Customer Reviews

Deep South

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I've read all of Nevada Barr's books and couldn't put this one down. Great story line and excellent descriptive writing. Barr does her usual great job with Anna's latest assignment and the mystery storyline, plus she writes beautiful descriptions of the sights, sounds, and feel of the Natchez Trace Parkway. I felt like I just took a trip South!

"Deep South," the 8th entry in Nevada Barr's wonderful Anna Pigeon series, is definitely the best so far, especially as it comes after the somewhat lackluster "Liberty Falling."

In this installment, our intrepid park ranger has at long last allowed herself to be promoted. When the book opens, Anna is on her way to the Natchez Trace Parkway, which runs from Jackson to Natchez, Mississippi. There, she will assume the reins of district ranger in a land still fraught will male chauvinism and general distrust of females.

Nothing daunted (but secretly afraid of the very different flora and fauna--eg, gigantic spiders), Anna makes her way to her new job, along with her complaining cat Piedmont, and her dog Taco, a golden retriever in previous books who has suddenly morphed into a black lab (Barr's editor apparently doesn't know the difference). No matter. Once on the Trace, Anna is hit full force with two disgruntled male subordinates who refuse to accept her authority, a handsome sheriff who makes her hard heart flutter, a group of Civil War buffs who stage re-enactments in Anna's territory--and a murder.

Barely able to unload her Rambler (which has mysteriously morphed from her much-loved Honda--another editorial boo boo) of her worldly possessions, Anna finds herself immersed in the particularly nasty murder of Danielle Posey, a popular high school senior, whose beaten body is found in the wilderness tied to a tree and draped in a crudely makeshift Ku Klux Klan hood. Anna is thrown into the tangled web of the murdered girl's life and a mystery as thick as the fast-growing kudzu that blankets the region.

There are plenty of suspects from which to choose, from the high school's star quarterback, who was Danielle's prom date, to a mysterious and possibly mythical lover, to Danielle's own brother, an avowed racist who would love nothing better than to create an issue where none exists. The deeper the mystery, the more suspects. Anna struggles to make sense of the murder while also trying to settle in to her new cottage, her new life, her hostile office--and an alligator in her carport.

There is not a false step in this intriguing, fast-paced mystery. The thicker the plot, the more the reader is rooting for Anna to solve the case. I did not guess the murderer OR the motive until Anna did. It all made sense when the pieces were put together, but I had no clue beforehand, and that's the best kind of mystery.

As always, Barr's description of Anna's habitat is mesmerizing. In this case, since Barr herself was (and possibly still is) a ranger on the Natchez Trace, the descriptions are particularly evocative. I found myself smelling the hot, sultry, lazy Mississippi air along with Anna, and reaching for the air-conditioner for relief along with her. Anna Pigeon remains a thoroughly likeable and all-too-human heroine, and I look forward to reading the next in the series.

I could not wait for this book to be published! I'm a big Barr fan and I was NOT disappointed. The author's descriptions are so vivid, I could feel the humidity and smell the kudzu. All the new characters are compelling, but now I'll have to wait another year to read more about them. Deep South kept me up until three in the morning--my highest compliment! Way to go, Nevada!

This time Anna Piegon finds herself embroiled in a Southern battle that occured at the time of the Civil War. Anna is her usual inquistive self, and almost gets killed satisfying her curosity and trying to forget a man. Could not put the book down.

Worth the five star rating.

This is the first book I have read by Nevada Barr and I enjoyed it very much. She does a wonderful job of describing southern Mississippi and the Natchez Trace. You can almost feel the heat and the humidity! Her characters are also well developed, and as you will see from the hypocritical religious characters, true to life in this part of the country. Anna Pigeon is a very interesting character and I look forward to reading more of Barr's books.

I couldn't put this one down. Ms Barr's writing has continued to mature with this book in the series being the best one yet. Even though some of the scenes are rather gruesome I was not nauseated as I am with other authors (a certain female coroner to allude to one) lately. Anna is also becoming more 'human' with a dog, a cat and a love interest. I would have liked to see some of the other characters developed more though. Perhaps since Anna will be at this Park for awhile Ms Barr will do that in the next book.

Park Ranger Anna Pigeon in her new assignment in Mississippi stumbles upon a gruesome murder along the Natchez Trace Parkway. The handwritten sign on a tree demands she REPENT & amid alligators, Civil War reenactors & the Ole Boy Club she gets her first taste of Southern hospitality. In Deep South we find our intrepid Park Ranger far from her beloved Mesa Verde desert lands, surrounded by lush & humid forests, history & relics from the Civil War & a reluctant & patronizing park staff.

I am always thrilled when another Anna Pigeon adventure comes out of Nevada Barr's mysterious & deeply researched pen & in Deep South, Anna Pigeon begins to come out of mourning for her long-lost husband, & gets her appetite back for life which is the only thing between her & certain death. A richly textured, thoughtful & provocative mystery set in an enchanting part of our world! Do check out my site for my full review.

Deep South is the second of Barr's books that I have read. I picked it up expecting another superficial portrayal of the South--little factual information, cookie cutter stereotyped characters. I was pleasantly surprised. Barr shows an indepth knowledge of the location and environment she has chosen as the setting for her latest novel. I was amused by the culture shock Anna suffered--which one would expect from someone arriving in southern Mississippi from Mesa Verde! Barr's local characters all sound like people I may have met in my daily life in Mississippi. Men skeptical of working women, girls preoccupied with sex and beauty pageants, young men for whom a football scholarship is a ticket to a better life--these are real people. My one complaint about Barr's characters is the lack of development other than the heroine. I have read two of her novels and noticed the same in Liberty Falling. Also, the lack of any significant female character other than Pigeon makes the story seem somewhat artifical.

Overall, an entertaining story in a setting that I found interesting.

Having lived in in the south all my life & in Mississippi for a space of years, I found Nevada Barr's insight into the mentality of the south amazingly accurate ...having read many of her books I had made the mistake of *assuming* that she was from the southwest due to the accuracies there ... I was surprised to read that she is from Mississippi .. This book with it treatment of the racial situation twisted throughout the murder investigation with Ms Barr's other typical twists & turns to keep you guessing made this, for me, one of her best so far .. I bought my last two books by her based on her name alone ... immediately after finishing this one I ordered 5 more ... In my opinion she is one of the finest writers of this genre around today.

As a mystery writer whose works take place almost entirely in the American Southwest, I admire the geographic diversity of Nevada Barr's series. Anna Pigeon has solved murders along the Great Lakes, in the western forests, in New York City, and in several other regions. In DEEP SOUTH, one can guess where Anna is now assigned. She's in Mississippi, and she has finally accepted a promotion. She also finds a dead prom queen. We know she will struggle to solve this homicide. The mystery is first-rate, and Ms. Barr continues with her excellent character development. Her scenic descriptions shine, as does her descriptions of contemporary life in Mississippi. Terrific book all around.