The Recurring Cast
Character guide · 22 books · 1998 to 2026 · Set in the fictional Aurora, Minnesota

William Kent Krueger

Crime and mysteryRural crime

Cork O’Connor, part Irish and part Ojibwe, a former sheriff of Tamarack County in northern Minnesota, investigates crimes around the town of Aurora with guidance from the old Mide healer Henry Meloux.

Best estimate, compiled from series guides, publisher descriptions and reviews where available, and from memory otherwise. Book level only, not chapter level. Minor includes cameos and brief references. Each book carries a confidence rating in its tooltip. Lightning Strike is a prequel set in Cork’s boyhood. Krueger’s standalones are left out.

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Who appears in which book

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LLeadMMajor·MinorHas a note
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William Kent Krueger books in order

Each series in publication order, with its lead characters. Where the story runs in a different order, switch to Story order. Crossover books are marked and listed under their main series. Use My books to track what you have read.

Cork O’Connor

22 books · Set in the fictional Aurora, MinnesotaRural crime
  1. 1Iron Lake1998With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  2. 2Boundary Waters1999With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  3. 3Purgatory Ridge2001With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  4. 4Blood Hollow2004With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  5. 5Mercy Falls2005With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  6. 6Copper River2006With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  7. 7Thunder Bay2007With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  8. 8Red Knife2008With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  9. 9Heaven’s Keep2009With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  10. 10Vermilion Drift2010With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  11. 11Northwest Angle2011With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  12. 12Trickster’s Point2012With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  13. 13Tamarack County2013With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  14. 14Windigo Island2014With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  15. 15Manitou Canyon2016With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  16. 16Sulfur Springs2017With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  17. 17Desolation Mountain2018With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  18. 18Lightning Strike2021With Liam O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  19. 19Fox Creek2022With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  20. 20Spirit Crossing2024With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  21. 21Apostle’s Cove2025With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon
  22. 22God’s Country2026With Cork O’ConnorBuy on Amazon

Characters

7 recurring and key characters, with the book each one first appears in.

Aurora and Tamarack County