pot-growing hippies, another murder and a cult that has killed an elderly school teacher and an elderly priest who both taught in Indian schools. While there is plenty of action, great descriptions of the Yukon and life there in this harsh wilderness as well as excellent, well-fleshed out characters, it is the main plot of the story that lifts the novel above that of a run-of-the-mill crime thriller. This book concentrates on, and highlights, the awful abuse carried out on First Nation people, especially children, all in the name of assimilation which has destroyed their culture and taken away who they are. It is a heart-breaking, gripping read and one I would recommend highly.

[Allison Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sound of this book was very enticing. The descriptions of the setting and characters in the book were awesome in my opinion. I was able to imagine myself in the book and environment. Towards the end, the twist in suspects and rivals had me not wanting to put it down. I will say, the grammatical errors and punctuation errors were quite annoying though. It was difficult to understand quotes in certain parts. Overall I would read another one of her books.

[Karen]

Fun read, especially if you've been to Dawson City and on the Yukon River.

[Sharon Anfenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lynn Berk writes with knowledge and passion. You can easily visualize the Yukon Territory. Her characters are people you want to be friends with and keep in touch!

[Lyle Lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A murder mystery set in a place many people know little about. An easy to read page turner. I really liked it. Great entertainment on a rainy long weekend.

[Marilyn Stebner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome read

Hard to put down once you start . Can’t wait to star the third. Book.👍🏻
Highly recommend this author .

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

ALASKA, AGAIN

I hope this author can continue to write. To produce quality work like this book, however, can be a challenge, and dealing with multiple murders, and recording their impact on both the other victims, and, at times, the killers, is not for the faint of heart. Or those gifted souls that feel so much.
Again, great characters. Well developed, from the old priest to the little boy. The recurrent characters from the previous book are the most visible, marked most indelibly on the page. Others marked strong - a hippy couple trying to strike in rich on a small plot of land, a mushroom picker (or several mushroom pickers), and, as I mentioned, a small child. There are grandmothers, and elders, and bar scene people, all in all, yes, a whole small town.
The plots are wonderful, with bits of drama, and crotchety realism.
I strongly recommend reading the first book first.