[bookshare-discuss] SUBMITTED: A Superior Death
- From: "Gerald Hovas" <geraldhovas@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bookshare-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 26 Mar 2005 16:26:32 -0600
This is the second book in Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon series. If you haven't
read any of this series, then give them a try, especially if you like
mysteries or reading about the outdoors. Every book is set in a different
national park, with a single exception: Deep South and Hunting Season both
take place on the Natchez Trace. The first book in the series is Track of
the Cat, which was awarded both the Anthony Award for Best First Novel by
The Crime Writers Association and the Agatha Award for Best First Novel.
Here's the long synopsis.
Park ranger Anna Pigeon returns, in a mystery that unfolds in and around
Lake Superior, in whose chilling depths sunken treasure comes with a deadly
price.
In this mystery, Nevada Barr sends Ranger Pigeon to a new post amid the
cold, deserted, and isolated beauty of Isle Royale National Park, a remote
island off the coast of Michigan known for fantastic deep-water dives of
wrecked sailing vessels. Leaving behind memories of the Texas high desert
and
the environmental scam she helped uncover, Anna is adjusting to the cool
damp of Lake Superior and the spirits and lore of the northern Midwest. But
when
a routine application for a diving permit reveals a grisly underwater
murder, Anna finds herself 260 feet below the forbidding surface of the
lake, searching
for the connection between a drowned man and an age-old cargo ship. Written
with a naturalist's feel for the wilderness and a keen understanding of
characters
who thrive in extreme conditions, A Superior Death is a passionate,
atmospheric page-turner.
I found the following on Nevada Barr's website and thought it was
interesting.
"Isle Royale National Park was my first duty station as a seasonal law
enforcement ranger and Anna Pigeon's second park. A number of things went
into the
inspiration for this book. While I was there fires broke out in the West
(as they do every summer, a pity for the nearby residents but a financial
boon
for wildland firefighters). By sheer coincidence every man at the Windigo
end of the island was sent off to fight them. Remaining was me, as Acting
District
Ranger, and three female interpreters. A visitor remained with us for
several days after the exodus. Each day this man looked more harried and
glum.
On day three he came into the ranger station. He looked as if he'd lost
weight and was not sleeping well. After a few minutes of muttering he asked
in a tiny scared voice: "What have you done with all the MEN?" That and a
wonderful old short story called, I think, something like "A Bottle of
Relish"
became the touchstones for the book." Nevada
Other related posts:
- » [bookshare-discuss] SUBMITTED: A Superior Death
