Review: Stolen Prey
When Lucas Davenport is called to the scene of a brutal murder, something seems off. The torture and killing of an entire family and their pets seems like a Mexican drug gang killing, but that doesn’t make sense. This is an upper middle class family in a fairly swanky suburb. And what does the “were coming” written on the wall in blood mean? Before he knows what happened, not only is Lucas and the BCA involved, but the DEA and the Mexican police are in on the investigation as well.
Things get pretty complicated and Lucas has to call in an expert from his video game days. She starts to unravel things but not before Lucas, and his family, are in danger.
I’ve been a big fan of John Sandford‘s Lucas Davenport series for years, but Stolen Prey was not my favorite installment in the series. The plot was so far-fetched and complicated at times, I had trouble following it and, frankly, it seemed Lucas did too. The pace was quick and the action was non-stop, but I found it confusing at times.
I love Lucas and his bravado but he seemed to be off his game in this book. He let some things get by him that he generally wouldn’t. It seemed to me that Lucas’s family and co-workers played a lesser role in this installment and I missed their presence.
I listened to the audio version which is narrated by Richard Ferrone, and his narration didn’t really work for me. I found his voice to be gruff and lacking in expression and many of the character voices to be nasal and whiny. I found it frustrating that Lucas and the third person narrator sounded the same – it was hard to tell them apart. I think Ferrone’s narration took away from my enjoyment of the book. My friend Sandy felt otherwise, so be sure to check out her review of this audiobook.
Even though Stolen Prey wasn’t my favorite installment, I will continue with the Lucas Davenport series because it’s one I enjoy.
I’ve found that audio versions of fast action spy/crime novels can sometimes be more confusing than its written counterpart. Perhaps that could also be a reason why you did not like it much?
I don’t think I could do an audio of a thriller because when I read them I have to keep flipping back to try to figure out what I missed!
Unlike Jill, I love to listen to thrillers and mysteries. I keep meaning to start ready the Prey series. If I decide not to start at the beginning, I’ll be sure not to start with this one.
Great honest audio review.
That’s too bad – it’s always disappointing when a favorite series doesn’t live up to expectations.
I’ve never been a fan of this series. Frankly, it always scares me to death. That’s kind of funny, since I can read anything else without too much squirming, but not these books. Oh well, I have so much other stuff to read, I don’t really notice the difference.
I enjoyed this one. It did get a little far-fetched at times and the plot was a little tangled, but it was fast-paced and action packed. I haven’t read that many in this series so I wasn’t comparing it to the other books, and that may made have made a difference for me too.
I added this series to my Wishlist because of your reviews, I need to get to it. Sorry you didn’t enjoy this one so much.
Ugh. I hate it when the narrator and the book doesn’t match up. I hope your next read is better.
I know what you mean…I loved this series, too!
I’m not big into this genre anyway, so it appeals to me even less.
So sorry that this didn’t work well for you. Hopefully the next installment will make up for it.
Well, they can’t all work!
This sounds like a series that my mother would like, though maybe she shouldn’t start with this one.
I keep hearing about this series but I suspect I need to start at the beginning.
I have never tried anything by this author, despite how popular he seems…just too many good books to choose from these days.
I’m sorry this didn’t meet your expectation, a good series sometimes has one that just doesn’t make it. Thanks for an honest review.
Thanks for your concise and honest review, Kathy.
I’m way behind in this series! I love Lucas and need to get back to these books. They were all beginning to blur together, so I took a break. I’ll probably stick to the printed version, though. This reader sounds like a dud!
A horrible narrator can really ruin an audio book! I’ve had to put away those type of “books.” Thanks for the warning on this one!
Deb
I’ve stopped listening to many audio books because I couldn’t handle the narrator. Sorry you didn’t like this one very much!
I used to really love this series and read every one as soon as they came out. Hubby actually still does. But somewhere along the line, I stopped reading them and I really have no idea why. I did decide to start over from the beginning and hopefully catch up again someday. Sounds like I don’t need to be in too huge a hurry to get to this one though, huh?
I’ve been in love with Lucas for what seems like forever but a few years ago I read one and it just didn’t hit the mark with me. For whatever reason I haven’t picked up any Davenport books since. I get the feeling that Sanford is running out of steam?
Eek! I need to get back to this series. I’m only on #4! Sorry this one wasn’t up to par.
LOL! I’ll be reviewing the audio later this week. I didn’t have a problem with the narration, but this was not a favorite of mine either.