Review: Field of Prey
When a young couple is out parking they notice a stomach churning smell that ruins the mood. The young man mentions it to a deputy who discovers countless bodies stuffed in a well. Lucas Davenport is called in and he makes some stomach churning discoveries of his own. There’s a serial killer out there and he’s been at it for years. It’s up to Lucas to figure out what is going on and why it took so long for anyone to notice.
I’ve long been a fan of John Sandford‘s Lucas Davenport books so I was looking forward to reading Field of Prey, the 24th book in the series. As usual, Lucas is called in to solve a difficult case but this time his teen-aged daughter, Letty is helping in the investigation. Readers know early on who the killer is so the storyline is more about the cat-and-mouse game the investigation turns into, and, while I thought the book was okay, I didn’t love it. For me, it is one of the weaker books in the series. I had trouble buying Letty’s involvement in the investigation and some of the killer’s scenario seemed over the top to me. Fans of the series will still want to read the book but, if you’re new to the series, I wouldn’t suggest starting with this title.
The audio version of Field of Prey is narrated by Richard Ferrone and he did an okay job. I thought his voice was great but his delivery was flat at times. The audio book is on 9 CDs and lasts approximately eleven and a half hours.
Review copy provided by Penguin Random House. I am an Indiebound Affliate.
The series is new to me. Enjoyed the post.
I haven’t read the series or anything by this author. It’s always disappointing when a book in a series you’ve enjoyed isn’t all that great. Hopefully you’ll enjoy the next book more.
I haven’t read any of his books but I know he’s very popular. Sorry this wasn’t a better read for you.
I’ve only read one of the Prey books but I really liked it. That’s a problem with longish series, you’re bound to run across an installment that’s not super strong.
Not for me, but I know someone who would like it
I read a couple of his books way back in the beginning. And, if I recall correctly, they were too gory for me. But I concede that my memory may be a bit faulty as to why I stopped reading him.
I can’t believe I’ve never read any of these!!!
I’m always in the market for a good detective/cop/DI/PI (male or female) series to sink my teeth into. I read one of these books, not the first one, a long time ago and didn’t connect with the MC. However I would be willing to give it a try sometime again, if found in a library to see if I enjoyed it more now. All long-running series suffer from a slump now and again. The author still invested in it will be able to pull them back on track, it seems. The ones dialing it in should end it and start a different project.
I haven’t read any of this series, but it sounds good!
Wow, 24 books. I wonder how hard it is for these writers to keep writing about the same characters without them getting stale
We have lots of John Sandford books at our used bookstore, but I’ve never read him.
This sounds very good, Kathy!
I used to love reading his stuff years ago but it’s just not appealing to me now….
I love Lucas and have this one on my shelf so I’m looking forward to it. I feel like more and more Lucas books are just okay as the series continues. But I think that happens to any series over 20 books 🙂
I’ve still only read one book in this entire series. I have a lot of catching up to do!
I am a Sanford fan so I will be reading/listening to this one. Thanks for the warning that its night quite the best book in the series. I’ll keep that in mind.