Rating: 
Summary: A Really Well Done Mystery
Review: Anna's friend Frieda Dierkz is injured in an underground caving accident at Luchuguilla, she asks rescuers for Anna. As Anna descends into Luchuguilla, she has to battle a near crippling case of claustrophobia but that is nothing compared to what she learns from Frieda when she gets to her. Frieda is drifting in and out of consciousness but manages to tell Anna that her accident was really attempted murder. Now Anna has to battle her fear of the cave and protect Frieda from a possible attack. This is an intense mystery and the action is close to nonstop. Nevada Barr always does an excellent job with her sense of place and this is one of her best. You feel what it is like to rapel sixty to a hundred fifty feet into a pitch dark cave. I personally won't be doing that but I can share the experience from the safety of my couch (thank goodness). If you would like to start from the beginning with Anna, try Track Of The Cat.
Rating: 
Summary: Motorhome fare?
Review: The Anna Pigeon series, quite aside from their mysteries and mayhem, is a suspenseful and amusing introduction to America's National Parks. I can see visiting one new book and one new Park every year. They should be made available at every NPS newstand right along with the guidebooks (although Barr's insider view of Park administrators shows why the politicos would never allow it). I was a bit disappointed in Pigeon #6. Her jabs at nature's despoilers are lighweight and sentimental. The author's very name puts one in mind of the wide open park spaces where many (other) of her stories and gentle pæans to conservation take place. It's too bad Barr isn't more interested in describing nature and developing atmosphere. I was distracted by her penchant for making literary allusions. Too often she breaks a suspenseful mood or short-circuits the growth of claustrophobic tension with an intrusion of Anna's self-effacing humor. I wasn't drawn to the characters. Disappointingly, Anna doesn't engage in any long talks with her insightful sister, or with a boy friend (currently lacking in her life). It's a long time to learn the caver's injury was allegedly not an accident, and even longer to generate any motivations for an attack or red herrings among those in the "closed room." As usual Anna hangs around with the suspects without police support when she'd be better off skedaddling. A cave diagram helps one visualize the spectacular cave system. Clues to the mystery are given, but I remained in the dark long after Anna's eureka moment. Maybe I misunderstood the surface geography in relation to the cave.
Rating:
Summary: One of Barr's best and most intriguing mysteries...
Review: In reading one of Barr's more current mysteries, I discovered I had somehow bypassed this particular one. I thoroughly enjoy Barr's books, not only for the good mystery readers can expect, but because of the environs that she places the mysteries in. Barr uses the great National Parks for her scenarios, and inevitably she ends up teaching readers about areas in the United States we are not familiar with. This time the story revolved around the Carlsbad Cavern area. I have never read anything on cave climbing or spelunking, though since my husband is a scoutmaster I am familiar with the boys doing this type of stuff. I was fascinated by the descriptions of the caves, as well as the absolute darkness and disorientation that people undergo when in this type of situation. I can guarantee, that as well written as Barr's work in this novel are, you will not catch me putting myself into this situation. It all sounds too claustrophobic and confining for me, besides the fact that deaf people often have balance problems and this would not make for good climbers. Yikes! I gave this book a five because it was so well-written and I enjoyed it so much. However, it may be too technical in its jargon for some fans of lighter mystery reading. I am also impressed with the need to practice good environmental protection of these precious resources, and the storyline was very plausible about some people putting corporate greed above the need to protect these places. It's been done before, it is happening now, and will happen in the future. Barr does a good job painting pictures of these caves and resources and explaining why they need protection.
Karen Sadler,
University of Pittsburgh
Rating:
Summary: Holy Cow!
Review: My dentist recommended this book when I told her I'd been to Carlsbad NP & was headed to Wind Cave NP. And I was not disappointed. I've never been drawn to mysteries before, and I was pleasantly surprised. My introduction to Ranger Pigeon did not suffer although I picked her up mid-series. Her descriptions of the caves and parks, and the people who frequent, them is dead-on. She scared the be-jeebies out of me, and increased my appreciation of caves, National Parks, and Rangers 100-fold. I've been inspired to start at the beginning with Track of the Cat, and I can see now how much better Ms. Barr gets with age!
Rating: 
Summary: Claustrophobic Fun
Review: A good mystery and a claustrophobic trip into the dark world of caverns. Anna Pidgeon is an interesting character and I plan to read more of the series.
Rating:
Summary: Great book, great story, WOW
Review: This book kept me up until 4AM so I could finish it. The characters were excellent, the plot and story were heart pounding. You could just feel the darkness in the cave. One of the best mysteries I've read.
Rating:
Summary: Anna in the Underworld
Review: National Park Service law-enforcement ranger Anna Pigeon goes to Carlsbad Caverns as part of a rescue team to bring an injured friend and fellow ranger out of the depths of an enormous labyrinthine cave. The author, whose descriptive powers are as good as ever, evokes both the oppressive stygian darkness and the wondrous beauty found therein. Whether you're claustrophobic like Anna or not, you'll probably be almost as relieved as she is when the action emerges into the blessed world of daylight. "Blind Descent" is both a suspenseful thriller and a cleverly plotted whodunit, with suspects aplenty and, of course, a few red herrings thrown in for good measure. If you like Nevada Barr's outdoor adventures, you might also enjoy mysteries by B.J. Oliphant, Virginia Lanier and Abigail Padgett.
Rating:
Summary: Anna Pidgeon in Wonderland
Review: Park Ranger Anna Pidgeon falls into a rabbit hole (well actually a cave) and off the wagon in this story. A ruthlessly researched book that takes the reader along on a caving expedition in New Mexico that is more than you ever dreamed of. Nevada Barr is a master of setting and landscape, the reader truly feels pulled into the book. However, the characters and plot seem shallow and not particularly believable. I listened to the unabridged audio and was absolutely captivated by the cave rescue, couldn't wait to get back to my tape. The reader (Barbara Rosenblat) is not one of my particular favorites but does an admirable job on voices and emotions. I would recommend this as a "must read" for anyone going to Carlsbad, or contemplating a caving expedition.
Rating:
Summary: The mystery of National Parks
Review: This was the first Nevada Barr/Anna Pigeon novel that I read. I fell in love with it for its accuracy (I had previously read about Tim Cahill traversing these same caverns), the clear and concise style in which Ms. Barr writes, and the interesting and complicated Anna Pigeon. I highly recommend this book and Liberty Falling. I am about to read more of Ms. Barr's work and hope to provide additional recommendations after that... Read this--it is a terrific story.
Rating:
Summary: The Best of Barr!!
Review: I enjoy all of the Nevada Barr books, but particularly this one. Compled with her usual fine characterization, plot, style, and narrative, this book positively makes anyone who has a touch of claustrophobia tingle! That is a good thing. This book ranks right up there with Zola's "Germinal" and several of the works by Lincoln Child and John Preston (particularly "Riptide") for its spine-tingling thrills underground. Need I mention that heroine Anna Pigeon is her normal powerful (but credible) self in this work?
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