Murder at Coffee Pot Landing is set in the forests near the Mississippi River's source at Itasca State Park. The body of a young woman is discovered floating in the river, giving rise to additional crimes and the importation of a new acting sheriff. Andrea Stratham's charge is to solve a pair of murders while immersing herself in the life and customs of Bemidji, a small town located among three native American reservations in northern Minnesota. Whitefeather, a reservation police officer, participates in the discovery of evidence while becoming involved in an emotional relationship. Assisting Sheriff Stratham are home-grown deputies and a newly-arrived Indian woman, Dr. Soraya Chandrisi, a forensic criminologist whose India and English background illustrates the diaspora of side-by-side native and immigrant lives. A diabolical villain uses a historical weapon to introduce terror into an otherwise tranquil environment of a rural community not accustomed to the evil nature of murder.

Ivan Weir was born and raised in Bemidji. His background includes advanced degrees in literature and sociology, a two-year stint in the Peace Corps in Afghanistan, and an academic career as a research administrator. Embedded in his novel are stories of experiences gained while enjoying 'magical' early years of swimming, fishing and camping. Through the eyes of his characters, the author describes not only the flora and fauna of northern Minnesota, but also some of the sociological currents that have enveloped the American scene since the founding of the country. Although he has published books about his English ancestors and autobiographical events from his own life, this is his first novel.