Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Kindle
$13.99

Available instantly

Audiobook
$0.00
with membership trial

Hardcover
$30.20

Paperback
$13.69

List Price: $17.99 Details

Save: $4.30 (24%)

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns

FREE delivery Tuesday, April 2 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35. Order within 9 hrs 30 mins

Select delivery location

In Stock

$$13.69 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Ships from

Amazon.com

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.

Read full return policy

Payment

Secure transaction

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Details

Add a gift receipt for easy returns

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime

FREE delivery Thursday, April 4 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35

Select delivery location

Used: Acceptable | Details

Sold by Shakespeare Book House

Fulfilled by Amazon

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Other Sellers on Amazon

Added

Not added

$9.69
+ $3.99 shipping

Sold by: PB Sales

Added

Not added

$13.69
FREE Shipping on orders over $35.00 shipped by Amazon.

Sold by: 110 STREET

Follow the author

William Kent Krueger

Follow

Vermilion Drift: A Novel (10) (Cork O'Connor Mystery Series) Paperback – June 7, 2011

by William Kent Krueger (Author)

2,603

Book 10 of 20: Cork O'Connor Mystery Series

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$13.69","priceAmount":13.69,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"13","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"69","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"cHZiRMInaUtIdq%2B269pwhqEH52TzDmZs4ls3RB4JFEF7hGeKMpAyqRwiNiqsh%2B3zEqIhZb%2Fk%2BtvROaEXyewIneRxm5TPKcMHtNqpZ83V4fNE2JIElYDx6%2BkWFlYawrpoIIAstqywOkQ9mtoJsl4LRA%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$10.15","priceAmount":10.15,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"10","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"15","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"cHZiRMInaUtIdq%2B269pwhqEH52TzDmZsG19kzANC67PrbOq5pmHioUmsLCgxDpWxFEetWVzAqTvydctRKvlH%2FuPwwokQYz8bqIPAaKJ5IV3N8A5PXa6mRVRpRfYYbCZHzMjdOmEnWsjasJyu5vf63ZFtz268%2FkLqbeD1yjQTVagsrW0w97qiw%2BWg2Go%2FtPQY","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

William Kent Krueger’s gripping tale of suspense begins with a recurring nightmare, a gun, and a wound in the earth so deep and horrific that it has a name: Vermilion Drift.

When the Department of Energy puts an underground iron mine on its short list of potential sites for storage of nuclear waste, a barrage of protest erupts in Tamarack County, Minnesota, and Cork is hired as a security consultant.

Deep in the mine during his first day on the job, Cork stumbles across a secret room that contains the remains of six murder victims. Five appear to be nearly half a century old—connected to what the media once dubbed "The Vanishings," a series of unsolved disappearances in the summer of 1964, when Cork’s father was sheriff in Tamarack County. But the sixth has been dead less than a week. What’s worse, two of the bodies—including the most recent victim—were killed using Cork’s own gun, one handed down to him from his father.

As Cork searches for answers, he must dig into his own past and that of his father, a well-respected man who harbored a ghastly truth. Time is running out, however. New threats surface, and unless Cork can unravel the tangled thread of clues quickly, more death is sure to come.

Vermilion Drift is a powerful novel, filled with all the mystery and suspense for which Krueger has won so many awards. A poignant portrayal of the complexities of family life, it’s also a sobering reminder that even those closest to our hearts can house the darkest—and deadliest—of secrets.

Book 10 of 20

Cork O'Connor Mystery Series
Print length

320 pages
Language

English
Publication date

June 7, 2011
Dimensions

5.31 x 0.9 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

1439153876
ISBN-13

978-1439153871
See all details

Frequently bought together

Vermilion Drift: A Novel (10) (Cork O'Connor Mystery Series)

$13.69

Get it as soon as Tuesday, Apr 2

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

+

Northwest Angle: A Novel (11) (Cork O'Connor Mystery Series)

$13.69

Get it as soon as Tuesday, Apr 2

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

+

Heaven's Keep: A Novel (9) (Cork O'Connor Mystery Series)

$15.98

Get it as soon as Tuesday, Apr 2

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your cart.

Try again!

Details

Added to Cart

Choose items to buy together.

William Kent Krueger
2,955
Paperback
72 offers from $7.71
William Kent Krueger
3,696
Paperback
86 offers from $5.10
William Kent Krueger
2,877
Paperback
79 offers from $5.14
William Kent Krueger
3,507
Paperback
78 offers from $7.99
William Kent Krueger
3,664
Paperback
83 offers from $5.21
William Kent Krueger
4,452
Paperback
87 offers from $4.57

Editorial Reviews

Review

"As always, Krueger's writing couples the best of literary and commercial fiction, with intelligent, well-defined characters populating the story. Although the book contains violence, the author never makes it extraneous or graphic. He is one of those rare writers who manage to keep the suspense alive until the final page. Krueger fans will find a feast in between these covers, and for those who have yet to sample his fine and evocative writing, the book offers a complex yet completely believable plot, all tied up in words sharpened by one of the modern masters of the craft." --"Kirkus Reviews" (starred)

"Beautifully written and deeply moving." --"Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

"

"Cork O'Connor...is one of those hometown heroes you rarely see...someone so decent and true, he might restore his town's battered faith in the old values." --"The New York Times Book Review"

"One of today's automatic buy-today-read-tonight series. Thoughtful but suspenseful, fast but lasting, contemporary but strangely timeless, Krueger hits the sweet spot every time." --Lee Child

"Rock-solid prose combines with effective characterizations and a logical if complex plot for a thrilling read. This book succeeds on every level and ought to attract the author a deservingly wide readership." --"Publishers Weekly" (starred)

"There's a reason why William Kent Krueger is known as a writer's writer. His stories are works of art, literary wonders that beautifully capture a sense of place while they deliver a powerful emotional punch." --Tess Gerritsen

“Cork O’Connor…is one of those hometown heroes you rarely see…someone so decent and true, he might restore his town’s battered faith in the old values.” —"The New York Times Book Review"

“One of today’s automatic buy-today-read-tonight series. Thoughtful but suspenseful, fast but lasting, contemporary but strangely timeless, Krueger hits the sweet spot every time.” —Lee Child

“Rock-solid prose combines with effective characterizations and a logical if complex plot for a thrilling read. This book succeeds on every level and ought to attract the author a deservingly wide readership.” —"Publishers Weekly" (starred)

“There’s a reason why William Kent Krueger is known as a writer’s writer. His stories are works of art, literary wonders that beautifully capture a sense of place while they deliver a powerful emotional punch.” —Tess Gerritsen

"As always, Krueger’s writing couples the best of literary and commercial fiction, with intelligent, well-defined characters populating the story. Although the book contains violence, the author never makes it extraneous or graphic. He is one of those rare writers who manage to keep the suspense alive until the final page. Krueger fans will find a feast in between these covers, and for those who have yet to sample his fine and evocative writing, the book offers a complex yet completely believable plot, all tied up in words sharpened by one of the modern masters of the craft." --"Kirkus Reviews" (starred)

"Can a writer keep getting better and better? Minnesotan William Kent Krueger surely can, as shown by "Vermilion Drift", 10th in his award-winning series featuring former Sheriff Cork O'Connor." --"St. Paul Pioneer Press"

"The surprise ending makes this novel a worthwhile find." --"People "(3 stars)

About the Author

William Kent Krueger is the New York Times bestselling author of The River We Remember, This Tender Land, Ordinary Grace (winner of the Edgar Award for best novel), and the original audio novella The Levee, as well as nineteen acclaimed books in the Cork O’Connor mystery series, including Lightning Strike and Fox Creek. He lives in the Twin Cities with his family. Learn more at WilliamKentKrueger.com.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Atria Books; Reprint edition (June 7, 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1439153876
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1439153871
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.31 x 0.9 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #30,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #409 in Private Investigator Mysteries (Books)
- #957 in Murder Thrillers
- #3,479 in Suspense Thrillers

Customer Reviews:
2,603

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

William Kent Krueger

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Raised in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon, William Kent Krueger briefly attended Stanford University—before being kicked out for radical activities. After that, he logged timber, worked construction, tried his hand at freelance journalism, and eventually ended up researching child development at the University of Minnesota. He currently makes his living as a full-time author. He’s been married for over 40 years to a marvelous woman who is a retired attorney. He makes his home in St. Paul, a city he dearly loves.

Krueger writes a mystery series set in the north woods of Minnesota. His protagonist is Cork O’Connor, the former sheriff of Tamarack County and a man of mixed heritage—part Irish and part Ojibwe. His work has received a number of awards, including the Minnesota Book Award, the Loft-McKnight Fiction Award, the Anthony Award, the Barry Award, the Dilys Award, and the Friends of American Writers Prize. His last five novels were all New York Times bestsellers.

"Ordinary Grace," his stand-alone novel published in 2013, received the Edgar Award, given by the Mystery Writers of America in recognition for the best novel published in that year. "Manitou Canyon," number fifteen in his Cork O’Connor series, was released in September 2016. Visit his website at www.williamkentkrueger.com.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5

2,603 global ratings

1 star

0%

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Sharon G. Sparling

A vermilion wrinkle

Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2024

Verified Purchase

Another thank you, Mr Krueger, for continuing education. Life holds so many trillion bits of data, from strip mines and drifts to those woven beads that bind all of us with love in our hearts, I am grateful for another novel that broadens my scope.

Helpful

Beth

A Thriller That's Not Formulaic

Reviewed in the United States on September 23, 2011

Verified Purchase

VERMILION DRIFT by William Kent Krueger is not a formulaic thriller. But it sure is a mystery/thriller.

In this book, Cork O'Connor is a private investigator hired to find the person leaving threatening messages for various people involved in the use of a former mine for the storage of nuclear waste. One of those men also hires Cork to find his sister. So Cork is doing both jobs at once. But this doesn't last long. She is found, along with the skeletal remains of five other people, in a hidden area of the mine, the Vermilion Drift.

Now it is Cork's job not only to learn who is leaving the messages but, also, to help find the person or people who murdered five people 40 years ago (as determined by a forensic anthropologist) and one person a week ago. At first, some mysteries, like whose bones have been there for 40 years, unravel quickly. But did the same person or people kill all six people, the five in 1964 and the one more recently? Do the protest and the protesters outside the mine have anything to do with the recent murder? How are the older murders and the recent murder connected? Why do four of the skeletal remains belong to Indians while one belongs to a white woman who was the mother of the sixth murder victim? Could Cork's own gun, the gun that was his father's when he was county sheriff 40 years ago, have been the murder weapon? Why are certain pages cut from Cork's mother's 40-year-old journal? These are some of the mysteries Cork must solve.

This is one book in a series about Cork O'Connor, but it doesn't seem necessary to read the series in order. Krueger explains that Cork's wife was murdered a year ago; his children are adults now, scattered to various parts of the country; he is part Indian, and his past and present jobs have been and are involved with Indians and the local Indian reservation (the "rez"); and, like his father, he used to be county sheriff. That's explanation enough.

VERMILION DRIFT is a thriller, with stories within stories within stories and with the answer to one question leading to more questions. It's better than most bestselling thrillers because it's not formulaic as so many thrillers are. It is character-driven.

Only one criticism: the old Indian Henry. He knows so much yet will speak only in riddles throughout the book. And Cork reveres him. He just goes along with Henry's evasiveness and his sometimes corny Indian traditions and rituals that act like pauses in elements of the story that might have been more thrilling.

Even so, readers will enjoy and appreciate this nonformulaic thriller. My criticism is debatable.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Ellen Vanguard

Great book!

Reviewed in the United States on January 20, 2024

Verified Purchase

I found the first Cork O’Connor book at a used book store and was hooked. Now ive been ordering the rest of them. I don’t often keep books but these rate as keep permanently.

Helpful

L. J. Roberts

Krueger: A very fine author

Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2010

Verified Purchase

First Sentence: Some nights, Corcoran O'Connor dreams his father's death.

Max Cavanagh owns several mines, one of which is being studied by the Department of Energy as a possible site to store nuclear waste. In addition to protests causing Cavanagh worry, his sister, Lauren, has gone missing. Cork, hired to find her, does so but she is not alone. He locates her body in, what had been a closed off section of the mine, among five skeletons. The five skeletons are those of women known as "The Vanishings" who had disappeared decades ago, and two of the bodies contain bullets fired from the gun of Cork's late father.

Recently, I was involved in a discussion of prologues and how many of us are either annoyed by them or ignore them completely. It takes a writer as skilled as Krueger to write a prologue which contains an important thread which runs through the story. This is not a prologue to ignore.

Krueger has become one of my favorite authors. His skill with description take what could be a fairly ordinary scene, but instead comes alive with clear, visual images. We are able to go where the author takes us and be a part of that which is described to us. Even from those scenes where we might prefer to look away, we can't. That doesn't mean he is graphically violent; he's not. It is more that we feel the emotion of the scene and, thereby, understand it.

Because I read first for character is another reason why Krueger's writing appeals to me. He creates dimensional, interesting, relatable characters. I'll admit I wasn't particularly happy with the events of the previous book, "Heaven's Keep," but the transition to this book has been very effectively and tastefully handled and I now understand the purpose of those events. Cork's heritage is half Irish, responsible for his impatience and occasional anger, and half Ojibwa, which connects him to the people on the reservation, Indian history, and my favorite character Henry Meloux. It also provides the link to the mystical element in each book.

Before you walk away saying "I don't like woo-woo," wait. Mysticism and the spirit world are part of the Indian culture. They are also part--along with several other themes including that of what do we really know of our parents and the definition of evil--of what takes this book, and this series, beyond the normal and elevates it into something that makes you stop, think and consider.

Krueger is a very fine author who knows how to create characters, write dialogue, set a scene and, most of all, develop a plot. The story continually builds upon itself. It's a twisty road filled complete with suspense, emotion and startling revelations. I despise the cliché of "If you've not read this author yet, read him now," yet that is the way I feel. Even if you don't, be assured I shall be reading his next book as soon as it comes out.

VERMILION DRIFT (PI-Cork O'Connor-Minnesota-Cont) - Ex
Krueger, William Kent - 10th in series
Atria, ©2010, ARC - Hardcover ISBN: 9781439153840

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Barbara Gottschall

Great book

Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2024

Verified Purchase

Best books by a wonderful author

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Lynne C.

Great writing, great characters, great storyline!

Reviewed in Canada on July 31, 2021

Verified Purchase

I love all William Kent Kreuger books, particularly the Cork O'Connor series. This book did not disappoint. Great writing, great characters, great storyline!

Nick Moore

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 5, 2016

Verified Purchase

Great book - part of a great series

Sabine Korsukewitz

O'Connor 10 - ein Highlight!

Reviewed in Germany on December 27, 2015

Verified Purchase

O'Connor ist nun Witwer und weiß nicht so recht etwas mit seinem Leben anzufangen. Die Mädchen sind inzwischen beide auf der Universität un d sein Sohn Stephen vom Tod der Mutter schockiert und mürrisch. Ablenkung bietet da ein neuer Slkandal: Die Regierung erwägt, eine stillgelegte Mine im herrlichsten Naturschutzgebiet Minnesotas mit Atommüll zu verseuchen. Bei den Erkundungsarbeiten werden Skelette entdeckt, Bis auf eines, alles junge indianische Mädchen. O'Connor wird hinzugezogen, weil dier Indianer mit ihm reden, mit den weißen Deputies nicht. Am Ende muss O'Connor sich zwischen den Weißen und den Indianern entscheiden un d für Gerechtigkeit sorgen.
Wie gehabt - Storytelling von hoher Qualität.

Translate review to English

新しもの好き

コーク元保安官の活躍譚（シリーズもののファンにはたまらない）

Reviewed in Japan on May 29, 2012

Verified Purchase

コーク・オコーナー元保安官シリーズは邦訳も次々に出て根強いファンがついており、読み進めるほどに家族の結束の強さ、彼を愛する地域の仲間たち、そして作者クルーガー氏のミネソタへの愛情がいやが上にも増してきます。今回の舞台はとっくに廃鉱となったvermillion鉄鉱石採掘場で、エネルギー省が放射性廃棄物の埋め立て地として興味をもったことから陽の目をみたが、立て抗sinkにつながる横に伸びる坑道driftに死体がごろごろ発見され、ずっと昔に行方不明となった女性たちから、ごく最近の不明者までがいた。コークは地元の有力者とか、妻で腕利き弁護士のジョーとのぎくしゃくした関係といったもつれた糸に絡みこまれてアップアップしながら一歩ずつ真相に迫っていく。本書ではコークの亡き父（地域の名高い保安官だった）の話が重要なパーツを占めており、逸話が繰り返し語られる。シリーズのファンにはたまらない道行きであるが、そうでない単発読者にはいささか辟易するきらいがある。シリーズものの特徴ですが、本書を手に取る前にぜひこれまでのコークさんの本をお読みになりミネソタの自然とコークファミリーの環境を掴んでおかれるようお勧めします。「コークもの」は決して後悔しないと思いますよ。

One person found this helpful

Translate review to English

philocrima

Wm. Kent Krueger

Reviewed in Germany on July 28, 2014

Verified Purchase

Just DO read any book of his - convincing plots, great psychology, Amercican-Indian history, nature, you've got it all, so: read them!

See more reviews

Return this item for free