Field of Prey

Lucas Davenport, Book 24

By: John Sandford

Narrated by: Richard Ferrone

Length: 11 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

The extraordinary new Lucas Davenport thriller from number-one New York Times best-selling 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 15 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....

©2014 John Sanford (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"One of [Sandford’s] best. His writing and the appeal of his lead character are as fresh as ever. This author is a master writer and he pulls out all the stops to tell the latest adventure.... For those who think they know everything they need to know about Lucas Davenport, this book proves them wrong. It also shows that Sanford still has some tricks up his sleeve when it comes to writing totally engrossing books. Sanford has always been at the top of any list of great mystery writers and this latest book shows why.... It is one of his best and that makes it something really special." (Huffington Post)

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

"Sandford seems to top himself with each new installment; the latest is no exception to that rule.... It doesn’t get any better than Field of Prey.... This is a series you must be reading if you are not already." (bookreporter.com)

Background noise

I enjoy the Davenport series And I like Richard Ferone's narration, with one exception... I believe he is too close to the microphone and it picks up way too much Of the ancillary noise from his mouth.
I noticed it in earlier Books in the series then it went away for a few books and in this one it's back again.

This is just an amazing tale, worth every word

you read. I love the twist about 2/3 into the story. I love Lucas Davenport.

Replace Ferrone as narrator

The publisher should seriously consider replacing Richard Ferrone. His voices are indistinguishable from one another. Dick Hill who narrates the Harry Bosch novels is much better.

Hooked

Narrator brought the book to life, I had not problem listening to the story. Great ending

Davenport gone suburban dad

You read/listen to this series for consistency. There is nothing new here. If you like the other Davenport books, you will like this one. There is really not much variation in the plot lines in these books, just a different criminal each time. You have Lucas chasing down the bad guys in his Porsche (although in this book it stays in the garage most the time), A little about his wife Heather, and in this book a little more of his step daughter who plays a larger role than previous one, but a not a huge one. There does seem to be some distancing between Lucas and his police partners (Dell, etc.) since they are hardly in the plot line. Lucas seems to be entering middle age and all the "bad boy" things are left to Virgil Flowers series. The book ends with Lucas taking his step daughter off to college. Yes middle age suburban living.

Best Lucas Davenport Thiller in Years!

What made the experience of listening to Field of Prey the most enjoyable?

Though there were a few too many story spurs that took the reader down sideroads that didn't always lead back to the main highway, the story had momentum and a collection of fully realized characters; characters to like and characters to hate, making the climax of the piece thrilling and satisfying.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Field of Prey?

The last two or three chapters brought the arc of three characters into perfect alignment for a situation that resolved perfectly.

What does Richard Ferrone bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Mr. Ferrone always brings the perfect pitch and tempo to this series. Its impossible to imagine listening to this series without his narration.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The moments between Letty and Lucas throughout the book. Having read every single book in this series, the growth in that relationship is very satisfying. They have developed a unique and perfect bond since that little 11 year old muskrat hunter stepped out of the swamp and into the pages and it seems to fully bloom in this book.

So sad, last Lucas Davenport book!

What made the experience of listening to Field of Prey the most enjoyable?

The crime scene in this one is disturbing, but the chase is really well-done. For the first time in the series Lucas can't figure it out. He resorts to tactics that are out-of-the-ordinary, but ramp up the tension as he races to find the killer before another woman dies.

Any additional comments?

It's really great to see Letty being given more of a role as she gets older. Is there a Letty Davenport series in the works?

New high

Measured by plot complexity, clarity and scope of characters, pure suspense, blatant surprises and pure evil, this has to be Sanford's best yet.

more Lucas please

Great as always! Lucas and Virgil and the many other characters are brilliant. I am still waiting for a Lette Davenport FBI character.

Not my favorite, but....

Even when Mr.Sandford is not at his best, he is still pretty damn good. I imagine I will buy the next one too.