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)

One of the best Sanford novels, yet

From the first gripping chapter to the final words, this is Sanford at his best. Fast paced. Lucas Davenport has never been so on his game.

Great narration, just the right mixture of voices, emotion and pacing.

Quite graphic and close to the violence.

You can get caught up good, but the story had an implausible hole. Since they know the killer is a lookalike of a known person, they ought to have identified him quicker. Seems like an untypical oversight for Lucas.

Field of Prey

Love the Davenport stories…going to read every one and try in order to keep them straight

Entertaining all the way through!

If you could sum up Field of Prey in three words, what would they be?

Fast, Furious, Entertaining

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I listen to audio books while on long commutes to and from work. I couldn't wait to get back in the car and back to the story!

What about Richard Ferrone’s performance did you like?

Very consistant throughout the book. I knew who was speaking when till the very end. The voices of the various characters was only different enough to make them identifiable yet not distract me from following the plot.

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

oddly with all that was happening... the part that moved me was when lucas was furiously driving from town to town tracking down leads while the catherine was being held captive.

Any additional comments?

This was my first Lucas Davenport series book. There are 23 I look forward to listening to.

A little too graphic this time....

But Lucas is still my hero!!! He's brave, smart, and sometimes a nut. How about a new series with Letty in the FBI or CIA after Stanford.

Wow!! Best one yet!!

This is hands down the best prey book yet! Oh my gosh I was shocked at the twist. Nice job as usual Mr Sandford and Mr Ferrone. I love you both! I can't wait for the next one to come out!!

The best story so far, I was glued to it daily....

This was the best story line so far, I had to re-listen to the beginning to make sure I got names and followed where you were going with it, but I enjoyed it to the end. I truly enjoy Lucus, Lettie, Dell, and Weather...

Good Davenport adventure with a few arghh moments

I have listened to or read all of John Sanford's books. I listened to this book and was irked by the lack of progress in the case. It is well written and the narrator is wonderful. Just not my favorite. Has flashes of the greatness that is John Sanford. I found myself thinking that the villain was not smarter than all of the BCA so why did it take so long to catch him. Then there is the moment when you say I totally saw that coming and it led to me being disappointed. Overall worth it because who doesn't love Letty, Lucas, Weather and f##ing Flowers.

Good Story for Fans of the Series

I have enjoyed all of the books in the series although the endings are somewhat predictable. This book had an interesting twist but, in the end, no real surprises.

Easily one of the best

I've listened to all Davenport books and this is the best amongst them to me