Status
Available
Genres
Collection
Publication
G.P. Putnam's Sons (2004), 464 pages
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:The #1 New York Times bestselling Lucas Davenport novel from John Sandford. Two people are found hanging naked from a tree in the woods of northern Minnesota. What makes the situation particularly sensitive is the bodies are of a black man and a white woman. Lynching is the word everyone??s trying not to say, but as Lucas Davenport begins to discover, the murders are not at all what they appear to be. And there is worse to come??much, much worse. ??All but impossible to put down.???The Washington Post ??Fast paced and full of surprises, this may be Sandford??s best novel yet.???
User reviews
LibraryThing member amf0001
John Sandford is reliably excellent. I read most of his books as they come out. I love Lucas Davenport, the ease of the conversations, the consistent and interesting characterizations. This was also a good mystery, with lots of threads coming together. It's the book that introduces us to Letty, the
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12 year old who sets traps and shoots and is the first to find the dead bodies dangling from the tree (but it's not a lynching, as all the politicians insist!) This is a keeper and a reread for me, and rereading mysteries, once you know the plot - that's always a sign of a really good book! Show Less
LibraryThing member SunnySD
What do you get when you combine two hanged murder victims, drug dealers, nuns, a Toyota chop-shop, kidnapped girls, corrupt law enforcement, a .22 packing muskrat trapping pre-teen with a smart mouth, and Lucas Davenport? A really, really good read.
LibraryThing member reannon
I had not read anything else in this series, but it was self-contained enough to be easy to read. Good enough, but didn't make me rush right out and get the rest.
LibraryThing member Darla
This is a new-to-me author.
Unfortunately, it's in the middle of a series about Lucas Davenport who, if I understood correctly, is a sort of cop/troubleshooter for the governor. Here, two bodies are discovered hanging in a tree: a black man and a white woman, and Davenport is sent to investigate,
The problem is, the murders are just the tip of the iceberg, and the investigation of the murders sparks a whole lot of other, only tangentially related events, involving kidnapping, prescription drug smuggling, auto theft, arson, and more murder.
I did enjoy the convoluted way one thing led to another, but at one point it got to be a little too much: everyone in this small town is involved in some sort of crime, and it just stretched credulity too far.
Also, this kind of series depends heavily on the personality of the main character, and maybe it's because I started in the middle of the series, but Davenport just didn't grab me. I didn't get much of a sense of his personality at all.
And then there was the kid. The bodies were found by a precocious 12-year-old girl who's a trapper. It's probably just me, but precocious kids, particularly in mystery/suspense novels are a nails-on-the-chalkboard thing for me. I almost always find them intensely irritating, and that was the case here, as well.
If I happen to find another book from earlier in this series, I'll probably give it another chance, but I'm not hooked enough to go out of my way to look for one.
Unfortunately, it's in the middle of a series about Lucas Davenport who, if I understood correctly, is a sort of cop/troubleshooter for the governor. Here, two bodies are discovered hanging in a tree: a black man and a white woman, and Davenport is sent to investigate,
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and to keep it from being called a lynching (which is wasn't).The problem is, the murders are just the tip of the iceberg, and the investigation of the murders sparks a whole lot of other, only tangentially related events, involving kidnapping, prescription drug smuggling, auto theft, arson, and more murder.
I did enjoy the convoluted way one thing led to another, but at one point it got to be a little too much: everyone in this small town is involved in some sort of crime, and it just stretched credulity too far.
Also, this kind of series depends heavily on the personality of the main character, and maybe it's because I started in the middle of the series, but Davenport just didn't grab me. I didn't get much of a sense of his personality at all.
And then there was the kid. The bodies were found by a precocious 12-year-old girl who's a trapper. It's probably just me, but precocious kids, particularly in mystery/suspense novels are a nails-on-the-chalkboard thing for me. I almost always find them intensely irritating, and that was the case here, as well.
If I happen to find another book from earlier in this series, I'll probably give it another chance, but I'm not hooked enough to go out of my way to look for one.
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LibraryThing member audryh
Detective, Lucas Davenport, now working for the governor of Minnesota is called to investigate the murders of a black man and white woman, naked, beaten and hung in lynch fashion. As the case comes to involve a network of religious women running cancer drugs from Canada, delivering stolen vehicles,
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and a kidnapping/murder. Gripping. Show Less
LibraryThing member debavp
This was a relatively calm version of Davenport--I wonder if Sandford was playing that as part of Lucas's depression? Heck, even I could tolerate Weather in this one! The new job aspect was interesting and also was a bit more low key than anticipated, but I think that was intentional. I do think
sub plots and twists were interesting and realistic and gave a bit of depth to several characters.
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the story was excellent, thesub plots and twists were interesting and realistic and gave a bit of depth to several characters.
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LibraryThing member jbemrose
this book is suspenseful and creepiness in the storie. the killer is a monster. I was hook to the story from the begaining. I could not put it down.
LibraryThing member seasidereader
This was my first John Sandford, and I liked the character development, though I thought the level of violence was rather over the top.
LibraryThing member magentaflake
Davenport in his new role as a special trouble shooter assigned to cases too touchy or politically sensitive. This book introduces his soon-to-be adopted daughter. good read. couldn't put it down.
LibraryThing member readafew
Lucas and Dell are sent up far into northern Minnesota to head off a media firestorm caused by the lynching of a black man and a white woman. They were stripped and hung in an oak tree in the middle of winter. We later learn that these two were a hung for revenge. Every time Lucas thinks he's
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getting close to wrapping things up a hidden player steps in and pushes him back several steps. We also meet Letty West a 12 year old Annie Oakley. By chance she happens to be in the middle of the whole thing and almost loses her life, and does lose her mom. Show Less
LibraryThing member Phoenixangelfire
This was an interesting read tat started off on a completely different tangent and funishes with a surprise twist. Although I have read this previously I will need to go back and re read it to give a more appropriate review here.
LibraryThing member Bookish59
Surprisingly better than expected. Characters are well defined especially Weather, Letty, Margery and Ruth, and Sheriff Anderson. A strong plot, pacing, setting, and slightly better than average dialogue. I thought there were far too many characters possibly put in just to confuse.
Fast, good read.
Fast, good read.
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Will definitely look for more of Sandford's Prey Series. Show Less
LibraryThing member Carol420
Lucas Davenport has a new job, is now married and has a new baby. Big changes for our hero. He's happy and contented for the first time in along while. He's just waiting for the other shoe to drop; and it does in the form of two people found hanging in a tree. The book is captivating and fun to
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read. If you like mysteries that keep you reading, this is it. Also some interesting tribal casino history. Show Less
LibraryThing member Carlathelibrarian
I would give it 4.5 stars if I could. I have not read a Davenport, Prey book for awhile and I am glad I picked this one up.
Lucas Davenport is married to Weather and has a newborn. He works at the Criminal Apprehension Bureau and is sent all over the state. This installment of the "Prey Series"
Lucas Davenport is married to Weather and has a newborn. He works at the Criminal Apprehension Bureau and is sent all over the state. This installment of the "Prey Series"
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finds Lucas heading to a troubled city in Northern Minnesota. There have been kidnappings, assassinations, a supposed lynching and great tension filled plots all bundled together. We meet a young teenager, Letty, who helps Lucas solve the crimes at great risk to herself. This story has everything in it. One of the great features on the Lucas books is with each one they age, the kids grow, he moves on in the Minnesota law enforcement scene, Weather advances as a doctor, and all changes. A great story. Show Less
LibraryThing member HenriMoreaux
I've read a couple of these Lucas Davenport series books by Sandford (out of order) and they've all been very good stories, even from a stand alone perspective for people like me who read them out of order as they find them. This one was no exception, it starts off with a murder with the
It's quite enthralling and has the kind of pace to keep you glued to the pages up late at night continuing to read even when you really should be sleeping. I liked how everything wrapped up although I found the circumstances of the weapon used in the closing scenes didn't make logical sense, given the prior scene. But that's just a small niggle, it didn't really effect my enjoyment of the closing scene and the satisfaction it gave.
Would recommend for fans of police procedurals.
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perpetrator hanging the two victims naked in a tree, and from there the story develops into a bit of a twisted web.It's quite enthralling and has the kind of pace to keep you glued to the pages up late at night continuing to read even when you really should be sleeping. I liked how everything wrapped up although I found the circumstances of the weapon used in the closing scenes didn't make logical sense, given the prior scene. But that's just a small niggle, it didn't really effect my enjoyment of the closing scene and the satisfaction it gave.
Would recommend for fans of police procedurals.
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LibraryThing member bohemiangirl35
Lucas is called to a murder scene where a black man and white woman are found naked and hung from a tree. The bodies were discovered by Lettie, a rough, independent 14-year-old girl who is raising herself since her dad is gone and her mom is an alcoholic.
As the BCA team investigates, Lettie proves
I haven't been reading the books in order, just picking them up as I come across them. It was nice to see how Lucas and Lettie met and why he and Weather adopted her.
As the BCA team investigates, Lettie proves
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to be the best source of information. As streetwise as she is, she's still only 14 and doesn't recognize the importance of everything she knows.I haven't been reading the books in order, just picking them up as I come across them. It was nice to see how Lucas and Lettie met and why he and Weather adopted her.
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LibraryThing member lbswiener
Gathering Prey is a book that is filled with homeless, travelers, filthy words, sex, bloody and unsettling scenes, violence, drugs, theft and good vs. bad. The setting is present day. The characters are believable in their deranged selves. The story line is believable. It is a difficult book to
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read because of the underbelly of society that the characters live. Not recommended for the faint of heart. Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2003
Physical description
464 p.; 4.25 inches
ISBN
9780425195444