Northern Escape (ISBN 0976919370)

Reviewed by Diane Kasperski:
R. L. Coffield has created a story that elicits mixed emotions in Northern Escape. On one hand Max Jessee was an accessory in an armed robbery and at the age of 21 should have known better. Eleven years later Mack a.k.a. Max has a life as a fisherman in Alaska and he is a kind, honest, hardworking man whose past is about to catch up with him. At 21 Max is a naive honest kid who loves his family and tries to do what's best. His father had been a rodeo cowboy till meeting his Mom at which point he settled down to have a family. Max misses his Dad who died of cancer. When a friend of his Dad's from the rodeo days, Roy Biers, shows up he is enamored by the tales Biers tells of "the old days." Biers convinces Max to go to Las Vegas where there is a "job" he needs help with. Max goes along with Biers never asking what the details of the job were. Max is terrified when he learns the job is an armed robbery and he is stuck as the driver of the getaway car. Biers is shot and Max flees in the car with the money. Ben Thomas the Detective in charge of the case was obsessed with finding Max Jessee after Biers was put away in prison. His fixation was so complete that it ruined many parts of his life. When Biers got out of prison 11 years later Ben took a leave of absence to follow him knowing that Biers would track down Jessee in order to get his share of the money. Chloe Littlebird was the Sheriff of Craig, Alaska. She is in love with Mack Jessup. It took 2 years for him to even talk to her but now they were living together. Mack takes his fishing boat out in the worst weather of the season thus far and she is livid with him for doing so. What could possibly have compelled him to do that???? On the same day Mack goes out in horrific weather, Ben Thomas shows up in Craig looking for Biers. A set of events is set in motion that were inevitable once the robbery took place. Biers is an awful, nasty human being who will plow through anyone or anything that gets in his way. Mack is a man haunted by a mistake that ruined his life and keeps him looking over his shoulder constantly. Ben Thomas is a man with tunnel vision that doesn't care if at the end of the journey his life or anyone else's is ruined - he can't seem to stop himself on his search. Chloe always had a suspicion that everything was not what it seemed with Mack but didn't want to pursue her uneasiness because she loved him. Northern Escape is fast paced and very hard to put down. The tension builds and is non-stop up till the end and the end is very satisfying once you reach it.

Excellent and Entertaining!:
There are times in life when we all root for the bad-guy as terrible as that may seem; this is the case in this outstanding novel by R.L. Coffield, "Northern Escape," and our immediate introduction to young Max. We meet our main character Max in the midst of committing a robbery, one that will end up making him a very wealthy man but not by choice. Roy Beirs pulled young Max into this crime, taking advantage of his youth and his situations in life which were not happy ones, and when things fouled up it was Max who got away with the money leaving Roy to pay the piper. Now Max was a wanted man, on the run for his very life. We meet Detective Ben Thomas, a go-getter and one that doesn't let the bad guy get away; the robbery and a burning desire to apprehend Max and the money begins to consume Ben from day one of the crime and will occupy him for years to come. We are taken on Max's journey as he travels to Alaska and begins to make a new life for himself, one that will involve a young woman named Chloe Littlbird who happen to be the local law enforcement official and the one that would steal Max's heart. Talk about conflicting interests! As the author builds his story he draws you into the very heart and emotions of Max as you travel with him in time. Max hides the money using very little of it, determined to make a life on his own in a fishing business. You become totally consumed in his life, his passions and also his knowledge that the day of reckoning is coming. Max knows that once Roy is released from jail, he will track him down and the life Max is living now will abruptly come to an end. And so it does and the battle of both moral judgments and the saving of his very life begins. I loved this part, it was a real page turner as you had to know if Roy would kill Max, if Detective Thomas would arrest him and if Chloe would desert him once she found out the truth. What happens will amaze you. If you want a story that has heart, this is for you. If you want one that has passion, adventure and the struggle with moral issues of life and death, you don't want to miss this book. A tightly written,mind absorbing story with an ending that will absolutely delight you. Truly recommended. Shirley Johnson Senior Reviewer MidWest Book Review

Gripping!:
Northern Escape is an amazingly exciting book. It's hard to imagine anyone not loving it.