Reviews

I don't know why but I didn't enjoy this book as much as the previous 3 in the Anna Pigeon series. Anna , who is a Park Ranger, and a team of fire fighters from other services have been caught in a firestorm in California's Lassen Volcanic National Park. I'd never heard of this park prior to reading this book. Anyway, two people and a pet dog end up dead, both by murders covered up by the fire. During the several days that the group is cut off from civilization it is Anna's responsibility as the Park Ranger, to solve the murders, which may or may not be related. I'm not sure what was missing to make this 3 stars instead of 5 but something was. I will probably take a short break before reading the 5th book in this series.

johncbeynon's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

This may be my favorite Anna Pigeon novel so far. The novel is tightly constructed and features an impossible murder and a stranded group of suspects who must help one another survive the aftermath of a firestorm in Lassen National Park all the while aware that one of them is the murderer. I miss the descriptions of nature that feature in Barr's first two Pigeon novels, but the gripping plot ultimately makes up for this.

judyward's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

This book, first published in 1996, intrigued me because of the setting. My brother is in the National Park Service and has fought numerous forest fires during his career. He was also caught in a firestorm during one of those fires. Nevada Barr describes the conditions fire fighters face in battling fires and the desperation that has to be faced during a firestorm. The mystery involved took a back seat which was probably a good thing.

katkinney's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

This park ranger murder mystery series is so interesting to me because each book takes us to a completely different setting. In this fourth installment, Anna Pigeon is with a team of rangers battling a forest fire in California. The firefighting scenes are intense! I’ve read a few firefighting books and this one goes into quite a bit of detail. And of course, being a murder mystery, there is a killing along the way. What makes this one especially interesting is that the team is trapped up in the dangerous fire zone, they can’t get out, and one of them is the killer. Felt very much like a good Agatha Christie novel where you’re all trapped on an island waiting for the next person to die.

Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.

stephrenaud's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging informative mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Content Warnings

britomarte's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

One of Barr's best. A great conceit for a locked-room mystery!

I found the romantic twist interesting, because it shows how differently perceptions have changed in the past almost-twenty years.

More...