Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ragged Lake | 2017 | Ron Corbett | Buy |
| 2 | Cape Diamond | 2018 | Ron Corbett | Buy |
| 3 | Mission Road | 2020 | Ron Corbett | Buy |
| 4 | Muskie Falls | 2023 | Ron Corbett | Buy |
| 5 | Back Channel | 2025 | Ron Corbett | Buy |
The Frank Yakabuski series by Ron Corbett is a five-book crime fiction series set in the remote communities of northern Ontario. The series started with Ragged Lake in 2017 and has continued through Back Channel in 2025, with each book following detective Frank Yakabuski as he works cases in isolated towns where harsh winters and geographic remoteness shape both the crimes and the investigations.
Yakabuski is a big, physically imposing detective with deep roots in the Upper Ottawa Valley. Ragged Lake opens with the discovery of a murdered family at a squatter’s camp on a frozen lake, accessible only by a winter road. Cape Diamond, Mission Road, and Muskie Falls continue to put Yakabuski in situations where the northern landscape itself is as much of a challenge as the criminals he pursues.
Corbett draws on his decades of experience as a journalist in the Ottawa region. His knowledge of the lumber industry, the fishing culture, and the small-town dynamics of northern Ontario gives the books a strong sense of place that sets them apart from urban crime fiction.