A Cold Day for Murder

Kate Shugak, Book 1

By: Dana Stabenow

Narrated by: Marguerite Gavin

Length: 5 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Eighteen months ago, Aleut Kate Shugak quit her job investigating sex crimes for the Anchorage DA’s office and retreated to her father’s homestead in a national park in the interior of Alaska. But the world has a way of beating a path to her door, however remote. In the middle of one of the bitterest Decembers in recent memory ex-boss — and ex-lover — Jack Morgan shows up with an FBI agent in tow. A Park ranger with powerful relatives is missing, and now the investigator Jack sent in to look for him is missing, too.

Reluctantly, Kate, along with Mutt, her half-wolf, half-husky sidekick, leaves her wilderness refuge to follow a frozen trail through the Park, twenty thousand square miles of mountain and tundra sparsely populated with hunters, fishermen, trappers, mushers, pilots and homesteaders. Her formidable grandmother and Native chief, Ekaterina Shugak, is — for reasons of her own — against Kate’s investigation; her cousin, Martin, may be Kate’s prime suspect; and the local trooper, Jim Chopin, is more interested in Kate than in her investigation. In the end, the sanctuary she sought after five and a half years in the urban jungles may prove more lethal than anything she left behind in the city streets of Anchorage.

State of suspense: listen to more Alaskan mysteries in the Kate Shugak series.

©2011 Dana Stabenow (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Weekend Listen

What did you love best about A Cold Day for Murder?

Good weekend listen.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Cold Day for Murder?

Kate talking with her dog.

What about Marguerite Gavin’s performance did you like?

The character she allowed me to envision.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When Kate worked out who the killer was.

An Interesting Alaskan Mystery…

A Cold Day for Murder is a quick read and not bad at all for the price (I picked it up on the Audible Deal of the Day). Stabenow does an excellent job in describing the Alaskan surroundings here and has developed some very interesting characters to flesh out the mystery/thriller. My only complaint is that the action is thin here. This is the first in the Kate Shugak series so Stabenow spends a lot of time introducing the familiar faces in Kate’s world, so maybe the next in the series will have a little more action. We find out that Kate has a large scar on her throat where she survived an attack by a criminal before the book begins, but to be honest, I think that story could have been a standalone novel before this one. She talks about it some, but I really wanted to know more about it. Again, maybe she goes into more detail about that incident in other books in the series. At any rate, it was a good story, very well written and the narrator did a fine job!

Gritty Realistic

After living in Alaska for nearly 40 years and being away for 15, I enjoyed a visit back home through this book. That being said, the realism of the Alaskan Native struggle saddened me again as the author unfolded the story very well,I think, from the perspective of Kate Shugack,a well educated,strong Alaskan Native woman.
I found the story gripping, exciting, and true to the Alaskan life style of the "bush" areas. I loved the characters who were so well developed that I thought I may have known some of them. The author is very well acquainted with what it means to be Alaskan, Native or white.
If you are interested in a good mystery, in an exotic setting, this book is for you. Get your parka on, curl up to a warm fire, and enjoy a great, gritty, fast paced Alaskan adventure!

Hooked by the Alaska connection

A fan of mystery/detective stories all my life, I've been looking for a new (to me) author/series to listen to. The Alaska setting drew me to Dana Stabenow and Kate Shugak. While a little short of compelling, I found the story interesting and the characters well-defined. I found myself drawn into their lives and caring about what happens to them. I'm going to try another in the series.

Stabenow's books are great

I enjoy all of Dana Stabenow's books, especially the Kate Shugak series. Marguerite Gavin is terrific at telling the story.

I struggled to get through this one

What made the experience of listening to A Cold Day for Murder the most enjoyable?

It was interesting to learn a little about native/indigenous Alaskans, but the narration almost did me in. The story line didn’t offer any surprises, but it was interesting enough to make me stick with it. The accents affected by the narrator for what was supposed to be native sounded more like a cross between a Bostonian Kennedy and John Wayne’s long drawn out expressions. It was more a distraction and irritation.

Would you be willing to try another book from Dana Stabenow? Why or why not?

I would listen to another Kate Shugak mystery if there was a different narrator.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Her accents were not good and sounded hokey.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely not. My head would have exploded from the narration.

Not a page turner

Disappointing. Up to Chapter 5, the story went into great details about Alaska, the landscape and the background of Kate and the characters in the story. I learned something about the Alaskan natives and how they lived but I enjoy mystery stories that get into the “who do you think done it” before Chapter 5, and this was not a very long Audible read.
The narrator was excellent.

Too Many Details

Good book, but far too many details and characters, it was difficult to keep the details in order. Narrator was enjoyable.

A good mystery

Kate lives in Alaska and is asked help solve a mystery. Things get complicated and her principles kick in.

Stabenow delivers again

Great read, the first book in the Kate Shugak series. Kate is home at her father's homestead, still recovering from a grusome encounter that left her shakened and caused her to quit her job at the Anchorage DA's office. Jack Morgan, ex-lover snd former boss, shows up on her doorstep. Jack needs her help in locating a missing park ranger and the investigator sent in to find him. Both have been missing for weeks and the investigator was also an ex-lover of Kates. What Kate finds will sorely test the bonds of family loyalty and skirt the thin line between justice served and cold blooded murder. Marguerite Gavin renders a brilliant narration and is definitely the voice of Kate Shugak. Loved every minute.