An insatiable, unstoppable beast, the wildfire called Jackknife has already devoured 17,000 acres of California’s Lassen Volcanic National Park. A devastating force of nature, it has brought out the very best – and worst – in those sworn to defeat it.
Ranger Anna Pigeon is among the exhausted firefighters, serving as medic and spike camp security, when an abrupt weather shift sends Jackknife racing relentlessly in their direction. And when the monstrous blaze has passed, Anna emerges from her protective shelter to discover two men are dead: one a victim of the hungry flames, the other stabbed through the heart. Now, trapped in a nightmarish landscape of snow and ash, cut off from rescue by a rampaging winter storm, Anna must investigate an inexplicable homicide – as she and nine others struggle to survive the terrible rage of nature… and the murderer in their midst.

I read ‘Track of the Cat’ (1993), the first Anna Pigeon book, back in the 1990s when I was travelling through American National Parks. I re-read the book last year and was pleased to see that the writing held up. I realised that I was probably better able to appreciate Anna, a widow in her forties, now that I’m older, rather than younger, than her. I wanted to see what she did next, so I started to read my way through the series. 

‘Firestorm’ was my fourth visit with Anna Pigeon. I think it is the strongest in the series so far. It differed from its predecessors in three ways that made it a stronger mystery and a more intense read. 

Firstly, it was effectively a version of a locked-room mystery. In this case, the locked room was the space occupied by the people who survived a flashover fire in the mountains of California by sheltering under their individual ‘shake and bake’ aluminium covers. One of the party doesn’t survive – a knife in the heart will do that to you- meaning one of the survivors is a murderer. 

Secondly, it had a compressed timeline. Anna and the other survivors are trapped on the mountain by extreme cold weather for a few days after the murder. So, Anna has to try and find the murderer while knowing that he or eating and sleeping meters away from them. She spends most of the investigation cold, exhausted and feeling very vulnerable.

Thirdly, part of the story is told from the point of view of FBI agent Frederick Stanton, whom Anna worked with in ‘A Superior Death‘ and ‘Ill Wind’. Stanton inserts himself into the investigation when he hears that Anna is involved and that she is trapped on the mountain. He never makes it further than the Base Camp, but he has the resources of the FBI at his disposal. Stanton’s perspective helped the exposition along nicely. His growing relationship with Anna also helped develop Anna’s character.

As usual, Nevada Barr did a sterling job of bringing the setting of the story to life. The description of the fire is spectacular. The description of waiting for rescue in the mountains in the depth of winter made a great contrast and provided a dramatic backdrop for what is a fairly static story.

I didn’t guess who the murderer was, so I was kept hanging until almost the end of the book, and even then, things didn’t go the way I’d normally expect them to.

I enjoyed the book. I was impressed by how contemporary (communications technology to one side) the twenty-nine-year-old book felt. I have another fourteen books to go in the series. I’m looking forward to them.

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It seems I’m not the only one whose interest in Anna Pigeon has revived. The USA Network is adapting the books into a TV series with Tracy Spiridakos playing Anna Pigeon. The first season should air in 2026.