There have been twenty-five Prey novels by John Sandford, and he’s still at the top of his game with Gathering Prey. The latest book featuring Lucas Davenport is gritty and brutal, but I read it straight through in seven hours.
Lucas’ daughter, Letty, attends Stanford, and it’s in California that she first meets Skye and Henry. The two young people are Travelers, panhandlers who move from city to city because they like to stay on the move. But, she’s back home in Minnesota for the summer when Skye calls, saying she’s afraid Henry might have been the victim of a vicious group of people led by a man she knows as “Pilot”. At Letty’s urging, Skye takes a bus to meet up with Lucas and Letty. Although Davenport is a little skeptical, suspecting Skye is playing his daughter, he listens to her fears. And, when he starts to contact police departments, he realizes Skye does have something to worry about. That group of killers seems to be headed straight for the Midwest, led by the man Skye calls the devil.
As part of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Lucas has connections throughout the Midwest. It’s only the politics and his boss that he can’t stand. He’ll have to call on friends and other law enforcement agencies if he’s going to stop the group that’s using Juggalo gatherings as their own gatherings. The spree will only get worse before it can be stopped, and Lucas, Letty, Skye, and law enforcement are standing in the way.
Gathering Prey is a gut-wrenching, thrilling story, one that reminds me a little of P.J. Tracy’s Dead Run. The convergence on a small Michigan town is gripping. As always, Lucas Davenport is a compelling figure. Now, in Gathering Prey, as his boss gathers ammunition against him in the BCA, he has major decisions to make. But, for Davenport, the most important decision is still about saving lives and stopping killers.
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Interested? You can win a copy of Gathering Prey. Email me at Lesa.Holstine@gmail.com. Your subject heading should read “Win Gathering Prey.” Please include your name and mailing address. Entries from the U.S. only, please. The contest will end Thursday, April 30 at 6 PM CT.
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John Sandford’s website is www.johnsandford.org
Gathering Prey by John Sandford. G.P.Putnam’s Sons. 2015. ISBN 9780399168796 (hardcover), 407p.
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FTC Full Disclosure – The publisher sent me a copy of the book, knowing I would review it.
Mike and I love Sandford's books, although I think I'm about 5 books behind! Fortunately, we have them all in hardback.
Oh, I couldn't tell you how many I haven't read, Margie. The publisher only sent me a couple in the last few years, and I never thought I'd enjoy them. Instead, I found myself ripping through the couple I've read. Terrific fun!