"In Glacier, the amoral purity was gone. A wrongness stalked... Nature
herself was being unnatural... When nature got personal, then whatever passed
for Satan was surely afoot."
Park Ranger Anna Pigeon is back, this time in the Waterton/Glacier National
Peace Park, which straddles the border between Montana and Canada. Assigned
to a bear DNA research project with biologist and bear researcher Joan Rand
and Rory, a teenage boy from Earthwatchers, the plan is to check hair traps,
gather samples left behind, and dismantle the traps and set them up in new
locations. The lures are odoriferous, the hiking grueling, but Anna's looking
forward to immersing herself in nature once again...until nature seems to
take an unnatural twist. The second night out, a crazed bear attacks their
camp, young Rory goes missing...and it's only the beginning.
A search team is formed to find Rory but makes a gruesome discovery instead:
the dead, mutilated body of a woman; neck snapped, the flesh of her face cut
away. It's up to Anna to solve the crime and find who --- or what --- is
responsible. Despite the beautiful mountain setting, something evil is afoot
in Glacier National Park.
Until now, nature was the one thing Anna could rely on, could count on to
always act as it should, and its seemingly unnatural acts rock her to her
very soul. Her center is shaken and it's all she can do to keep herself
together long enough to solve the puzzle; her sanity is at risk if she
doesn't. Shot at, nearly crushed by a boulder, beaten by a bear...it takes
all she has, physically and mentally, to solve this crime. In BLOOD LURE, we
see Anna on the edge.
Nevada Barr subtly weaves social commentary into the story through Anna.
Especially interesting is the take on our country's growing paranoia:
"Americans were happily forfeiting their freedom of choice for imagined
increases in security." And "Society as a whole chose to believe that
one-size-fit all so they would not be troubled by the inexact science of
justice." These, and other observations, are part of what makes it easy to
identify with Anna (although I'd never be able to keep up with her on a
hike!).
I enjoyed the National Park setting, a refreshing change from the
run-of-the-mill city and urban settings, just as Anna is a breath of fresh
air from the typical sleuths. Crotchety, preferring nature to people and not
afraid to admit it --- nor afraid to admit the problems caused by it --- she
stays true to herself because she can be no other way; and you never doubt
that it is the only way she can be. Anna is a fascinating blend of
spirituality and world-weariness. Not surprised by people at their worst, she
readily believes in the mystical sense of nature and draws her strength from
it. When that core is shaken, she's exposed. BLOOD LURE is a gripping mystery
and part of its "grip" comes from watching Anna weather her exposure.
Nevada Barr is a first class writer and storyteller. BLOOD LURE is well
written and spellbinding, keeping you guessing who, what, and how it was done
until the very end. If you haven't read any of the Anna Pigeon series, start
with BLOOD LURE and be prepared to go looking for the other eight books in
the series --- and everything else written by Nevada Barr.
--- Reviewed by Jamie Engle
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