"New York Times"-bestselling author Nevada Barr delivers another extraordinary Anna Pigeon novel set in the wide open vistas of southwestern Texas. The killings on Isle Royale have left Anna drained and haunted, her memories of her time with the wolf study group forever marred by the carnage on the island. Diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, she is on administrative leave, per her superintendent's urging. Anna wonders if the leave might not be permanent, either by her own choice or that of the National Park ...
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"New York Times"-bestselling author Nevada Barr delivers another extraordinary Anna Pigeon novel set in the wide open vistas of southwestern Texas. The killings on Isle Royale have left Anna drained and haunted, her memories of her time with the wolf study group forever marred by the carnage on the island. Diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, she is on administrative leave, per her superintendent's urging. Anna wonders if the leave might not be permanent, either by her own choice or that of the National Park Service. The one bright spot in Anna's life is Paul, her husband of less than a year. Hoping the warmth and the adventure of a raft trip in Big Bend National Park will lift her spirits, Paul takes Anna to southwest Texas, where the sun is hot and the Rio Grande is running high. The sheer beauty of the Chihuahuan Desert and the power of the river work their magic-until the raft is lost in the rapids and a young college student falls overboard, resulting in an even more grisly discovery. Caught in a strainer between two boulders and more dead than alive, is a pregnant woman, hair and arms tangled in the downed branches. Instead of the soul-soothing experience they'd longed for, Anna and Paul find themselves sucked into a labyrinth of intrigue that leads from the Mexican desert to the steps of the Governor's Mansion in Austin, Texas.
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Seller's Description:
Acceptable. A readable copy. All pages are intact, and the cover is intact (However the dust cover may be missing). Pages can include considerable notes--in pen or highlighter--but the notes cannot obscure the text. Book may be a price cutter or have a remainder mark. EX-LIBRARY COPY.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good. Very Good condition. Very Good dust jacket. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp.
This book needed one badly. I have liked Nevada Barr's novels in the past, but this one contained too many lengthy, descriptive passages about the numerous perils of Anna Pigeon, which did nothing but hold up the story line. I found myself skipping over long stretches just to get to the 'meat.' There were also basic grammar and form problems, and some sentences that simply didn't make any sense whatever.
However, the worst problem with this book was that the author assumed her protagonist was so lovable that any wrong-headed action she took was acceptable behavior. Here, Anna's middle-aged maternal instincts were supposedly stirred by a baby she rescued from a dire situation. However, her treatment of this infant -- dragging it around like a ragdoll from one dangerous situation to the next -- could only be perceived as child abuse. I kept hoping the authorities would come along to save the child from a horrible fate.
I hope that Ms. Barr will get back to the kind of great story telling that so distinguished her in books like Firestorm, Endangered Species, and Deep South -- and hire a good editor.
