Full props to Nevada Barr. The first Anna Pigeon novel, Track of the Cat, was a wonderfully descriptive story in a state park with some great characters and a good mystery. I assumed that she'd take that nice formula and spin it out into a good series of books, and that theory was borne out by the second story I read.

Then I got this book. Same Anna, same national parks, but this isn't a nice little mystery. It's a hideous psychological thriller featuring some of the most twisted villains I've ever had the pleasure to read about. Reminds me a bit of Elizabeth George or Ted Decker, and it's kind of nauseating just wondering what kind of mind could even come up with characters like these.

The other books in the series I've read I'd be happy to recommend to an Agatha Christie fan. The psychological darkness in this one makes it less appropriate for those genteel folks, but the writing continues to be terrific, and Barr manages to pull her characters and settings right out of their comfort mystery zone and into this blacker one. Quite a feat. ( )

Anna Pidgeon - 13 ( )

Just 3 days after her wedding to Sheriff Paul Davidson, Anna Pigeon moves from Miss. to CO to assume her new post as district ranger at a national park; 3 girls have disappeared and show up again at a campsite. ( )

Too graphic, though the story is classic Ms. Barr. Set in the Rocky Mountain National Park, which was cool for me because I live in Denver and have been there. ( )

I wasn’t prepared for the brutality of the final pages and ultimately skimmed them. After reading pretty much this whole series, it surprised me. Also, the absence of Paul surprised me. I guess Barr just isn’t ready for Anna to be married just yet.

Plotwise, it fell into typical pattern. Anna is working in yet another National Park. She's the new kid on the block again, but this time has some rank. 2 out of 3 missing children turn up battered and dazed from their ordeal, they aren't much help in locating the 3rd girl. Obvious and less obvious suspects are presented, and one is depicted in such a way that I knew he couldn’t be guilty. Immediately I started looking at the less obvious and pretty much found the guilty party, I just didn’t know how sick and twisted a character that person would turn out to be.

There were also some things that didn’t make sense to me, that maybe are explained in the pages I couldn’t deal with. Like whose finger was it anyway and how did Anna connect her criminal with the cases she brings up at the end; murders out of state? But I’m not going to go and find the answer, I’m good.

I should have known this book would ratchet up my emotions to a high degree. It featured a cultish clan of “Christians” that was remarkably close to the fringe groups of Mormons; virtually enslaving women and creating a brothel of underage girls for the picking of dirty old pedophiles masquerading as righteous men. Sickening in its own right, but the lengths with which the killer goes to create different kind of twisted little clan is equally chilling. Barr really went all out with this one. ( )