Midnight Son (by James Dommek, Jr.)
This was interesting. In Midnight Son, James Dommek, Jr., an Alaskan Native of the Inupiaq tribe, shares a true crime story weaved with the legend of a mythic tribe, the lnukuns. Teddy Kyle Smith, an Alaskan Native, is at the beginning of a promising acting career when he reported the death of his mother. Teddy’s actions that follow are unexplainable. Teddy quickly becomes a fugitive and when he is captured, he claims he encountered the Inukuns in the Alaskan wilderness.
James Dommek, Jr. becomes fascinated by Teddy Kyle Smith. He interviews friends, acquaintances, and Teddy’s brother for this short Audible Original. This story surprised me with its many layers. James seems interested to learn about Teddy, the crimes he was accused, and the legend of the mythic Inukuns. The story opens with the interviews James conducted with people who know Teddy and the victims of his crimes. Next, he covers the trial. James played Teddy’s testimony regarding what he saw of the Inukuns. He explained how the courts responded to the testimony. He also shared his perspective of the criminal justice system in Alaska. Lastly, James decides the only way he is going to learn the answers he searches for regarding the mythic tribe, is to explore the Alaskan for himself.
James Dommek, Jr. is not only a writer, he is a musician. He narrated this Only From Audible audiobook, and it is excellently produced. Between chapters, there is beautiful Native Alaskan music, which I learned at the end was performed by James Dommek, Jr. He is very talented.
Throughout the audiobook, James references Teddy’s most famous acting role in the movie, On The Ice. The YouTube trailer for the movie is below. Teddy plays the father of two teenage boys. It’s hard to reconcile the image of the man in the movie with the man who became so violent in real life.
As a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, I earn from qualifying purchases linked back to Amazon. Every penny earned allows me to blog about books and keeps this site running.
