Sunday, May 25, 2014

Field of Prey




The extraordinary new Lucas Davenport thriller from #1 New York Times-bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize winner John Sandford.

The night after the fourth of July, Layton Carlson Jr., of Red Wing, Minnesota, finally got lucky. And unlucky.

He’d picked the perfect spot to lose his virginity to his girlfriend, an abandoned farmyard in the middle of cornfields: nice, private, and quiet. The only problem was . . . something smelled bad—like, really bad. He mentioned it to a county deputy he knew, and when the cop took a look, he found a body stuffed down a cistern. And then another, and another.

By the time Lucas Davenport was called in, the police were up to fifteen bodies and counting. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, when Lucas began to investigate, he made some disturbing discoveries of his own. The victims had been killed over a great many years, one every summer, regular as clockwork. How could this have happened without anybody noticing?

Because one thing was for sure: the killer had to live close by. He was probably even someone they saw every day. . . .


From Booklist

*Starred Review* A couple of high-school lovers conclude an evening of passion in rural Minnesota by noticing a really bad smell. They inform the local cops, who find an underground cistern filled with God knows how many bodies and body parts. It’s obviously not a job for local cops, so Lucas Davenport and his Bureau of Criminal Apprehension are called in. There are 15 skulls and counting when Lucas arrives. The early forensic examinations reveal the killings have been going on for years. How did someone not notice? Davenport’s usual partners are engaged in other investigations, so he teams up with Catrin Mattsson, a detective with the county sheriff’s office. They seem a mismatched pair at first. She resents his wealth, and he sees her as a bit of a confrontational smart-ass. They wade through a couple of false leads, one supplied by an eight-year-old beauty pageanteer whose parents view the ensuing publicity as a “big break.” There are a couple other investigatory sidebars, but when the killer decides Mattsson should be his next victim, the case escalates quickly. Sandford writes best-sellers more often than most of us take vacations. This is as engaging and thrilling as any of them, even with a subplot that feels unnecessary. But that’s like whining about Willie Mays striking out once while hitting four home runs in a game. As always, Sandford and Lucas are superb. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: You could say “same old, same old,” but in Sandford’s case, you’d mean another top-notch thriller destined for best-seller lists. That’s the good kind of “same old, same old.” --Wes Lukowsky

Review

Praise for Field of Prey

“Consistently brilliant, Sandford shows the methodical steps inherent in such a case, without sacrificing plot, pacing or character.”—Cleveland Plain-Dealer

“As always, Lucas and Sandford are superb . . . Another top-notch thriller destined for best-seller lists.”—Booklist (starred review)

“Suspenseful . . . Sandford has tricks to play to confound readers before the tension rises and leads to a violent and surprising conclusion.”—Publishers Weekly

“Intense.”—Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Silken Prey

“Sandford’s Davenport novels are always very good, and this is the best one in a long time. It’s suspenseful, witty, and wise in the ways of modern politics. And the conclusion is darkly unforgettable. A superb thriller.” —Booklist

“The perfect summer read, as far as I’m concerned.” —Stephen King on Today

Praise for John Sandford

“[A] very skilled and smart writer.”—E. L. Doctorow, The New York Times Book Review

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