The Waters of Star Lake: A Novel

by Sara Rath

Overview

Newly widowed Natalie Waters expects only nostalgia and solitude at her quiet, rustic cabin. But the wilderness conceals more than one perilous mystery. Where in Wisconsin’s Northwoods did the notorious gangster John Dillinger hide $210,000 following a violent FBI shootout? And why do the local timberwolves incite so much rage among Natalie’s neighbors?
    As predators circle and howl in the dark, Ginger, the bartender at the nearby Star Lake Saloon, draws Natalie deep into the secrets not only of Dillinger but of the ecologies of family, forest, and heart. With the reluctant support of her granddaughter and advice from a handsome wolf biologist, Natalie is forced to choose between adversity and adventure.
    Sara Rath continues her popular Northwoods saga in this affirming and often humorous tale of romance, betrayal, and danger.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780299287733
Publisher:	University of Wisconsin Press
Publication date:	07/12/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	184
File size:	986 KB

About the Author

Sara Rath is a MacDowell Fellow and author of several books, including the novels Star Lake Saloon and Housekeeping Cottages and Night Sisters, and the biography H. H. Bennett, Photographer: His American Landscape, all of which are published by the University of Wisconsin Press. She lives in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

Editorial Reviews

Rath returns to the setting of her first novel, Star Lake Saloon and Housekeeping Cottages (2005), for her pleasant if predictable third novel. Soon after recently widowed Natalie Waters Lindquist arrives at her family cabin in rural northern Wisconsin, an attack on her beloved dog, Molly, places her at the center of rising local tensions over hunting and conservation. After being roped by feisty Ginger Kovalcik into a hunt for a gangster’s lost treasure, Natalie’s summer is further complicated by the unexpected arrival of her troubled granddaughter, Minnow. Romantic possibilities emerge in hunky but secretive Bud Foster and handsome ecologist Will Davis. But a more compelling passion is Natalie’s fierce devotion to her family’s old home. Adventure takes Natalie and her eccentric companions from a roadkill picnic to a notorious gangster hideout, from a pristine morning lake to a rowdy bar called the Last Resort. The result is an affectionate portrait of this distinct region and its quirky inhabitants. (July)

Publishers Weekly

Enormously readable. The audience that enjoyed Star Lake Saloon will come back for more, and those who start this novel will want to enjoy the first one. Visiting the North as Sara Rath re-creates it is a welcome treat.”—Jim Fleming, reader for “Chapter a Day” on Wisconsin Public Radio

“With the patient skill of an engaging storyteller, Sara Rath brings to life the charm of northern Wisconsin. The appreciative reader is soon breathing in balsam and pine, living in primitive cabins next to the lake, listening to loons, finding unlikely romance, encountering wolves, bears, a lively group of endearing local personalities, and searching for the legendary buried treasure of John Dillinger and his infamous gang of hoodlums. So pour a cup of coffee, find an unoccupied sofa, and head into the Northwoods with The Waters of Star Lake.”—David Rhodes, author of Driftless

“Sara Rath’s warm, witty, and intimate exploration of Wisconsin’s north woods will win over readers with its effortless humor. In this lively story, Rath finds a pleasing balance of human and animal, past and present, young and old. The book makes a compelling argument for laughter as the greatest antidote to grief.”—Trudy Lewis, University of Missouri

“An engaging read about a woman juggling family (a troubled niece is foisted on her for the summer), memories of her deceased husband, new romance, and the foibles of her friends. . . . [A]n entertaining and illuminating window into the unique nature of life on Wisconsin’s remote lakes and the priceless natural resources there.”—The Capital Times

From the Publisher