Kudos for John Straley
Without a doubt, John Straley's novels set in Alaska are the best in the genre that I've read in years. His descriptions of every venue in which the action takes place are poetic and set the emotions for the plot. They are somewhat like the music that accompanies film but go beyond that to be a total embodiment of the plot.
His characters are real people complete with warts--the kind of people one can relate to and to care about the outcome of their lives.
