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Alex McKnight #6
Ice Run
New York Times Bestselling Author of Die a Stranger
Edgar Award–winner Steve Hamilton introduced one of the most compelling characters in modern fiction with Alex McKnight. In Ice Run, Alex finds himself in the middle of a very strange mystery with much greater consequences than he ever anticipated. . . .
Alex McKnight is happier than he can remember being in a long time. And it's all because of a woman—Natalie Reynaud, a Canadian police officer. When they take a romantic weekend together at an old luxury hotel, however, they receive an unexpected message—someone has left a hat filled with snow, and a note that reads, "I know who you are."
As Alex searches for an explanation, he must face up against a terrible Reynaud family secret, a secret that to this day still drives men to kill.
Edgar Award–winner Steve Hamilton introduced one of the most compelling characters in modern fiction with Alex McKnight. In Ice Run, Alex finds himself in the middle of a very strange mystery with much greater consequences than he ever anticipated. . . .
Alex McKnight is happier than he can remember being in a long time. And it's all because of a woman—Natalie Reynaud, a Canadian police officer. When they take a romantic weekend together at an old luxury hotel, however, they receive an unexpected message—someone has left a hat filled with snow, and a note that reads, "I know who you are."
As Alex searches for an explanation, he must face up against a terrible Reynaud family secret, a secret that to this day still drives men to kill.
352 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2004
106 people are currently reading
970 people want to read
About the author
Steve Hamilton
53 books1,684 followersTwo-time Edgar Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of the Nick Mason series, The Lock Artist, and the Alex McKnight series. AN HONORABLE ASSASSIN (Mason #3) coming August 27, 2024!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 253 reviews
January 8, 2025
A chilling winter thriller. A perfect read for a frigid January where the freezing Michigan and Canadian landscape serves as one of the main characters, from frozen rivers and lakes to snowstorms piling feet of snow atop the ground burying both vehicles and the occasional body.
My first read in the Alex McKnight series, it won’t be my last. Alex is a great character even though his decision making skills are pretty poor at times he adheres to the principles of always doing what is right and helping those who need helping.
My first read in the Alex McKnight series, it won’t be my last. Alex is a great character even though his decision making skills are pretty poor at times he adheres to the principles of always doing what is right and helping those who need helping.
August 2, 2018
Alex McKnight meets up with his lady love. An old man wearing a distinctive hat says something to him in the corridor of the hotel. Then the old man wanders outside in the cold and freezes to death.
Alex, for no good reason, starts poking around, gets his butt kicked, and eventually unearths a mystery going back to the rum running days.
For a guy that used to be a Detroit cop, McKnight is such a naif, I felt like throwing the book across the room
Alex, for no good reason, starts poking around, gets his butt kicked, and eventually unearths a mystery going back to the rum running days.
For a guy that used to be a Detroit cop, McKnight is such a naif, I felt like throwing the book across the room
August 6, 2024
An interesting take on the crime novel. Gives it a bit of a family history and family trauma aspect that isn't usually around. One of the better Alex McKnight novels. My biggest complaint about these novels is the amplitude of the narrative never emotionally goes super high or super low. There are moments that are horrible (beatings, shootings, breakups) that are horrible, but Hamilton writes them almost surgically. The humanity is partially there. I can feel the pain of Alex in recovery, but he just doesn't dip deep enough into the well that say a Matt Bell or a Brian Evenson can evoke. The despair that exists in a pit, constantly gets shielded from the reader. Minor issue, but I keep wondering why I both like these books at one level, but never LOVE any of them.
February 25, 2011
I've read all the books in the series and I'm starting to feel like Alex McKnight is a real person.
There is a paragraph in this book that I marked to quote.
"I'd known enough liars in my life. You can't be a cop without meeting plenty of them. For the worst of them, the truly hopeless born liars, maybe this is how it all starts, by keeping a tight lid on your own secrets. By never revealing the truth about yourself. When you've learned to control the truth, then you can start bending it. Just a little at first, then a little more when you see what it can do for you. A lie can open doors for you. Or close them."
There is a paragraph in this book that I marked to quote.
"I'd known enough liars in my life. You can't be a cop without meeting plenty of them. For the worst of them, the truly hopeless born liars, maybe this is how it all starts, by keeping a tight lid on your own secrets. By never revealing the truth about yourself. When you've learned to control the truth, then you can start bending it. Just a little at first, then a little more when you see what it can do for you. A lie can open doors for you. Or close them."
September 5, 2019
This book was a delight.
I absolutely adore the character of Alex McKnight. He's a real mess, but we understand why and love him all the more for it. Seriously, what else can Steve Hamilton put this guy through?
I won't spoil it, but the final setting of this book was especially fun.
Keep them coming, Steve. Just keep them coming.
Note: This is mainstream fiction and has a few adult scenes (brief) as well as some offensive language (more than his other books I think, but I found it easy to forgive because of what the character was going through).
I absolutely adore the character of Alex McKnight. He's a real mess, but we understand why and love him all the more for it. Seriously, what else can Steve Hamilton put this guy through?
I won't spoil it, but the final setting of this book was especially fun.
Keep them coming, Steve. Just keep them coming.
Note: This is mainstream fiction and has a few adult scenes (brief) as well as some offensive language (more than his other books I think, but I found it easy to forgive because of what the character was going through).
January 1, 2013
Darn you, Steve Hamilton!!
How am I supposed to get any work done around the house once I've started one of your Alex McKnight novels?? (*) They are almost impossible to put down, and Ice Run is no exception.
Who knew that there was so much mystery to mine in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan?? (Yeah, OK, Henry Kisor & Joseph Heyward did, but we'll leave them to reviews of their own works.) Even if you do occasionally foray across the border into southwestern Ontario? Yes, your characters - Alex, Jackie, Vinnie, and the like - feel almost like family; I want to drop into the Glasgow for a Molson's and a shot of Jameson's. I want to see the locks from the casino in the Sault. I want to ride snowmobiles through the woods by the cabins outside Paradise - even if it WILL p-ss off Alex!
Ice Run felt a bit more convoluted than some of your earlier works. I had to stop a little more often, think about what I'd just read, and try to figure out how it fit in with what I'd already read. BUT I suppose a little thinking isn't a bad thing, even in escapist mysteries. Still, a lesser McKnight novel is still better than a good any day.
Consider this a 4 1/2 to 4 3/4 rating, rounded up to 5. Looking forward to "A Stolen Season".
(*) I have not yet read "The Lock Artist" or any other standalone works you may have done, so I limit my comments to the Paradise series.
How am I supposed to get any work done around the house once I've started one of your Alex McKnight novels?? (*) They are almost impossible to put down, and Ice Run is no exception.
Who knew that there was so much mystery to mine in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan?? (Yeah, OK, Henry Kisor & Joseph Heyward did, but we'll leave them to reviews of their own works.) Even if you do occasionally foray across the border into southwestern Ontario? Yes, your characters - Alex, Jackie, Vinnie, and the like - feel almost like family; I want to drop into the Glasgow for a Molson's and a shot of Jameson's. I want to see the locks from the casino in the Sault. I want to ride snowmobiles through the woods by the cabins outside Paradise - even if it WILL p-ss off Alex!
Ice Run felt a bit more convoluted than some of your earlier works. I had to stop a little more often, think about what I'd just read, and try to figure out how it fit in with what I'd already read. BUT I suppose a little thinking isn't a bad thing, even in escapist mysteries. Still, a lesser McKnight novel is still better than a good any day.
Consider this a 4 1/2 to 4 3/4 rating, rounded up to 5. Looking forward to "A Stolen Season".
(*) I have not yet read "The Lock Artist" or any other standalone works you may have done, so I limit my comments to the Paradise series.
February 7, 2017
The fisticuffs and slit eyebrows and concussions and cracked ribs get really, really, really, really, really tiresome and repetitive in this series. Alex should be dead by now from CTE if not blood loss and what HAS TO BE a migrating bullet near his heart, given all the punches he's taken to the chest. Hamilton writes great scenes but his plotting and wrap-ups leave much to be desired. I need a break from this series. He writes just as well or better than C.J. Box and William Kent Krueger (both of whose heroes live and fight and do their PI/sheriff/game warden/macho man thang in the snowy upper Midwest) but he falls far short of both in plotting, resolution and overall credibility and catharsis. Love reading Hamilton's series for the writing and compelling drive but am always somewhat and somehow disappointed in the whole.
November 2, 2021
I have to say that I am a huge fan of this series. I just love Alex McKnight. But, to be honest, this story was a big "nothing burger" - I am reading the series in order , so this was next for me. Lets just say that I'm looking forward to picking up book #7 - this way I can forget about book number 6!
They all can't be 4 and 5 stars, !!
They all can't be 4 and 5 stars, !!
July 1, 2023
The sliver lining for Alex McKnight from the rough events of the last book, _Blood is the Sky_ (book 5 of the series) is one, a much repaired and rehabilitated friendship with his best friend and neighbor Vinnie LeBlanc, and two, Alex is now in love with one of the key figures of book 5, Natalie Reynaud, an officer from the Ontario Provincial Police. The two are dating and planning a rendezvous in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the historic Ojibwa Hotel (dating back to the 1920s), partially because Alex isn’t ready to introduce Natalie to Vinnie and Jackie over at the Glasgow, partially because Alex doesn’t want Natalie to see his “bachelor pad” but rather the nicest place in the area, the Ojibwa Hotel.
There is a much older gentlemen at the hotel, seems harmless enough, eccentric, quite possibly with dementia, is wearing a distinctive hat from a bygone era, and at first appears to know Alex. Leaving his distinctive hat outside their hotel room (stuffed with snow and ice, ruining the hat, but also with a cryptic note), the man disappears…and is found frozen to death the next morning in the street a few blocks away, apparently having wandered out into the freezing February night, fallen, and died in the snow.
Through a series of events, the two find out that the man didn’t know Alex at all, but knew Natalie somehow, with neither of them having any idea who this man is (turns out to be named Simon Grant). Unfortunately for Alex, Simon has some very rough relatives, who beat Alex within an inch of his life, incorrectly blaming Alex for the man’s death.
The rest of the book is investigating who Simon Grant was, what connections he had to Natalie, why the Grant family blames Alex, along the way finding out Natalie’s family has some dark ties going back to the Soo not only as far back as the early 1970s but many decades earlier, the story taking Alex to Ontario and to a climatic showdown in Michigan but not in the Upper Peninsula.
Great pacing, good to see evolution in the characters in the story, especially surprisingly Chief Roy Maven. It was good to get a new regular character, Natalie, and the author uses all the old favorites including Jackie, Vinnie (who is a key figure), and Leon Prudell (also important). Negatives, some of the ups and downs of Alex’s and Natalie’s relationship could be a little draining at times and it was a little hard for me to keep track of the complicated family/blood feud dynamics of the big mystery, but I did enjoy it and loved having a story that went that far back in history. The story has a few moments of humor I enjoyed though it is also a dark and violent tale with quite a few deaths. I liked getting glimpses of how Alex’s neck of the woods was different, not only in the late 1960s/early 1970s, but many decades before.
There is a much older gentlemen at the hotel, seems harmless enough, eccentric, quite possibly with dementia, is wearing a distinctive hat from a bygone era, and at first appears to know Alex. Leaving his distinctive hat outside their hotel room (stuffed with snow and ice, ruining the hat, but also with a cryptic note), the man disappears…and is found frozen to death the next morning in the street a few blocks away, apparently having wandered out into the freezing February night, fallen, and died in the snow.
Through a series of events, the two find out that the man didn’t know Alex at all, but knew Natalie somehow, with neither of them having any idea who this man is (turns out to be named Simon Grant). Unfortunately for Alex, Simon has some very rough relatives, who beat Alex within an inch of his life, incorrectly blaming Alex for the man’s death.
The rest of the book is investigating who Simon Grant was, what connections he had to Natalie, why the Grant family blames Alex, along the way finding out Natalie’s family has some dark ties going back to the Soo not only as far back as the early 1970s but many decades earlier, the story taking Alex to Ontario and to a climatic showdown in Michigan but not in the Upper Peninsula.
Great pacing, good to see evolution in the characters in the story, especially surprisingly Chief Roy Maven. It was good to get a new regular character, Natalie, and the author uses all the old favorites including Jackie, Vinnie (who is a key figure), and Leon Prudell (also important). Negatives, some of the ups and downs of Alex’s and Natalie’s relationship could be a little draining at times and it was a little hard for me to keep track of the complicated family/blood feud dynamics of the big mystery, but I did enjoy it and loved having a story that went that far back in history. The story has a few moments of humor I enjoyed though it is also a dark and violent tale with quite a few deaths. I liked getting glimpses of how Alex’s neck of the woods was different, not only in the late 1960s/early 1970s, but many decades before.
December 18, 2014
I think it's safe to classify me as a fan of Steve Hamilton's by now. Ice Run is money in the bank and is a good example of why.
The Alex McKnight series has created memorable characters and locales that are so easy to fit right back into, a warm glove. The series (and Ice Run) has a pitch-perfect balance of setting, plot, and dialogue. The pace crackles but doesn't move so fast that you can't feel the cold in your bones, the intrigue of the plot, and the emotion of the characters. In fact, there's very little to not like about Ice Run. I particularly like how, in this sixth outing, the characters still feel fresh yet familiar, enough that you'd brave the loads of snow dumped in the pages just to hang out with them.
Hamilton does an excellent job at making the supporting cast of Ice Run feel unique, each of the minor characters seeming significant enough to last past the final page. And that's quite a task, because there are parts when the cast can get a little bit crowded, so for Hamilton to handle that deftly deserves a round of applause.
Maybe the only place Ice Run isn't a white-hot success is that while the emotion is always palpable and present, I didn't find "THAT" moment--one where the action or story boils over into a singular moment where the reader is left speechless and shuddering. That won't turn off some folks, though, because the rest is just so very good.
Recommended for just about everyone who loves fiction, even those new to this series. Hamilton made it rewarding for regular readers, but accessible for new ones as well. Ice Run wasn't published this year, but it's definitely one of the best books I've read this year. And it puts Steve Hamilton on my always-read list, which, honestly, was long overdue.
The Alex McKnight series has created memorable characters and locales that are so easy to fit right back into, a warm glove. The series (and Ice Run) has a pitch-perfect balance of setting, plot, and dialogue. The pace crackles but doesn't move so fast that you can't feel the cold in your bones, the intrigue of the plot, and the emotion of the characters. In fact, there's very little to not like about Ice Run. I particularly like how, in this sixth outing, the characters still feel fresh yet familiar, enough that you'd brave the loads of snow dumped in the pages just to hang out with them.
Hamilton does an excellent job at making the supporting cast of Ice Run feel unique, each of the minor characters seeming significant enough to last past the final page. And that's quite a task, because there are parts when the cast can get a little bit crowded, so for Hamilton to handle that deftly deserves a round of applause.
Maybe the only place Ice Run isn't a white-hot success is that while the emotion is always palpable and present, I didn't find "THAT" moment--one where the action or story boils over into a singular moment where the reader is left speechless and shuddering. That won't turn off some folks, though, because the rest is just so very good.
Recommended for just about everyone who loves fiction, even those new to this series. Hamilton made it rewarding for regular readers, but accessible for new ones as well. Ice Run wasn't published this year, but it's definitely one of the best books I've read this year. And it puts Steve Hamilton on my always-read list, which, honestly, was long overdue.
September 19, 2014
An exciting page-turner, but not up to the usual standards of the series. Motives, characters, and plot are just a touch too unbelievable for me. Alex has gotten himself beat-up a few too many times, and Natalie has just gotten annoying as his eager-then-reluctant girlfriend. Still, the cold, stormy, remote, life-threatening Upper Peninsula is almost a character in itself, and scary as it is, it's far less dangerous than that dark, ocean-sized lake out there.
January 22, 2016
Hamilton writes really well, but some things in his stories really irritates me. In this book, Natalie Reynaud was all over the place and really annoying. Also, I understand it's a story, but there are some things an ex cop and or a current cop wouldn't do. As I like Hamilton's writing style, I will continue to read the books and finish the series; I just hope the rest of the series is put together a little better (not all over the place) and a little more believable.
August 28, 2023
3.5 stars for Ice Run. I picked up this book at a Michigan bookstore because of my love of the Upper Peninsula, where the book is set. While I like the Alex McKnight character and enjoyed references to the beautiful Lake Superior town of Paradise, I found McKnight’s naïveté a bit unbelievable. He’s Jack Reacher, mixing it up with the bad guys at every turn, but minus a lick of common sense. Reacher is strategic and methodical, while McKnight is a punching bag with a couple friends who join him in doing dumb things.
March 7, 2020
Took me a while to finish this one, not because it's not good - it is. But Alex gets the snot beaten out of him more than once here, and honestly, I like the character so much, I had to take a break from reading this book. It was getting that intense!
June 30, 2023
I love Alex McKnight but I am not loving this girlfriend. I am hopeful she makes an exit soon.
September 8, 2025
super slow, the ending was not worth slogging through 300 pages
July 14, 2017
这个系列比较喜欢的一个地方是，主角又老又不太有本事。
June 15, 2009
We listened to this as an audiobook on the drive up to Mackinac for summer vacation. I freely admit the narrator (whose name eludes me) didn't help the book's case, but here's my review, in summary.
Oh, my, GOD. She looked at me with THOSE EYES. GOD DAMMIT ALL! Son of A bitch. Good guy! Bad guy! Family feud! THOSE EYES! Blood. Blood! Spinning! THOSE EYEEEES! That face! GOD DAMMIT ALL!
Perhaps if I'd read other books in the series, the characters might've resonated more; I suspect that, overall, this isn't much worse (or much better) than the Stephanie Plum series, although probably less hilarious. As a stand-alone novel, it was like the characters just didn't exist beyond the borders of the book, and the mystery wasn't very mysterious. I'll likely read another in the series, just to give it a fair shot.
But MY GOD. That prose.
Oh, my, GOD. She looked at me with THOSE EYES. GOD DAMMIT ALL! Son of A bitch. Good guy! Bad guy! Family feud! THOSE EYES! Blood. Blood! Spinning! THOSE EYEEEES! That face! GOD DAMMIT ALL!
Perhaps if I'd read other books in the series, the characters might've resonated more; I suspect that, overall, this isn't much worse (or much better) than the Stephanie Plum series, although probably less hilarious. As a stand-alone novel, it was like the characters just didn't exist beyond the borders of the book, and the mystery wasn't very mysterious. I'll likely read another in the series, just to give it a fair shot.
But MY GOD. That prose.
January 11, 2014
it is not clear how the romance will end. The couple were together at the end of the book. But it is open ended meaning Hamilton can get a different girl friend for his hero if he needs one. It is in a James Lee Burke style. Independent guy. Ex cop. Doesn't always think first. Has some very loyal and helpful friends. Hero gets beat up badly. This is a love interest. The Grant boys get the raw end of the deal all the way around. The Deus ex machina of a solution is a video tape. I wanted to finish the story and find out how it ended, but it was not a mystery that you as the reader were supposed to be able to solve as you read it.
August 4, 2015
First time to read Hamilton and enjoyed it very much. But it revealed too much of the previous books in the series, which make it less desirable for me to read them. Perhaps I should have read it from #1 in the series. Anyway, it was a good read and glad to find a new author to follow.
December 12, 2009
all the Mcknight series of novels draw me in as if I am there and I am just captivated and do not want to stop reading until I am thru the whole book. I usually read them in 1 to 2 days.
November 9, 2015
I'm starting to like this series very much, Natalie is a crazy chick Alex is still More crazier than her ,seriously this guy will do anything ....
October 16, 2016
I love being in the middle of a good series
Can wait for the next one! It'll be a sad day when I get to the end of this series.
Can wait for the next one! It'll be a sad day when I get to the end of this series.
September 29, 2013
1st from hamilton for me. ice run, (alex mcknight, #6). paperback, 2004...dedicated to nonna and donna
story begins:
in a land of hard winters, the hardest of all is the winter that fills you with false hope. it's the kind of winter that starts out easy. you get the white christmas, but it's a light snow, six inches tops, the stuff that makes everything look like a postcard. the sun comes out during the day. you can take your coat off if you're working hard enough. the nights are quiet. the stars shine between the silver clouds. you celebrate new year's. you make resolutions.it snows again and you run the plow. you shovel. you chop wood. you sit inside at night by the fire. you say to yourself, this ain't so bad. a little cold weather is good for a man. it makes you feel alive.
okee dokee then, as the good doctor said (bullwinkle moose hockey team, 1969)...onward & upward.
time place scene setting
*story opens late in january and continues step-by-step to valentine's day
*paradise, michigan...the u.p. may it do ya fine, the upper peninsula of michigan, though hamilton has not, as yet (to page 46) used that phrase. on whitefish bay, lake superior
*the ojibway hotel, at the soo
*the first cabin...at paradise, where alex lives
*the glasgow inn, jackie, owner
*the dining room of the ojibway hotel
*room #601, top floor, where natalie stays, ojibway hotel
*the beer store across the bridge...paradise
*place where gas is purchased, no name provided, owner ruthie
*ashmun, portage streets...at the soo
*city county building, court street, sault st marie, michigan, called "the soo"...or "soo michigan" as there is a soo canada, where the locks are located that navigate the difference in lake levels, superior and huron/michigan
*custom motor shop, where leon works
*st mary's on portage avenue, sault st marie, where simon grant's funeral is held
*chinese buffet...the antlers for hamburgers....natalie's jeep...
*grant brothers auto glass shop on spruce, grant's auto glass
*batchawana bay, where natalie's mother lives canada
*a cessna...snowmobiles...chippewa hotel/grant hotel at the island
*blind river canada
characters<
*alex mcknight, eye-narrator, living alone, unmarried, in a cabin he helped his father build in paradise, michigan on whitefish bay of lake superior. alex played single-a ball in sarasota as a younger man...was a cop, detroit, for eight years, had a partner gunned down, he was wounded...his old man worked for ford motors...his mother died when he was eight years old
*jackie connery, owner proprietor of the glasgow inn, a 60-yr-old scot from glasgow
*vinnie leblanc, friend of alex, lives on the reservation in brimley
*vinnie's brother, past tense, deceased i think
*vinnie's mother
**natalie reynaud, alex's coming-along girlfriend...from canada, where she is a constable with the ontario provincial police in hearst
*claude demers, senior constable, her partner
*franklin, old partner, past, of alex
*man who was harassing people at the hospital/killed franklin
*step-father of natalie, albert demarco
*her parents, grandparents...father died, mother remarried, albert died
*jimmy natoli, an almost for natalie...he wanted her to quit being a cop...so no go
*ruthie...owns a place where alex gases up his truck
*six people in the place..jackie's
*young man out front, trying to shovel the snow, ojibway hotel...the reader learns later that he is chris woosley
*man sitting there in the lobby...old man, ojibway hotel...and later, we learn his name is simon grant, an 82-yr-old
*woman at the desk, ojibway hotel
*waitress at the ojibway hotel dining room
*100 people w/snow shovels
*leon prudell, works at the custom motor shop, although what he really would like to do is private investigative work, as he did do w/alex once upon a time
*eleanor, leon's wife
*chief maven, chief of police sault st marie, the soo...he has a wife
*a different woman behind the desk at the ojibway
*a young man opened the door w/money in his hand (chris's roommate)...and we learn later, his name is russ
*a friend of leon's at the sault evening news
*a priest...simon grant's funeral
**michael grant, son of simon grant
**marty grant, son of simon grant
*the two sons each have a wife, one couple has 2 teens childs and the other has one son
*mrs. woosley...sister of the grant brothers, mother of chris, married
*a doctor, doctor glenn...tends to alex
*the man who brought him to hispital
*a nurse
*buck, vinnie's cousin, in a plymouth fury
*vinnie's other cousin, henry
*a beagle mutt of natalie's...keon...after dave keon of the maple leafs
mrs. demarco...albert's mother
*flo...celia...nurses of mrs. demarco's
*luc reynaud...grandfather of natalie
*jean sylvain reynaud, biological father of natalie...killed at "the soo" on new year's eve, 1973
*mac henderson, lead detective on that case, yay ago
*natalie's mother, grace reynaud...and we never really see her save in natalie's telling of stories. curious, that.
*officer donovan
*sergeant moreland, natalie's superior officer from the hearst detachment
*people in a bar
*border agents
*a cessna pilot and other people who fly back and forth between mackinac island and the peninsula
*that's most of them...a handful of additional scene-characters...
there is a mrs larusso, chippewa hotel...a gail at the front desk...tony...who kept on eye on mr grant...harlow, leon's boss at the motor shop...a don who's in the bathroom (bar scene)
update, finished, 1 oct 13, tuesday evening, 8:38 p.m. e.s.t.
all done...i liked it, 3-stars. which means it is a good story. i liked it. i almost pret' near really liked it. stars. meh. read the darn thing if you like a good mystery/thriller/who-dunnit/budding-love-story. i'll read more from hamilton, given time.
what works? nice peppy narrative, never-a-dull moment. lots of dialogue, nothing wrong with that, some scene-settings, dialogue getting there, dialogue during, climax, on to the next event. a few sentences...a handful...a small basket-full...i didn't keep track...some sentences were too short, abrupt...it was dark, one that comes to mind. nicely ambiguous...until you, the gentle reader, realize that hamilton through the 3rd-person eyes of alex mcknight, is referring to the restaurant--that had been open earlier, an hour say. or is it the night? first thought. and with that, sheesh...it was a dark and dreary night. but yeah, okay, so the staccato-burst of structure is meant to relay something, nessay pas? action. lights. camera.
the story moves around...a lot...doesn't stay much in paradise, michigan, that cabin in the woods that alex helped his old man build. story goes to the soo...called "the soo" by michiganders...yoopers...others...place where the locks are located and the ore carriers move from one lake to another, huron to superior. story goes to "soo canada" and other points north. story moves back and forth...story heads out to mackinac island...place where no cars are, horses pulling carriages, except in the winter when snowmobiles are everywhere...pronounced "mackinaw island"...as in, i'd like some of that mackinack island fudge, please...tourists.
hamilton uses the word "chippewa" once...word i am told, is the french mispronunciation of ojibway...and there's another word for ojibway that i can't produce here, not correctly...(anishinaabe)...the point, chippewa is a word that is a mispronunciation of the original. blame george bush.
there's this one, a vehicle is buried in the snow. and...i live u.p. here...but even that was a bit hard to take...believe. tell someone we've gotten 400" of snow-fall some winters and they say yeah right. and...if i'm going to be "critical"...there are a few issues w/the storyline/motive...but the story moves fast enough that i didn't dwell on it. natalie's motives for what she does...perhaps some issues w/timing. like, the bad man would have already done the bad deed, my thinking...by the time things go down. but...things wait until all are on stage and i go with the flow...license and all.
good read. give it a go.
story begins:
in a land of hard winters, the hardest of all is the winter that fills you with false hope. it's the kind of winter that starts out easy. you get the white christmas, but it's a light snow, six inches tops, the stuff that makes everything look like a postcard. the sun comes out during the day. you can take your coat off if you're working hard enough. the nights are quiet. the stars shine between the silver clouds. you celebrate new year's. you make resolutions.it snows again and you run the plow. you shovel. you chop wood. you sit inside at night by the fire. you say to yourself, this ain't so bad. a little cold weather is good for a man. it makes you feel alive.
okee dokee then, as the good doctor said (bullwinkle moose hockey team, 1969)...onward & upward.
time place scene setting
*story opens late in january and continues step-by-step to valentine's day
*paradise, michigan...the u.p. may it do ya fine, the upper peninsula of michigan, though hamilton has not, as yet (to page 46) used that phrase. on whitefish bay, lake superior
*the ojibway hotel, at the soo
*the first cabin...at paradise, where alex lives
*the glasgow inn, jackie, owner
*the dining room of the ojibway hotel
*room #601, top floor, where natalie stays, ojibway hotel
*the beer store across the bridge...paradise
*place where gas is purchased, no name provided, owner ruthie
*ashmun, portage streets...at the soo
*city county building, court street, sault st marie, michigan, called "the soo"...or "soo michigan" as there is a soo canada, where the locks are located that navigate the difference in lake levels, superior and huron/michigan
*custom motor shop, where leon works
*st mary's on portage avenue, sault st marie, where simon grant's funeral is held
*chinese buffet...the antlers for hamburgers....natalie's jeep...
*grant brothers auto glass shop on spruce, grant's auto glass
*batchawana bay, where natalie's mother lives canada
*a cessna...snowmobiles...chippewa hotel/grant hotel at the island
*blind river canada
characters<
*alex mcknight, eye-narrator, living alone, unmarried, in a cabin he helped his father build in paradise, michigan on whitefish bay of lake superior. alex played single-a ball in sarasota as a younger man...was a cop, detroit, for eight years, had a partner gunned down, he was wounded...his old man worked for ford motors...his mother died when he was eight years old
*jackie connery, owner proprietor of the glasgow inn, a 60-yr-old scot from glasgow
*vinnie leblanc, friend of alex, lives on the reservation in brimley
*vinnie's brother, past tense, deceased i think
*vinnie's mother
**natalie reynaud, alex's coming-along girlfriend...from canada, where she is a constable with the ontario provincial police in hearst
*claude demers, senior constable, her partner
*franklin, old partner, past, of alex
*man who was harassing people at the hospital/killed franklin
*step-father of natalie, albert demarco
*her parents, grandparents...father died, mother remarried, albert died
*jimmy natoli, an almost for natalie...he wanted her to quit being a cop...so no go
*ruthie...owns a place where alex gases up his truck
*six people in the place..jackie's
*young man out front, trying to shovel the snow, ojibway hotel...the reader learns later that he is chris woosley
*man sitting there in the lobby...old man, ojibway hotel...and later, we learn his name is simon grant, an 82-yr-old
*woman at the desk, ojibway hotel
*waitress at the ojibway hotel dining room
*100 people w/snow shovels
*leon prudell, works at the custom motor shop, although what he really would like to do is private investigative work, as he did do w/alex once upon a time
*eleanor, leon's wife
*chief maven, chief of police sault st marie, the soo...he has a wife
*a different woman behind the desk at the ojibway
*a young man opened the door w/money in his hand (chris's roommate)...and we learn later, his name is russ
*a friend of leon's at the sault evening news
*a priest...simon grant's funeral
**michael grant, son of simon grant
**marty grant, son of simon grant
*the two sons each have a wife, one couple has 2 teens childs and the other has one son
*mrs. woosley...sister of the grant brothers, mother of chris, married
*a doctor, doctor glenn...tends to alex
*the man who brought him to hispital
*a nurse
*buck, vinnie's cousin, in a plymouth fury
*vinnie's other cousin, henry
*a beagle mutt of natalie's...keon...after dave keon of the maple leafs
mrs. demarco...albert's mother
*flo...celia...nurses of mrs. demarco's
*luc reynaud...grandfather of natalie
*jean sylvain reynaud, biological father of natalie...killed at "the soo" on new year's eve, 1973
*mac henderson, lead detective on that case, yay ago
*natalie's mother, grace reynaud...and we never really see her save in natalie's telling of stories. curious, that.
*officer donovan
*sergeant moreland, natalie's superior officer from the hearst detachment
*people in a bar
*border agents
*a cessna pilot and other people who fly back and forth between mackinac island and the peninsula
*that's most of them...a handful of additional scene-characters...
there is a mrs larusso, chippewa hotel...a gail at the front desk...tony...who kept on eye on mr grant...harlow, leon's boss at the motor shop...a don who's in the bathroom (bar scene)
update, finished, 1 oct 13, tuesday evening, 8:38 p.m. e.s.t.
all done...i liked it, 3-stars. which means it is a good story. i liked it. i almost pret' near really liked it. stars. meh. read the darn thing if you like a good mystery/thriller/who-dunnit/budding-love-story. i'll read more from hamilton, given time.
what works? nice peppy narrative, never-a-dull moment. lots of dialogue, nothing wrong with that, some scene-settings, dialogue getting there, dialogue during, climax, on to the next event. a few sentences...a handful...a small basket-full...i didn't keep track...some sentences were too short, abrupt...it was dark, one that comes to mind. nicely ambiguous...until you, the gentle reader, realize that hamilton through the 3rd-person eyes of alex mcknight, is referring to the restaurant--that had been open earlier, an hour say. or is it the night? first thought. and with that, sheesh...it was a dark and dreary night. but yeah, okay, so the staccato-burst of structure is meant to relay something, nessay pas? action. lights. camera.
the story moves around...a lot...doesn't stay much in paradise, michigan, that cabin in the woods that alex helped his old man build. story goes to the soo...called "the soo" by michiganders...yoopers...others...place where the locks are located and the ore carriers move from one lake to another, huron to superior. story goes to "soo canada" and other points north. story moves back and forth...story heads out to mackinac island...place where no cars are, horses pulling carriages, except in the winter when snowmobiles are everywhere...pronounced "mackinaw island"...as in, i'd like some of that mackinack island fudge, please...tourists.
hamilton uses the word "chippewa" once...word i am told, is the french mispronunciation of ojibway...and there's another word for ojibway that i can't produce here, not correctly...(anishinaabe)...the point, chippewa is a word that is a mispronunciation of the original. blame george bush.
there's this one, a vehicle is buried in the snow. and...i live u.p. here...but even that was a bit hard to take...believe. tell someone we've gotten 400" of snow-fall some winters and they say yeah right. and...if i'm going to be "critical"...there are a few issues w/the storyline/motive...but the story moves fast enough that i didn't dwell on it. natalie's motives for what she does...perhaps some issues w/timing. like, the bad man would have already done the bad deed, my thinking...by the time things go down. but...things wait until all are on stage and i go with the flow...license and all.
good read. give it a go.
June 4, 2022
"In the land of hard winters, the hardest of all is the winter that fills you with false hope.”
Alex McKnight is a former Detroit Police Officer who took a disability retirement after an attack killed his partner and left Alex with a bullet one centimeter from his heart. He's attempting to live a simpler life renting out cabins that his father had built years ago in the tiny town of Paradise, in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. But sitting around with a book and keeping his nose out of other people’s issues isn’t his style. A loner for years yet, he always steps up to help a friend. Ice Run is connected to book #5, Blood in the Sky, in that Alex has fallen for a woman he met in that book, Natalie Reynaud, an officer with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). The feelings seem to be mutual.
In Ice Run Alex and Natalie have planned a romantic weekend rondevous at the old Ojibway Hotel but things seem to be stacked against them. First is the snowstorm, over a foot of the stuff with another 14 inches expected throughout the night. Then an old man neither has seen before buys them a bottle of bubbly in the restaurant, but never introduces himself, then they receive a message in an old hat. Someone has left the hat filled with snow outside their hotel room door with a note that reads, "I know who you are.” Neither Alex or Natalie have any idea who that man is, but they soon learn that the old man had frozen to death walking on the street that very night. Who is the note meant for? Who is that old man? The fact either Alex or Natalie have to have known him, but why are they both denying it? "I'd known enough liars in my life. You can't be a cop without meeting plenty of them. For the worst of them, the truly hopeless born liars, maybe this is how it all starts, by keeping a tight lid on your own secrets. By never revealing the truth about yourself. When you've learned to control the truth, then you can start bending it. Just a little at first, then a little more when you see what it can do for you. A lie can open doors for you. Or close them. A lie can keep you safe."
The book is told in the first person by Alex McKnight, a curmudgeonly, sarcastic, likable enough guy who makes a credible hero. It is well paced and the details are engrossing with a terrific bunch of supporting characters. This is a fun series with a lot of action and plenty of twists and turns. Ice Run is book 6 in the series and they just keep getting better. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#EmptyNestReader #instagram #IceRun #SteveHamilton #AlexMcKnightNovels #MinotaurBooks #mysteryfiction #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagramalabama #bookstagrammichigan #bookreviews #bookreviewer #bookrecommendations #JuneReads #readalittlelearnalittlelivealittle #librarybooks #AADLGram #AnnArborDistrictLibrary
Alex McKnight is a former Detroit Police Officer who took a disability retirement after an attack killed his partner and left Alex with a bullet one centimeter from his heart. He's attempting to live a simpler life renting out cabins that his father had built years ago in the tiny town of Paradise, in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. But sitting around with a book and keeping his nose out of other people’s issues isn’t his style. A loner for years yet, he always steps up to help a friend. Ice Run is connected to book #5, Blood in the Sky, in that Alex has fallen for a woman he met in that book, Natalie Reynaud, an officer with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). The feelings seem to be mutual.
In Ice Run Alex and Natalie have planned a romantic weekend rondevous at the old Ojibway Hotel but things seem to be stacked against them. First is the snowstorm, over a foot of the stuff with another 14 inches expected throughout the night. Then an old man neither has seen before buys them a bottle of bubbly in the restaurant, but never introduces himself, then they receive a message in an old hat. Someone has left the hat filled with snow outside their hotel room door with a note that reads, "I know who you are.” Neither Alex or Natalie have any idea who that man is, but they soon learn that the old man had frozen to death walking on the street that very night. Who is the note meant for? Who is that old man? The fact either Alex or Natalie have to have known him, but why are they both denying it? "I'd known enough liars in my life. You can't be a cop without meeting plenty of them. For the worst of them, the truly hopeless born liars, maybe this is how it all starts, by keeping a tight lid on your own secrets. By never revealing the truth about yourself. When you've learned to control the truth, then you can start bending it. Just a little at first, then a little more when you see what it can do for you. A lie can open doors for you. Or close them. A lie can keep you safe."
The book is told in the first person by Alex McKnight, a curmudgeonly, sarcastic, likable enough guy who makes a credible hero. It is well paced and the details are engrossing with a terrific bunch of supporting characters. This is a fun series with a lot of action and plenty of twists and turns. Ice Run is book 6 in the series and they just keep getting better. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#EmptyNestReader #instagram #IceRun #SteveHamilton #AlexMcKnightNovels #MinotaurBooks #mysteryfiction #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagramalabama #bookstagrammichigan #bookreviews #bookreviewer #bookrecommendations #JuneReads #readalittlelearnalittlelivealittle #librarybooks #AADLGram #AnnArborDistrictLibrary
July 2, 2017
Superfast paced book, lots of action
What the author(s) do with this series: Steve Hamilton started off slow but gets better and better This is part of the series called the Alex McKnight Novels. This paragraph applies to all books in this series. Alex is a former pro baseball player and a former cop. Both of those careers ended before they barely got started. McKnight becomes a very reluctant private investigator and brings a level of expertise not seen in most books.
The author always gives us a tour of Michigan as he does his investigation and invariably it’s cold. His description of the weather is almost visceral.
Do you need to read this series in order: YES or you miss out on too much of the back stories.
Triggers: there is an ample supply of violence – Our erstwhile private detective often ends up in the hospital. Many of the crimes investigated are homicides caused by guns, fires, beatings and so on.
Edgar Award-winner Steve Hamilton introduced one of the most compelling characters in modern fiction with Alex McKnight. Now Alex finds himself in the middle of a very strange mystery with much greater consequences than he ever anticipated... AN OLD MAN WITH A SECRET...It may be one of the worst winters in recent memory in Paradise, Michigan, but Alex McKnight is looking forward to spending some quality time with his new girlfriend, Natalie Reynaud, an officer from the Ontario Provincial Police. But a chance encounter with a mysterious old man, Simon Grant, turns chilling when he seems to know a lot about Natalie and her family. A BIZARRE NOTE...When Natalie and Alex return to their room later that evening, they discover the same hat the old man was wearing lying outside their room filled with ice and snow and containing a cryptic note: I know who you are! A day later, Simon Grant is found frozen to death in a snowdrift. A BLOOD FEUD FROM THE PAST Natalie and Alex are stunned. The mystery is just too much of a coincidence for Alex to ignore. His trail leads him to a blood feud buried decades ago in Natalie's family's past-an event that can still drive men to kill each other
What the author(s) do with this series: Steve Hamilton started off slow but gets better and better This is part of the series called the Alex McKnight Novels. This paragraph applies to all books in this series. Alex is a former pro baseball player and a former cop. Both of those careers ended before they barely got started. McKnight becomes a very reluctant private investigator and brings a level of expertise not seen in most books.
The author always gives us a tour of Michigan as he does his investigation and invariably it’s cold. His description of the weather is almost visceral.
Do you need to read this series in order: YES or you miss out on too much of the back stories.
Triggers: there is an ample supply of violence – Our erstwhile private detective often ends up in the hospital. Many of the crimes investigated are homicides caused by guns, fires, beatings and so on.
Edgar Award-winner Steve Hamilton introduced one of the most compelling characters in modern fiction with Alex McKnight. Now Alex finds himself in the middle of a very strange mystery with much greater consequences than he ever anticipated... AN OLD MAN WITH A SECRET...It may be one of the worst winters in recent memory in Paradise, Michigan, but Alex McKnight is looking forward to spending some quality time with his new girlfriend, Natalie Reynaud, an officer from the Ontario Provincial Police. But a chance encounter with a mysterious old man, Simon Grant, turns chilling when he seems to know a lot about Natalie and her family. A BIZARRE NOTE...When Natalie and Alex return to their room later that evening, they discover the same hat the old man was wearing lying outside their room filled with ice and snow and containing a cryptic note: I know who you are! A day later, Simon Grant is found frozen to death in a snowdrift. A BLOOD FEUD FROM THE PAST Natalie and Alex are stunned. The mystery is just too much of a coincidence for Alex to ignore. His trail leads him to a blood feud buried decades ago in Natalie's family's past-an event that can still drive men to kill each other
October 17, 2019
While I wouldn't call the Alex McKnight series light reading, compared to a some of what I read recently it's certainly lighter.
I've followed Alex from when we first learned about his history as a former cop with a bullet lodged permanently next to his heart and a man who can't leave well enough alone to his becoming a brother to his Ojibwa friend, Vinnie when they became involved in a murder with multiple victims in the woods of Canada.
During that adventure Alex met Natalie Reynaud so the ground was laid for Ice Run.
For the first time in a very long time Alex is in love, even though the "L" word isn't mentioned. But nothing runs smoothly in Alex's life and that's certainly true of Natalie and her family history.
Hamilton gives us a character that's flawed by with enough perseverance to overcome those flaws. If he's your friend he will walk with you through hell and do his best to help you find the way home. His character is believable as are the other recurring characters.
Normally a story such as the McKnight series are would be a 3 star tale at best, but Hamilton does such a believable job using the most fantastic circumstances that it elevates it to that 4th star for me.
I love the area of the U.P. whether it's winter or summer and Hamilton uses it well as another character of the stories.
This is a good mystery series with intrigue, action and characters that you can relate to.
I've followed Alex from when we first learned about his history as a former cop with a bullet lodged permanently next to his heart and a man who can't leave well enough alone to his becoming a brother to his Ojibwa friend, Vinnie when they became involved in a murder with multiple victims in the woods of Canada.
During that adventure Alex met Natalie Reynaud so the ground was laid for Ice Run.
For the first time in a very long time Alex is in love, even though the "L" word isn't mentioned. But nothing runs smoothly in Alex's life and that's certainly true of Natalie and her family history.
Hamilton gives us a character that's flawed by with enough perseverance to overcome those flaws. If he's your friend he will walk with you through hell and do his best to help you find the way home. His character is believable as are the other recurring characters.
Normally a story such as the McKnight series are would be a 3 star tale at best, but Hamilton does such a believable job using the most fantastic circumstances that it elevates it to that 4th star for me.
I love the area of the U.P. whether it's winter or summer and Hamilton uses it well as another character of the stories.
This is a good mystery series with intrigue, action and characters that you can relate to.
January 20, 2018
The book gets a little dismal at times with the old guy/young girl relationship and the constant snow and cold. But the mystery of why the girl is acting so strange keeps you reading. UP setting is great!
Alex McKnight has a new girlfriend, Natalie Reynaud, an officer from the ONtario Provincial Police that he was involved with on a case. Living in Paradise, Michigan on Lake Superior, he goes occasionally to her place across the border and east to Blind River - a long trip. So one time they meet at a hotel in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and an older gentleman leaves them a cryptic message before he freezes outdoors and his body gets run over by a snowplow. In attempting to figure out what the message meant, McKnight gets beaten up by family members at the older gentleman's funeral. The mystery deepens, and seems to involve a blood feud with Natalie's family from past generations. Can Alex solve this mystery before he or Natalie are murdered?
Alex McKnight has a new girlfriend, Natalie Reynaud, an officer from the ONtario Provincial Police that he was involved with on a case. Living in Paradise, Michigan on Lake Superior, he goes occasionally to her place across the border and east to Blind River - a long trip. So one time they meet at a hotel in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and an older gentleman leaves them a cryptic message before he freezes outdoors and his body gets run over by a snowplow. In attempting to figure out what the message meant, McKnight gets beaten up by family members at the older gentleman's funeral. The mystery deepens, and seems to involve a blood feud with Natalie's family from past generations. Can Alex solve this mystery before he or Natalie are murdered?
February 4, 2023
I have enjoyed this series because it is set in an area that I love, and it's fun to visualize the action from my own perspective. I feel if I have been in the Glasgow Inn and know the scenes and sounds outside the Ojibway Hotel.
The series has explored some interesting ... if not somewhat outlandish ... plot ideas. But at this point Alex McNight is not getting wiser: he still puts himself into dangerous situations (likely spurred by too much alcohol), acts impulsively, gets beaten up on regular basis, gets into gunfights, and gets on the wrong side of the local constabulary. He would be long dead by now if this were anything close to the real world.
There are many mysteries in the upper Great Lakes, and this would be a good time for McNight to explore some topics that do not have to be centered on physical violence. The formula is getting old, but the settings still compel me to read this unique series.
The series has explored some interesting ... if not somewhat outlandish ... plot ideas. But at this point Alex McNight is not getting wiser: he still puts himself into dangerous situations (likely spurred by too much alcohol), acts impulsively, gets beaten up on regular basis, gets into gunfights, and gets on the wrong side of the local constabulary. He would be long dead by now if this were anything close to the real world.
There are many mysteries in the upper Great Lakes, and this would be a good time for McNight to explore some topics that do not have to be centered on physical violence. The formula is getting old, but the settings still compel me to read this unique series.
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