• Bad Blood

  • A Virgil Flowers Novel
  • By: John Sandford
  • Narrated by: Eric Conger
  • Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (4,376 ratings)

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Bad Blood  By  cover art

Bad Blood

By: John Sandford
Narrated by: Eric Conger
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Publisher's summary

Thriller Award for Best Hard Cover Novel, 2011

The brilliant new Virgil Flowers thriller from the number-one New York Times-best-selling author.

One late fall Sunday in southern Minnesota, a farmer brings a load of soybeans to a local grain elevator - and a young man hits him on the head with a steel bar, drops him into the grain bin, waits until he's sure he's dead, and then calls the sheriff to report the "accident". Suspicious, the sheriff calls in Virgil Flowers, who quickly breaks the kid down...and the next day the boy's found hanging in his cell.

Remorse? Virgil isn't so sure, and as he investigates he begins to uncover a multigeneration, multifamily conspiracy - a series of crimes of such monstrosity that, though he's seen an awful lot in his life, even he has difficulty in comprehending it...and in figuring out what to do next.

Stemming crime: listen to another Virgil Flowers novel.
©2010 John Sandford (P)2010 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Flowers is a fun character, smart and honest with a healthy supply of cynicism and snark...a thoroughly engaging, suspenseful, satisfying story.” (The Washington Examiner)

“Sandford’s exciting fourth thriller to feature Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agent Virgil Flowers. [His] biggest...case to date.” (Publishers Weekly)

"A Pandora’s box of multiple murders, criminal behavior…and revelations of deviancy that go back generations. As usual, Sandford delivers a great mystery with action, suspense, humor, and, yes, sex. Virgil always gets his man, but he also gets the girl. Good reading.” (Booklist)

What listeners say about Bad Blood

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2,424
  • 4 Stars
    1,351
  • 3 Stars
    426
  • 2 Stars
    107
  • 1 Stars
    68
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2,177
  • 4 Stars
    836
  • 3 Stars
    186
  • 2 Stars
    36
  • 1 Stars
    32
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,913
  • 4 Stars
    901
  • 3 Stars
    291
  • 2 Stars
    76
  • 1 Stars
    58

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

EXCELLENT!

I think this is Sanford's best book yet. It is definitely the best Virgil Flowers book I've read. The flow of the story is perfect. Frighteningly, it is very believable and well researched. Unfortunately, these type of issues do exist to some extent. He put together a great mix of mystery, thriller, action, suspense and even some romance. Eric Conger did his usual good job with the narration, especially during the big scene. He made it come to life and make it a real white knuckle event. I Highly recommend this book.It is one of the best credits I've used this year!

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86 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Virgil Flowers is for real

This outing with Sanford's laconic Virgil Flowers solidifies the characters as one of the best in current police procedural fiction. Down-to-earth rogue Virgil is smart and sensible with an honest feel for the people of small town America. The smooth pace takes you from point to point, with Virgil always a step or two ahead. My new favorite character!

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23 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Boring, disturbing and too much sex

Sorry, I just couldn't get into this one. There was no suspense, just sex, sex, sex...it was disturbing, not thrilling and the narrator didn't engage me either, I thought his tone was flat. I like the other Sanford stories but truly disliked this one from start to finish.

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21 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Don't Start With This... Go Earlier In Series!

Hey... this is a totally good listen. More a police procedural than a mystery, it's still fun to take a ride with Virgil Flowers around the cold-weather cults. But to both get the nuances re. Flowers' character and to not ruin (there are spoiler alerts throughout this book) earlier Flower novels that are GREAT listens... Enjoy this Sanford novel AFTER the others in the series. Eric Conger is so comfortable that I've come to believe that he IS Virgil Flowers... crime solving and woman-loving cop. And the women are his bright, strong, equals. Hey... I gave it five stars.. so... I say... listen to Bad Blood, but do it in the order that Sanford's written these books. You'll thank me, or thank Sanford and Conger when you do.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Stick with it...

I had a hard time starting this one. The beginning is a lot of last names and info that just comes at you Maybe it was just me but I had a hard time with the first half of this one. Stick with it though. About halfway through the pace picks up and the pedal stays to the floor for the rest of the novel. Great book. I still like Davenport better than Flowers, but he's growing on me.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Like a car wreck, you gotta look, but can't enjoy

Virgil Flowers once again heads to rural MN to investigate a series of murders that turn out to be linked to practices within a church cult that include incest, rape and child molestation. Like the previous novels, Virgil's laidback style, likable manner and impecable judge of character help him build ties with the local police, romance women and slowly unravel a truth that is protected by a tightly knit closed community. Unfortunately, unlike the dark content of the other Davenport and Flowers books, the distrubing content of "Bad Blood" makes any ending unsatisfying and my desire to reread the book non-existent. Buy the book to keep up with Virgil, but for me it is definitely a one-time read.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Engrossing story; favorite new audio reader!

I'm a fan of John Sandford books, yes; now I'm a fan of Eric Conger's narration, too. Enjoyed both the story and the narration; always waiting for the next Virgil Flowers story...

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Exciting to the end

I love that f****** Flowers! Once again John Sandford delivers another exciting Virgil Flowers novel. The beginning, middle and ending was great. Kudos to the narrator as well. Can't wait for the next adventure.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Bad Blood

This was a good book but I have read better from John Sandford. It was not his best but was worth the time and was good. There were times I thought it needed to move to another setting but I guess it could not because of the content. It did not move as fast as other books from this author.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Bad Blood Runs Amuck in Minnesota

This story involves multi-families in a multi-generational religious cult. It involves murder, adultery, incest, rape and child molestation which are what most of the "ten commandments" tells that "thou shalt not" do.

While the mystery of this story begin with the opening paragraph, most of the first half of the novel is an introduction of who's who and what's what, but once the story really gets going, it quickly develops and becomes a good Virgil Flowers investigative mystery. Sandford wisely limits the more graphic descriptions of the really bad stuff and provides the listener with a vivid look at the perpetrators and the aftermath of the bad stuff. Virgil Flowers' investigative style, his likeable personality and his wry sense of humor helps to unravel the people's habits and the mysterious of the cult community's lifestyle.

Narrator, Eric Conger is a gem with excellent performance skills.

I've read a few of Sandford's novels including the Prey series and Lucas Davenport novels. While I like Virgil Flowers' laid-back way and his sense of humor, this storyline was uncomfortable, a little sickening and is definitely a one-time listen for me.

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6 people found this helpful