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15th out of 41 books
—
8 voters
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add to my books
13 1/2
by
Nevada Barr
In 1971, the state of Minnesota was rocked by the "Butcher Boy" incident, as coverage of a family brutally murdered by one of their own swept across newspapers and television screens nationwide.
Now, in present-day New Orleans, Polly Deschamps finds herself at yet another lonely crossroads in her life. No stranger to tragedy, Polly was a runaway at the...more
Now, in present-day New Orleans, Polly Deschamps finds herself at yet another lonely crossroads in her life. No stranger to tragedy, Polly was a runaway at the...more
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published
September 29th 2009
by Vanguard Press
(first published 2009)
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It is exciting to think that 13 1/2 is written by Nevada Barr known for her Anna Pigeon detective mystery series set in national parks. This psychological suspense novel set primarily in the city of New Orleans reminded me little of Barr's other well written works. Barr does once again however introduce readers to a strong female protagonist with a dark past. Polly leaves her abusive childhood home and in time builds a healthy and peaceful life for herself in New Orleans. She is intuitive, logic...more
3.5 stars. When I think about it, there really isn't much to this novel. There is a woman with a troubled past who marries a man, and a kid convicted of murder. As the jacket says, these two stories become intertwined. There aren't too many scenarios that could mix those people together, so there isn't too much mystery here after a certain point. Up until everything begins to become clear, we get a riveting story of a boy who can't remember killing his family and what prison does to him. For tha...more
Nevada Barr is the best-selling author of the Anna Pigeon mystery series; 13 1/2 is her second stand-alone novel.
In 1971, a young boy murdered his family in "Amityville-Horror"-style and has been known forever after as "Butcher Boy". Throughout his years of imprisonment, "Butcher Boy" experienced horrible drug-induced treatments from doctors in an effort to get the young boy to remember the gristly details of the night he has forgotten.
Meanwhile ...more
In 1971, a young boy murdered his family in "Amityville-Horror"-style and has been known forever after as "Butcher Boy". Throughout his years of imprisonment, "Butcher Boy" experienced horrible drug-induced treatments from doctors in an effort to get the young boy to remember the gristly details of the night he has forgotten.
Meanwhile ...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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I borrowed this book from the library. All I saw was Nevada Barr and an unfamiliar title so I grabbed it. To my surprise it wasn't another story about Anna Pigeon set in a National Park. This is entirely different, a psychological thriller mostly set in post-Katrina New Orleans.
As befitting the setting, it is dark, moody, mysterious, intriguing, and full of odd characters. It begins in Minnesota, though, where an 11-year-old boy is tried and convicted of killing his parents and b...more
As befitting the setting, it is dark, moody, mysterious, intriguing, and full of odd characters. It begins in Minnesota, though, where an 11-year-old boy is tried and convicted of killing his parents and b...more
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Nevada Barr's writing seems to be getting a lot darker as time goes on! This is a shadowy and creepy stand-alone thriller that's not like the Anna Pigeon series at all. (although the last 3 books in that series have been getting darker as well). The book interweaves the lives of a Minnesota boy who is suspected of murdering his entire family, with the life of a woman who escapes a neglected childhood to start a new life in New Orleans.
I enjoyed the lightning-fast pacing of this book...more
I enjoyed the lightning-fast pacing of this book...more
If you're expecting Anna Pigeon, put the book down! I had to ask myself where did this one come from? Left field doesn't quite explain it, but 13 1/2 is so far removed from what I've read of Nevada Barr., it's almost like an evil, gleeful twin has taken over her writing hand. I liked it, in fact, I loved it. Many fans get angry when their favorite authors stray from the garden path. I embrace it. Bring it on, show me what you've got. And show me Ms. Barr did.
Spanning forty years, we...more
Spanning forty years, we...more
13-1/2, by Nevada Barr, A, Narrated by Dan John Miller, produced by Brilliance Audio, downloaded from audible.com
This is a stand-alone and, for my money, the best book Barr has written. I like the Anna Pigeon series, but this book presents some psychologically compelling and terrifying characters. The book begins with its main characters in parallel lives in the 1970’s. Rich and Dillon are two boys in an upper middle class family in Rochester, Minnesota, with what would be called ...more
This is a stand-alone and, for my money, the best book Barr has written. I like the Anna Pigeon series, but this book presents some psychologically compelling and terrifying characters. The book begins with its main characters in parallel lives in the 1970’s. Rich and Dillon are two boys in an upper middle class family in Rochester, Minnesota, with what would be called ...more
This was one of the most chilling books I've encountered in a very long time. Experiencing it as an audio book was also an interesting experience. I think in some ways, it added to the creepiness. Eleven-year old Dillon Raines, also known as Butcher Boy, is sentenced to the Drummond Youth Center after his conviction for murdering his parents and baby sister with an ax. He has no recollection of the the night other than terror, and he battles to keep his sanity as he comes to grip with the ho...more
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First I've read by Barr; selected based on review in last issue of Bookmarks magazine. Well-written even though I figured there was a trick in the plot early on and guessed what was going on by mid-book. If you pay attention there are sufficient clues throughout to see where the story is going.
The psychology is everything in this book. The male characters seemed to be more fleshed out. Even though the book begins with Polly, her life is not as important to the story. She is the catalyst for the
...more
A young girl escapes her trailer trash mother and ends up in New Orleans. An 11-year-old boy kills his parents and sister and his older brother sticks up for him. When the younger brother is finally released from juvenile detention into his brother's custody, they try to start over in New Orleans. The girl, Polly, meets a man named Marshall who is very close to his older brother, Danny. You guessed it - Marshall and Dylan are The Butcher Boy and his brother and Polly and her two daughters ar...more
If it was possible to give 3 1/2 stars, that's what I'd rate. I had never read anything by Nevada Barr prior to this book, but I enjoyed it. Sure, about halfway through, I predicted where it was going - I would imagine it'd be hard NOT to know where it's going. However, it was still a good read, and the twist at the end was great. I wish that they had delved into Polly's storyline a little more - after all, the book started out with her and then switched over to the story of the two brothers, wh...more
Cacophonous, anathema, fecund and effluvia (used three times) are just a sampling of some of what my mother would have called 50 cent words that are scattered unnecessarily through this novel written on an 8th/9th grade level of reading. If this sounds cruel to the author's expertise of big words, I apologize. There is nothing wrong with writing on the 8th/9th grade level because it is the level that appeals to most of the masses of people and there is definitely nothing wrong with this type of...more
I am holding Nevada Barr responsible: since picking up her newest novel, 13 ½, I have been losing sleep. Until the very last page had been read, sleep continued to evade me.
In all my lifelong voracious reading habits, I continue to find that writers can generally be classified in one of two groups: fine literary writers or terrific storytellers. Because the skill set and high level of artistry required is quite different for each group, rarely do the two groups meet and mesh. But Ne...more
In all my lifelong voracious reading habits, I continue to find that writers can generally be classified in one of two groups: fine literary writers or terrific storytellers. Because the skill set and high level of artistry required is quite different for each group, rarely do the two groups meet and mesh. But Ne...more
I read this book because I love Anna Pigeon, but I was disappointed. I didn't find the writing here up was up to Nevada Barr's usual standards. Maybe that's partly because I know Anna Pigeon so well, her main character is already fleshed out before I've even begun a new story. This book had a good story idea -- although I had figured out the twist long before the end -- and I thought the technique of setting it in New Orleans just a few years after Katrina could have given her even more oppor...more
Having never read Nevada Barr before, I thought I give this one a try since it was a standalone. However, if this is any indication of what reading her series would be like, I think I'll pass. I had the story figured out pretty early in and kept hoping that she wouldn't go down the expected path. No luck. Could have been much better but read like a gorier version of James Patterson. Very simplistic when it could have been so much more involved.
The story involves an 11 year old b...more
The story involves an 11 year old b...more
I enjoyed this novel. It is not part of her series, but is stand-alone, with characters that are brand new for this book. Although I was able to guess who the villain was quite a ways before the end of the book (and I am not particularly adept at that type of thing), I still enjoyed the novel all the way to the very end. It was a pleasure to watch as the author gradually pulled together the many unrelated elements as the book continued. It was also enjoyed see a "serial killer" nov...more
My friend has been raving about Nevada Barr, so I chose this book randomly and was happy to see it was a standalone title rather than part of an ongoing series. The prose blew me away. It was clean and direct and fresh. The multiple points of view were woven in a perfect balance. Just as I was dying to find out what happened to a character, we'd pick up a thread with a new character, and within a page I'd be riveted by their story and eager to know what happened to them.
I particularly ...more
I particularly ...more
Take her name off this novel, and Nevada Barr just might be our last guess at who wrote it !! This very dark mystery/thriller is not part of the Anna Pigeon series, has nothing to do with National Parks, and has many unpleasant plot elements (murdering children, and child and spousal abuse among others...). Perhaps one of the more (perversely) entertaining parts of this story was when the kid that killed off all his own family (except his brother) was put into an "insane asylum," we ...more
This is a psychological thriller, a very different Nevada Barr! It begins with a young girl, Polly, in a trailer park in Mississippi living with her drunkard mother and her mother's boyfriends. She leaves home at 15. The next chapter describes the murder spree of an 11 year old boy who has just killed his parents and young sister with an axe, nicknamed Butcher Boy by the press. The only problem is that Dylan can't remember the killing at all; his last memory is of how much he loves his famil...more
In a departure from her Anna Pigeon adventure novels, Barr has penned a thriller that delves deep into her characters' dark psychologies and traumas. As in her popular series, this dual narrative features a gripping plot, polished writing, and an element of suspense. At its center, however, 13 1/2 focuses on the power of love; the reconciliation of shaky relationships—and truths—between husbands and wives, brothers, and friends; and the shaking out of past demons. Critics were also pleased to re...more
This is the first Nevada Barr novel I have read.
Overall, I was not too impressed. While the story line was decent, it was way too predictable. I suspected the ending early on, and then I was sure of it about halfway through.
The young characters are incredibly interesting; I wish she had written the entire book more like how she wrote about Dylan and Rich. The adults of the story are painful to read. Polly, as a young girl, was an amazing, brave, and very visceral character...more
Overall, I was not too impressed. While the story line was decent, it was way too predictable. I suspected the ending early on, and then I was sure of it about halfway through.
The young characters are incredibly interesting; I wish she had written the entire book more like how she wrote about Dylan and Rich. The adults of the story are painful to read. Polly, as a young girl, was an amazing, brave, and very visceral character...more
A stand-alone...and a terrific one! This was a psychological suspense about a remorseless murderer and his victims (including those who remained living). The actual murderer goes free, while manipulating his brother and everyone else into believing his brother did it. Barr deals mainly with the innocent (but apparently guilty) brother, and her segments about the actual murder don't quite identify him. For me, the question about who actually committed the murders was open from the beginning, bu...more
Wow! If you are into depressing and disturbing plot elements like child abuse, sexual abuse of a child, domestic violence, young girl getting punched and called the c word by her mom because her stepfather tries to rape her and a young boy killing both parents and his baby sister with an ax, then this story is full of them. Aside from these disturbing situations this story is full of vulgar language and all the worst ones IMO. This is only the beginning and I know it's happens in real life but...more
My first non-Anna Pigeon book of Nevada Barr's (and it may be her first non-Anna as well.) I had to keep reminding myself this was her writing, as it seemed so unlike the park mysteries. But the plot was intricate enough to keep me interested and the characters and twists well planned. It's a darker tale than usual, a psychological thriller, but since I wasn't driving down creepy back roads at night when listening to it, it was fine.
I know the significance of the title was explai...more
I know the significance of the title was explai...more
I found this book disappointing. It does not live up to the standards set in the Anna Pigeon novels. I have always considered Nevada Barr to be one of my favorite authors. Anna Pigeon is such a well-developed character, even without reading the entire series (which I have). I have also loved Nevada's plots and her descriptions of the various national parks. By contrast, in this novel I did not find Polly's character realistic, or relatable in any way. Even her comments about motherhood rang...more
I used to love Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon series but stopped reading after Hunting Season in 2003 after a run of several books that had become rather boring to me. I look her up occassionally to see if anyone thinks one of the new ones is a really good one but most people seem to think the same as me so I haven't picked any of the more recent books up. When I saw that she'd written a standalone thriller though I thought it was worth giving her another try.
I enjoyed this but it's nothing...more
I enjoyed this but it's nothing...more
"13 1/2" explores the mind of a boy who goes on trial for killing most of his family when he is eleven. The story alternates being told by himself (Dylan) and his brother (Richard) at the time of the killings and later as adults. The book opens with the story of Polly, a woman who overcomes difficult past herself and who marries one of the brothers in New Orleans.
This book continues on a trend that Nevada Barr has had toward dark and disturbing themes in her latest Anna Pig...more
This book continues on a trend that Nevada Barr has had toward dark and disturbing themes in her latest Anna Pig...more
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Nevada Barr is a mystery fiction author, known for her "Anna Pigeon" series of mysteries, set in National Parks in the United States. Barr has won an Agatha Award for best first novel for Track of the Cat.
Barr was named after the state of her birth. She grew up in Johnstonville, California. She finished college at the University of California, Irvine. Originally, Barr started...more
More about Nevada Barr...
Barr was named after the state of her birth. She grew up in Johnstonville, California. She finished college at the University of California, Irvine. Originally, Barr started...more
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