No. 19), Wicked Prey (Lucas Davenport

The author John Sandford has expertly crafted an intriguing thriller that intricately details under-the-table political payoffs... almost unstoppable brazen criminals... law enforcement from states in every part of the country... the FBI... a lowlife drug addicted crippled pimp... a dimwitted rapist... a weak minded teenage prostitute... the Minnesota BCA (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension) led by Agent Lucas Davenport... who interacts with a literal cast of "thousands" in every crime fighting organization known to mankind in the United States, throughout this enticing non-stop hypnotic "dandy" of a novel. There is one other character I would like to introduce to potential readers... and I feel this character steals the show... and if the author so desires... she has the potential for an entire series to be built around her for decades... that's how enjoyable... and fertile the possibilities surrounding Letty... soon to be legally Lucas's daughter... and thus officially Letty Davenport.

Before Letty became part of the Davenport family... she had shot a cop... drove cars without a license... stole money to be able to eat... and oh yea... this was all before she reached her present age of fourteen. But more about Letty later! The "big score" that this story is built around... takes place at the Republican National Convention which is being held in Minnesota. It should be noted that this unpublicized "practice" takes place at all conventions regardless of party. "THE PEOPLE WHO RUN THE PARTY DOWN AT THE STREET LEVEL ARE HERE, AS DELEGATES AND SPECTATORS. SO THESE BIG LOBBY GUYS COME IN WITH SUITCASES FULL OF CASH, AND PASS IT OUT, EXPENSE MONEY. THEY CALL IT STREET MONEY, HIRE GUYS TO PUT UP SIGNS AND ALL THAT, OFF THE BOOKS. EVERYBODY KNOWS ABOUT IT, NOBODY TELLS. CAN'T TELL, BECAUSE IT'S ILLEGAL." The brains of the criminal gang that comes to town has planned a heist down to the most minute detail... she says: "I'VE GOT THE NAMES AND HOTEL ROOMS FOR SEVEN OF THEM. THEY COULD HAVE ANYWHERE FROM A QUARTER-MILLION TO A MILLION DOLLARS, EACH. WE HIT THEM UNTIL WE FEEL NERVOUS. WE'LL HAVE TO FEEL IT OUT AS WE GO, BUT THREE OR FOUR GUYS ANYWAY. FIVE, MAYBE? WE'LL SEE." It's ingenious... the victims simply can't report it. Sandford successfully maintains multiple character scenarios flowing on both sides of the law like a master juggler without missing a beat... including the secondary plot that allows young Letty to show wiles that a seasoned detective would be proud of. Letty notices an odd cripple shadowing her... and since she is working as an intern for a local TV station... she uses her guise to look into his background. It turns out that Randy Whitcomb is not only a pimp... but he blames her "Father" Lucas Davenport for his paralysis. In a prior confrontation before Whitcomb was paralyzed... Lucas, as a policeman beat him up a little too enthusiastically... and Lucas was kicked off the police force. In an unrelated episode Whitcomb was shot by someone else's bullet resulting in his paralysis... but he still blames Lucas. Letty's under the radar (even unknown to Lucas) research uncovers the link... and finds out Whitcomb wants to kidnap her and have an associate rape her among other things. It is thoroughly entertaining witnessing Letty's intellectually stealth maneuvering... that also involves trying to free Whitcomb's teenage prostitute that he beats unmercifully.

There is non-stop action as the bags of "loot" continue to pile up... murdered bodies of both police and civilians swell... and perhaps one of the more enjoyable aspects of this book... is that unlike most books... movies... and TV programs... the brilliant stars of law enforcement don't always get things right. Not even on the second and third chances. That... along with the glowing light of Letty... a future budding literary star... makes this book almost impossible to put down.

This entry to the Prey series was a disappointment. I felt that there was too much going on to be able to get involved in the story. And at the same time, not enough Davenport. It was like there was no action until the VERY end of the book. I absolutely love reading Sandford's books, and was very anxiously awaiting the newest Prey novel....but very disappointed after reading it (especially after paying over $15 for the Kindle edition). I can normally read a novel in a matter of days, and it took me almost two weeks to get through this one. It just moved very SLOW. I sure hope that the next installment in the series gets back to the same ferver of the first several installments.

I usually fly through Sandford's books, but not this one. Instead of suspenseful, I found it disjointed. In fairness, I read it on my Kindle -- I have read several long and complicated books on my Kindle without any problem -- so perhaps I wasn't as willing to flip back through the book to make sense of some random statement like they found Lane's picture at Starbucks. Huh?

Probably a little laziness on my part in not making the effort to follow the threads of the highly improbable plot, but mostly I didn't much care. Like watching an episode of House -- you may not follow the medical ins and outs but you know in the end Dr. House will pull it all together for you. Entertaining? Sure. Suspenseful? Not really. Challenging? Not at all.

The book had a rushed feeling to it -- like it was due to be published so Sandford handed in what he had.

Here's to hoping for better things next time! Sandford is one of my reliable favorites -- as another reviewer suggested, I hope he isn't doing us the disservice of delegating his writing.

Love the "Prey" series and Lucas Davenport. Twist and turns, interesting realistic characters, sharp dialogue, and more twist than a country road help make this book a winner.

Check out John Sandford's (pen name for John Camp, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist) other series: The Kidd novels (came first),, Lucas Davenport, and finally Virgil Flowers. All have a gritty feel of reality.

Definitely one of Sandford's best! This book will keep you enthralled to the last page. The plot is exciting and there is plenty of action, and Letty gets adopted and becomes a Davenport. The main plot involves a hang robbing lobbyists at the Republican Convention. There are lots of twists in the story that keep you interested. This is an example of John Sandford at his best.

Richard Ruppel

Wicked Prey lived up to my expectations. I have read all the Prey books , and find them fast-moving,amusing, and, shock-of-shocks, complete with "happy" endings. I particularly enjoy my tour of Minneapolis-St.Paul.

Has a good feeling of intensity, everyone is kept busy. The stickup people are a good plausible mix of clashing types... some cold-blooded, some fretting, some psychopathic, some trashy... the subplot with Randy and his girl keeps you worried about Letty. There's not much in the way of travel or scenery, and it's definitely not a whodunit, but the characters are interesting and the pace is constant.

A few books ago, John Sandford started delving into a new type of mystery---one in which the reader is aware of who the bad guys are from the beginning, and gets to ride along as Lucas Davenport figured it out. The first couple of attempts at this formula were not good at all, by Sandford standards (see Invisible Prey), but with Wicked Prey, Sandford has gotten the hang of it. That said, Sandford's worst books are still terrific.

Wicked Prey is exemplary of what reviewers have long said of Sandford--he's so good he makes it look easy. His storytelling is second to none, he has that ear for dialogue that critics are constantly misattributing to Elmore Leonard, and his characters are unforgettable. Wicked Prey features several bad guys (and girls) who are developed into witty, interesting people. And of course, Lucas Davenport remains highly entertaining, especially when sparring with his teenage ward, Letty.

This is a good one . I , personally , get tired of reading the same sort of cops and criminals novels after a while . This was an all around good one and one of the better ones I've read in a while . Recommended for fans of this genre .

Sanford keeps getting better. There is no rut, just good stories that take you to the last 20 pages to figure out,and then only if you are good. Who would have thought the midwest could have been made this intersting???

Wicked Prey is an excellent read.....it is better written than most of Sanford's "Prey" novels....a real page turner with quite a few twists until the end....I would highly recommended it...William Goetz.

Once again, Mr Sandford has produced an excellent thriller starring Lucas Davenport and family. I specifically bring up his family, as his and his wife Weather's ward and soon to be adopted daughter, Letty, plays a pretty large part in the storyline. It's fun to see Lucas-as-dad, as well as the continued development of him and his supporting characters.

Highly recommended for Sandford fans and those of thrillers in general!

I.'ve always loved the series and the story lines since Lefty was added and this confirmed it. She is a mini Lucas and I love the interplay between them, Weather and even the other detectives of the BCA. Some day I could see her joining the squad. I think she'd be similar to Jackie in the squadron.