Alex’s best friend, Jackie Connery, owner of the Glasgow Inn, a neighborhood bar and grill, is trying to get Alex out of his blue funk. To this end, he invites him to sit in for a regular in Jackie’s weekly poker game. Alex grudgingly agrees, and accompanies Jackie to the Sault Ste. Marie home of Winston Vargas, a fellow well known for the construction of Bay Harbor, an upscale planned community near Petosky.

After the usual pleasantries have been exchanged, the game begins. Soon Vargas’ watchdog, an aggressive little Chihuahua begins barking maniacally. Three armed, masked burglars enter the house and force all the players to lie down on the floor. Two of them stand watch over the men while the third busies himself in the other rooms of the home. Obviously the thieves have done their homework as they make off with Vargas’ collection of Michigan artifacts, and the contents of his safe. Fortunately none of the six men are harmed, and they immediately contact the police.

The police interview each of the men at length. When Alex’s turn comes, he is upset to learn that the police consider him a suspect. They think that he is the “inside man” since he was not one of the regular players, and the thieves were too familiar with Vargas’ house not to have had prior knowledge. Eventually, other evidence convinces them to turn their attention toward three of the other poker players. Alex’s friend, Jackie happens to be one of the chosen. Alex thus feels obligated to investigate the situation on his own. His opinion of local police Chief Maven has made him reluctant to trust law enforcement to properly unravel the threads of this complex problem.

Steve Hamilton has delivered another first class mystery in North of Nowhere. The intricate plot is beautifully executed with sufficient twists to keep even the most sophisticated mystery buff guessing. The book starts out prosaically enough with hints that the developer Vargas may be behind the robbery, since the man is definitely a little sketchy, but multiple surprises await the reader. Yet, there are no instances of fortuitous coincidences occurring which are necessary for the plot to work. The characters act and react as one would expect them to according to the situation.

For fans of the series, some of the usual cast of characters play a prominent role. Since Jackie is a prime suspect in the police investigation he gets a lot of attention, and the reader learns something of Jackie’s past. Alex is given a brief biography of his friend Jackie by another friend and is amazed that Jackie though born in Scotland, really has his roots in Michigan. Alex can’t believe he is that ignorant of his friend’s history, and exclaims, “Why didn’t he tell me?” To which the friend replies you never asked.

Leon Prudell, ace private investigator, provides some comic relief. He tries so hard to be a capable detective. He does his homework and knows how things should be done, but things never seem to go as he plans. And, of course, Alex’s exchanges with Chief Maven are an excellent example of dry humor at its best.

Due to the circumstances of the plot, the story has to occur during that brief interlude known as summer in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. We therefore miss Mr. Hamilton’s deadly accurate descriptions of serious winter. However, warmer temperatures in this climate provide conditions unique to this region.

The author also provides some interesting social commentary on land development and wealthy individuals. I was particularly struck by Alex’s definition of “old money” versus “ new money.” Old money is discreet, new money is ostentatious. That seems about right to me.

Although Alex’s last outing in The Hunting Wind was not as compelling as the previous entries in the series, North of Nowhere is up to Mr. Hamilton’s usual high standards. If you are a Steve Hamilton fan or looking for an excellent mystery novel, your money would not be ill spent to buy a copy now.

--Andy Plonka