Backstory: Arliss Cutter is a roughly middle age Supervisory Deputy US Marshall. Lots of experience and a bit of a hot temper (an understatement). Maybe that’s why he's been posted to multiple offices around the country. A Florida native now living in Anchorage. A veteran of four marriages. As a teenager, his crush was Mim, but his older brother swooped in a grabbed her up before Arliss could even get his romantic feet wet. Arliss’ grandfather (Grumpy – himself an LEO in Florida) had a set of rules to live by and one was brothers shall not steal brother’s girlfriend. So brother and Mim started a life leaving Arliss to fail four times at being a husband. Mim’s family, now with a surly teenage daughter and twin tween boys, moved to Alaska, but Arliss’ brother died in a job accident so Arliss accepted a transfer to Alaska to help Mim with life because that's another of Grumpy's Rules - family takes care of family. It’s been a bit over a year since the accident and we see Mim and Arliss cautiously circling each other like kids at a middle school dance. Backstory done.
Carmen Delgado, a young producer wannabe proposes a reality show to her cable network bosses. The trite title might’ve been Real Housewives of Alaska, but the network bosses proposed Fishwives! instead. A reality show about the women whose husbands did the big haul fishing in the cold waters off the Alaska coast. A fairly large production crew settled in on the Prince of Wales Island to a cool reception by the locals. The usual pettiness ensues as a local or two get involved, professionally and personally, with some of the crew. One young local girl even disappears.
While scouting locations for filler shots, Carmen and her cameraman are boating off a small bay. In the distance is a pretty large yacht. Unusual, but still, it might make for interesting background footage. So, her cameraman shoots some distance clips. Carmen gets a closer look with her binoculars and sees someone on the yacht looking right back at her . . . and a skiff has been lowered into water and headed their way.
Said yacht is one of the perks of being a cartel boss who likes to occasionally come up to Alaska to fish, anonymously. Not liking that he has been caught on camera, he dispatches a couple thugs to get the footage. And if necessary, get rid of the offenders. The thugs are better at chasing than a couple of LA TV folks are at evading. The two are captured. Two more missing persons.
Local cops on the island have enough to do to keep the peace between the locals and the film crew. The US Marshalls are called in because the film crew inadvertently hired a felon from the lower 48 with a history that might make him a person of interest about the missing local girl. Once Arliss and partner arrive, they also get sucked into the missing producer and cameraman in the event the two issues are connected.
And once the Marshall’s service gets involved, it’s now time to hunt, because that’s what they do, and do very well.
I like this series. Sort of like getting in on the ground floor with Joe Pickett (by CJ Box). Arliss has his issues with temper and sticking his nose in where it might not belong, but it usually works out. I’ve read #1 and #3 of the 3 so far. Just have to find #2 and I’ll be happy. Then I'll have to look in on his other book series of which he has many (to date, he has 17 books to his credit). Looks like Cameron will be a good go-to when I need something to read.
And I hope Cameron takes a step back in time for a book about Grumpy.
East Coast Don
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