Customer Reviews

The Big Thaw

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Donald Harstad is one of the rare writers whose basic good humor shines through his work while managing not to inflict himself on the material. This is no small accomplishment, and I believe that this man is a natural. His writing is never labored; he has a splendid gift for narrative flow and for creating likeable, believable characters.

The Big Thaw starts out with the mystery of who murdered two young burglars and spreads to a far larger scenario with critical international implications. Harstad actually makes us feel the miserable cold of the Iowa winter while creating a very real sense of the territory he knows so well. The climax of this tale, set on a riverboat gambling casino, is beautifully executed, causing the reader to wonder every step of the way how this impossible situation will be resolved. As it turns out, it is done with great imagination and at a pace that leaves one fairly winded.

My only quibble, and it's a small one, is the author's fondness for grins. Every last character grins. Occasionally somebody smiles, but mostly, grinning rules the day. However, the editor, more than the author, is to blame for failing not only to pick up on some spelling errors but also this (admittedly minor) repetition. It certainly doesn't detract from the story or from Mr. Harstad's considerable talent, but he deserves to have his work treated with more care. I recommend this series enthusiastically.

As we in the South would say, Harstad's Chief Deputy Carl Houseman is "just darlin'." You just can't help loving a guy who when pleased says "Cool!" and suffers with his enforced Low Fat diet by ordering pancakes, scrambled eggs, and waffles with "lo-fat syrup." Carl is enamored of high-tech devices that are a financial impossibility for a sheriff's department in rural Iowa. The author's 26 years of law enforcement experience are pivotal in making his stories so authentic sounding, it feels like true crime.

The Nation County Sheriff's patrol is cruising their 750 square mile jurisdiction in minus 20-degree weather trying to get a lead on some burglaries taking place in empty "snowbird" residences. (Folks with good sense who flee from Iowa winters) Carl almost runs down a forlorn figure who has been honking his horn. Local ne'er do well, Fred "Goober" Houseman finally admits he is the wheelman for the latest rash of robberies and says his two cousins who were going to rob the nearest farm last night never came out, and now poor ole Fred doesn't know what to do, so he's been sitting there honking the horn.

Upon investigation, Carl finds two frozen corpses in a shed by the empty house. The crime unravels to much more than burglaries and appears to have a far right wing militant conspiracy involved. The story escalates into a bang-up conclusion that really needs to be on the big screen with splendiferous special effects.

This is my second Donald Harstad book, and he just keeps getting better. His characterizations are subtle and nuanced. He is careful to keep his 99 percent law abiding and normal Iowa citizens in the forefront, so the reader doesn't get the impression only serial killers and loonies live in northern Iowa. And this is a man who knows COLD. Read it in front of the fire!
-sweetmolly-Amazon Reviewer

Its two years after the events described in `Known Dead', and it's deep winter in Iowa. The action starts with a car chase that nets a burglary lookout who is terrified that his cousins whom he dropped off two days before to rob a holiday home might have died from exposure. Deputy Carl Houseman investigate the property and find two bodies all right, but inside the property and definitely not dead from hypothermia. The absent owner arrives, all aggression and bluster, and the plot starts to thicken. Added to the pot are an over-confident FBI surveillance team, a floating casino, an incompetent sniper, paranoid right-wing loons, a frozen river, media reporters, and a very bright survivalist-cum-bank robber in the form of the infamous Gabriel, last seen in `Known Dead'.

While I agree with another reviewer's comments about the sloppy proof-reading, these are infrequent enough that they didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book, and can be laid firmly at the door of the publisher, not the author. Harstad brings his protagonist, Houseman, to life with his descriptions of an experienced police officer getting dressed using short cuts learned from experience, in his realistic conversations and descriptions with other characters, in his explanations of police procedure. Houseman is a very credible character, sympathetic, astute, self-deprecating, and always hungry. Harstad imbues him with a gentle wit that is been best seen in his interactions with his favourite dispatcher, Sally Wells and DCI investigator Hester Gorse. Now, Sally could give Hester a run for her money as a detective, in my opinion. Harstads' favourite foils are back in the form of the pedantic Art Meyermann, now working for DCI, and the robotic FBI counter-terrorist agent Volont, constantly out-thought by his arch-enemy Gabriel.

Like Harstad's earlier books in this series, I really enjoyed this one. Highly recommended.

As a law enforcement officer for seven years, I can attest to the feelings Harstad manages to relay. Although fictional in content, the manner of investigating and the underlying perspectives about the case are true to form for a Deputy Sheriff. The book offers that, although our senses and instincts are screaming not to do something, officers don't have a choice and often have to wait a long time for backup in a "creepy" situation. But don't be misdirected, the book isn't written for police officers, nor is it intended to make others aware of how we feel. It is truly enjoyable reading, written from a realistic officer's perspective, that keeps everyone's attention from cover to cover. As a reader, you get to experience the case (all case investigations are mysteries until solved) and realize the facts as they appear, formulating your own conclusions as you go. Good job, Mr. Harstad. True entertainment.

Hang on to the handle-grips of your snowmobile! Don Harstad's third novel promises to take you on a tour of Nation County that will send chills down your spine. Harstad's gift for style can put fear in your heart and a smile on your face at the same time -- it's something great novelists have always been able to do.

Ace-Deputy Sheriff Carl Houseman and co-horts show that they're up to the gamiest challenges the bad guys can thrown at them. The game starts out with mystery, becomes a game of minds over chance, and soon your racing along almost as if you're right there with them. Yes, it's "just" a story -- but darn believable -- including the ending which was a real jackpot.

IMHO, this is Harstad's best so far! And if you don't believe me, read the book yourself. The evidence will prove conclusively that I know what I'm talking about.

Just one more thing: all the donuts and coffee along the way were sometimes less than sweet because of the large number of typos missed by the people at Doubleday, Inc. It was a crime. And to think someone got paid to proof-read this book. The "misses" tarnish an otherwise masterfully written story.

One would have thought the boys and girls at Doubleday would have read the book before printing it. Next time some desk-ridden editor would do well to give the spell-checker a rest. Or better yet, put it in a shed for a few days where it's 30-below zero and then wonder why the old computer froze up. Sorry, Doubleday, but the boo-boos were bush-league.

This 3rd installment of former Deputy Sheriff Carl Harstad's Nation County series is heavier on the "thriller" side of the police procedural scale than "who-dunnit" (or is that donut? As in the previous books, there's a whole lot of coffee and donuts being consumed ;-) It could be subtitled: "Known Dead - Book II." I sure am glad that I read "the Big Thaw" immediately following "Known Dead" and strongly urge you to also get and read the former first because "The Big Thaw," more than other serial procedurals, is a continuation of the saga started last time, and it really helps to know the players and have them fresh in your mind.

This time, there are some dead burglars at the home of "snowbird" farmers. Deputy Houseman is on the case. His Cohort, Hester Gorse, is stationed on the floating casino on the Mississippi. Volont and Gabriel are back as foiIs. Readers on "the Coasts" may get a warped view of the Heartland with Harstad's sustained focus on militant extremists who are actually a minute portion of the mostly hard-working and level-headed folks that produce our nation's food. But most of the characterizations are "dead on," showcasing the humour and self-effacing good nature of many rural mid-western law enforcement folks. It's another "BINGO!"

Donald Harstad knows Iowa. And he precisely captures the freezing January landscape and no-nonsense mentality of the citizens who choose to live there. Justice is swift and hard during the frozen months of the midwest, and no one shows that more exactly than Harstad in his latest novel, "The Big Thaw". Depicting the flat, somewhat uninteresting landscape of the American heartland as the breeding ground for many of the worlds anarchist, right-wing crazies, Harstad paints a perfect portrayal of what can happen when one such group makes the mistake of calling Nation County, Iowa, home. At least in the eyes of Carl Houseman, a slow-moving but very intelligent deputy Sheriff. Houseman stumbles on a surprising scene one bitter-cold night when he intercepts a call on his walkie-talkie regarding a local kid who was found behaving suspiciously in town. Houseman reluctantly responds, and finds himself in the midst of a gruesome but cleverly concealed murder scene. True, the recent series of cat burglaries suddenly seemed to have been solved with the arrest of Fred Gothler, aka "Goober", a slow-witted 20-year-old with a history of misdemeanors on his rap sheet. But what Houseman uncovers is a plot far more disturbing than he expected. A militant group, led by a man dubbed "Gabriel", is planning a grand heist to raise money to finance his "next big move", and has chosen Nation County in which to pull it off. Houseman finds the bodies of two brothers, and the race to find the murderers and stop the massive bank robbery is on.

Using dry humor, midwestern sensibility and inflection in his tale, Harstad delivers one of the finest works in his ongoing Nation County series. Like taking a stroll down a gravel country road, "The Big Thaw" takes its time getting to its point, but the trip there is time well-spent. With vivid imagery and well-fleshed-out characters, reading "The Big Thaw" is like sitting next to a wood stove in the local general store, listening to stories to while away the afternoon...but with an adrenaline punch.

Having read all three of Mr. Harstads excellent humorous and truthful novels I can honestly say that I haven't read better ones of law enforcement anywhere. I suppose having been in police work for the last 28 years and raised in a police family helps, but most people don't realize that if you don't have Harstad's sense of humor you won't survive in the job. His details of the job and descriptions of them, and of the family life of a officer make the story ever so believeable. The political ideals expressed by any or all of the characters are extremely depictive and representative of the officers and of some of the farming communities. I think we are very fortunate that we have a person that was so capable in law enforcement and now able to express such things in print. Being in police work, as it happens a rural sheriffs office just a couple of counties north of Nation Co. along the east coast of Minnesota, Winona Co. I identify very deeply with Harstad.

You have to read the books, you have to believe them. Great books, great job Harstad!!!

I enjoyed "Known Dead", Mr. Harstad's previous book, enough to buy two more copies as gifts. I'm happy now to see I'll have to order two more copies of "The Big Thaw" as follow up gifts. If you haven't read "Know Dead" I would suggest ordering the paperback copy and reading it immediately before "The Big Thaw". Of course it isn't necessary to know the earlier book to enjoy this one, but it is a double pleasure, as some of the characters and action continue from the earlier book.

This time out, we are once again treated to a view of a small community's law enforcement efforts with attendant lack of resources and people, but this time in the midst of a brutal winter. As in his previous books, it is Mr. Harstad's sense of humanity, and his obvious expertise in Police work, that comes through in his writing. Carl Houseman, the adroit deputy sheriff hero of three books by Mr. Harstad, is disarmingly self-deprecating and breezily conversational, in a laid-back, homey manner, snacking on the occasional forbidden doughnut and divulging pointers on crime scene investigation as easily as recipes for couscous and low-fat hot-dogs, while his actions show him to be a consummately professional investigator and Deputy Sheriff.

Carl is not a half-bad politician either, managing to get what he needs most of the time, while at the mercy of the bureaucratic whimsy of multiple State and Federal agencies and even the personal vagaries of a maladroit ex-superior, now unsurprisingly promoted to the State level.

What these books really have going for them though is both a good read, and you care. You're interested in the action but you can also like characters such as Hester and George and Lamar, and wonder about the "long suffering" Sue. Carl himself is believable, and smart, and a good man, and you want him to win. You care.

After coming across the frozen bodies of two cousins who had gone missing after a string of burglaries, local Sheriff Carl Houseman soon discovers that there's a lot more going on in this rural Iowa county that just the usually tow tipping and prank phone calling, especially after the FBI starts showing up in after a hugely bungled surveillance operation. Houseman soon realizes that he's not dealing with some two-bit killer, but instead an ex-military operative named Gabriel, who's recruiting local paranoid farmers to rob banks and start their own country.

If only stuff like this happened in the Iowa that I live in.

I happened across the Big Thaw after seeing Don Harstad at a book reading at Barnes and Noble. The one thing I loved about Harstad is his sense of humor, which often prevented the book from dragging in certain places. Harstad is an excellent writer and he knows his way around police procedure.

Like an Episode of Law and order, CSI or without a trace, you're never know where you're going to end up as with every chapter Harstad introduces a new piece of the puzzle. But just as with those TV shows one of the main problems is that many of the character's (except for Houseman) lack any real depth and most of their names are easy to forget and could just as easily be replaced with Assistant Deputy 1 and FBI Dude 2.

With the lack of character dimension, Harstad ultimately relies on the plot to drive the story and in many places he succeeds spectacularly, especially after the initial discover of the bodies when he describes the eeriness of a deserted house, with two frozen corpses and the distinct feeling of being watched, and my favorite part of the novel, when Houseman and another police office chase a silent snowmobile through the frozen and deserted county roads to which they both crash the snowmobile and themselves in the chase.

Unfortunately at times Harstad removes Houseman at just the wrong time as Gabriel puts his plan in action Houseman stands around for the majority of the operation, helping the FBI direct the plan of action, rather than be part of the action. This aspect is why the novel is only deserving of four stars.

Overall if you're a fan of mystery and investigation novels I would recommend this as a good read.