Reading order · 22 books · 1998 to 2026 · Set in the fictional Aurora, Minnesota
Cork O’Connor Books in Order
Cork O’Connor, part Irish and part Ojibwe, is the former sheriff of Tamarack County in the north woods of Minnesota. He investigates crimes around the small town of Aurora, guided by the old Ojibwe healer Henry Meloux. Rich in the landscape and culture of the north country.
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Series facts
- Books
- 22
- Published
- 1998 to 2026
- First book
- Iron Lake
- Latest
- God’s Country (2026)
- Setting
- Set in the fictional Aurora, Minnesota
The reading order
Every Cork O’Connor book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
22 books · Set in the fictional Aurora, Minnesota
- 1Iron Lake1998With Cork O’ConnorIn a blizzard in the small town of Aurora, Minnesota, Cork O’Connor, the former sheriff, finds the town’s judge dead, an apparent suicide, and a local boy missing.Buy on Amazon
- 2Boundary Waters1999With Cork O’ConnorA famous country singer has gone into hiding in the wilderness of the Boundary Waters, and Cork leads a search party to find her before others do.Buy on Amazon
- 3Purgatory Ridge2001With Cork O’ConnorA bombing at a lumber mill raises tensions over land between loggers and the Ojibwe, and Cork’s own family is put in danger.Buy on Amazon
- 4Blood Hollow2004With Cork O’ConnorA teenage girl who disappeared on New Year’s Eve is found dead in the spring, and a young Ojibwe man is accused.Buy on Amazon
- 5Mercy Falls2005With Cork O’ConnorCork, sheriff once more, is ambushed on the reservation, and a wealthy businessman is found murdered.Buy on Amazon
- 6Copper River2006With Cork O’ConnorWounded and hunted by a hit man, Cork hides out with his cousin in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where teenagers are disappearing.Buy on Amazon
- 7Thunder Bay2007With Cork O’ConnorHenry Meloux asks Cork to find the son he has never met, and the search takes them into the Canadian wilderness.Buy on Amazon
- 8Red Knife2008With Cork O’ConnorA gang leader’s daughter dies, and violence threatens to tear the reservation apart.Buy on Amazon
- 9Heaven’s Keep2009With Cork O’ConnorA small plane carrying Cork’s wife, Jo, disappears in a storm over the Rocky Mountains, and Cork will not stop searching.Buy on Amazon
- 10Vermilion Drift2010With Cork O’ConnorCork is hired to look into threats against a mining company, and finds bones in an abandoned mine that take him back into his own family’s past.Buy on Amazon
- 11Northwest Angle2011With Cork O’ConnorCork and his daughter Jenny are caught in a storm on the Lake of the Woods, and on a remote island they find a dead girl and a living baby.Buy on Amazon
- 12Trickster’s Point2012With Cork O’ConnorCork’s old friend, a candidate for governor, is killed by an arrow while they are out hunting together, and Cork becomes the suspect.Buy on Amazon
- 13Tamarack County2013With Cork O’ConnorA retired judge’s wife disappears in a snowstorm, and Cork’s search uncovers old crimes.Buy on Amazon
- 14Windigo Island2014With Cork O’ConnorThe body of a teenage girl washes up on the shore of Lake Superior, and another girl is missing.Buy on Amazon
- 15Manitou Canyon2016With Cork O’ConnorA man disappears in the Boundary Waters wilderness, and then Cork himself goes missing while searching for him.Buy on Amazon
- 16Sulfur Springs2017With Cork O’ConnorCork and his new wife, Rainy, travel to Arizona to find her son, who has disappeared near the Mexican border.Buy on Amazon
- 17Desolation Mountain2018With Cork O’ConnorCork’s son Stephen has a vision of disaster, and then a plane carrying a US senator crashes in the north woods.Buy on Amazon
- 18Lightning Strike2021With Liam O’ConnorIn 1963, twelve-year-old Cork finds the body of a man he admires at a place called Lightning Strike, and watches his father, the sheriff, investigate.Buy on Amazon
- 19Fox Creek2022With Cork O’ConnorCork helps a woman who is being hunted, while Henry Meloux is in danger in the wilderness.Buy on Amazon
- 20Spirit Crossing2024With Cork O’ConnorAs a manhunt for a politician’s missing daughter grips Minnesota, Cork O’Connor’s grandson finds the grave of a young Ojibwe woman few seem to care about, and the two cases prove connected.Buy on Amazon
- 21Apostle’s Cove2025With Cork O’ConnorApproaching sixty, Cork is drawn back into a twenty-year-old murder case when his son claims the man Cork helped send to prison is innocent.Buy on Amazon
- 22God’s Country2026With Cork O’ConnorPreparing for a family trip to the Boundary Waters, Cork searches for a missing friend and is drawn into a dangerous standoff with brothers hunting their late father’s hidden stash.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read in order, starting with Iron Lake. Cork’s family life develops through the series; Lightning Strike is a prequel about Cork as a boy.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Cork O’Connor | Liam O’Connor | Henry Meloux | Stephen O’Connor | Anne and Jenny O’Connor | Rainy Bisonette | Jo O’Connor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Iron Lake | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 2 Boundary Waters | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 3 Purgatory Ridge | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 4 Blood Hollow | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 5 Mercy Falls | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 6 Copper River | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 7 Thunder Bay | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 8 Red Knife | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 9 Heaven’s Keep | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 10 Vermilion Drift | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 11 Northwest Angle | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 12 Trickster’s Point | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 13 Tamarack County | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 14 Windigo Island | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 15 Manitou Canyon | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 16 Sulfur Springs | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 17 Desolation Mountain | LLead | MMajor | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 18 Lightning Strike | MMajor | LLead | MMajor | ||||
| 19 Fox Creek | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 20 Spirit Crossing | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 21 Apostle’s Cove | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 22 God’s Country | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor |
Characters in the Cork O’Connor books
7 characters from William Kent Krueger’s chart, with the number of Cork O’Connor books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Cork O’ConnorFormer sheriff of Tamarack County, later a private investigator | 22 | Iron Lake 1998 |
| Liam O’ConnorCork’s father, sheriff of Tamarack County | 1 | Lightning Strike 2021 |
| Henry MelouxOjibwe Mide healer and Cork’s mentor | 22 | Iron Lake 1998 |
| Stephen O’ConnorCork’s son | 21 | Iron Lake 1998 |
| Anne and Jenny O’ConnorCork’s daughters | 21 | Iron Lake 1998 |
| Rainy BisonetteHenry’s grandniece, a nurse, and Cork’s later partner | 11 | Northwest Angle 2011 |
| Jo O’ConnorCork’s wife, a lawyer | 10 | Iron Lake 1998 |