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.
For some reason, it reads like a romance novel which incidentally is also a crime/thriller novel. Critics have written that Hamilton has written it in a masculine way though for the life of me I couldn't see how. I'm glad though that he did not create a simpering woman for his male protagonist (who I think is rather wise and mature, in an oddly hilarious way. I understand though that not everyone would see it the same way I do) who did not faint at the merest sound. I have to say though that there were certain circumstances that I wanted to hit her in the head, along with the author. Nevertheless, it was an entertaining read. Entertaining enough to make me want to read the whole Alex McKnight series. That or it was just by chance that I read the romantic book of an otherwise "masculine" and male-ego filled series.
What do You think about Ice Run (2005)?
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.
—Richard Brand
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."
—Roberta
Hamilton is one fine writer.His writing is compelling and one of those need to finish one more chapter kind of book.This was the sixth in his Alex McKnight series. Alex an ex cop from Detroit now living in Paradise Michigan.He owns some cabins that he rents out and is the kind of guy who helps friends in need.This time it is his lady love that we met in Blood Is In The Sky.How McKnight manages to survive the troubles he finds himself in is a mystery.It is winter in Paradise and Alex has to find out the truth even if it kills him...
—Carol
