Secret Prey (Lucas Davenport, No 9)

by John Sandford

1999

Status

Available

Publication

Berkley (1999), 400 pages

Description

Fiction. Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:A wealthy banker is dead, shot once in the chest during a hunting trip. There are many reasons for him to be killed, and many people who would do the deed. But who did? Lucas Davenport has an idea. But this routine murder investigation is about to turn into something different. A cat-and-mouse game with a killer who does not hesitate to take the fight to Lucas himself. And those he loves�?� WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY THE AUTH

User reviews

LibraryThing member Bookmarque

Sanford tells his readers whom the killer is way ahead of time and we get to see some of her scheming. I think it is an effective way of helping you bond with the protagonist. To see the evil that he cannot and root for him, rather than be just as blind as he is and hope that he solves the crime.

The only thing I didn’t like about this book is the way that every character talked the same. No one had a unique voice with the possible exception of Marcy Sherrill – a cop that Davenport falls into bed with. Everyone swore a lot and used short sentences. It’s probably the way Sanford talks himself.

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LibraryThing member jaygheiser

10th in the series about this Minneapolis-based detective who only kills when it is necessary. A good read, but I'm beginning to wonder if all this violence is necessary.

LibraryThing member amf0001

I know, it's out of order, but I wanted to revisit the one where Lucas and Marcy have their affair. I really enjoyed their relationship. The crime - well the domestic abuse situation was so severe it was difficult for me to stomach. The crime itself was interesting, as was the irony of the ending,

if the murderer had only left well enough alone, they would have got away with it, but in the end, their amorality got the better of them... I liked the characters, as always. This is one of his better ones, but read them in order, because the growth of the side characters is one of the joys of this series.

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LibraryThing member miyurose

This one was much like the last, and filled in a lot of blanks in the larger story for me.

LibraryThing member SonicQuack

Secret Prey never stops. From the murder in the first chapter we are introduced to several suspects and the story spins around them, keeping the cards close to Sandford's chest until the final third. The plot draws in characters from Davenport's past as he becomes more involved in the corporate

killing. The plot is straightforward, and very traditional for Sandford, however his usual frenetic style comes in to effect once Lucas gets close to the killer, creating an enjoyable blend of entertaining narrative and action. Not the highlight of the Prey series, however a solid enough entry.

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LibraryThing member debavp

Yippee!! Finally, Weather is out of the picture (at least for now). Marcy might be a good relationship for Lucas, but I don't think he's a long term kind of guy. Great to see Lucas' sense of humor return as well. Interesting case with a lot of twists and turns. Liked this one soooo much I've

already started the next one.

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LibraryThing member mikedraper

Just when the reader is thinking that John Sandford's "Secret Prey," is going to be predictable, the author provides his magic touch and the novel soars to a most dramatic and memorable thriller.

Bank president Daniel Kresge is murdered while on a hunting trip. He had been steering his bank into a

merger which would have made him rich but would cost many employees their jobs. He was also going through a costly divorce. With these facts known, there were endless possibilities as to who the killer might be.

The two employees in line to take over the bank are Susan O'Dell and James Bone. They begin maneuvering for control while placing Wilson McDonald in charge during the transition.

When we learn that Bone is having an affair with Kresge's wife, it seems as if the story is becoming a soap opera.

Deputy Police Chief Lucas Davenport is leading the investigation. Just as he and his team are close to identifying who they think the killer is, another bank executive is murdered and the police are forced to go back to their chalk board. The hunt for the killer intensifies as Lucas takes certain steps and the killer counters. It's almost as if it were a dance of death.

Sandford does a masterful job. He makes the reader wonder who the killer could be, then, when Lucas as narrowed it down to one person, Davenport must get the evidence to stop the killing and convict the killer.

The characters are excellent and well described. The author portrays the Minnesota countryside nicely so that the reader can visualize what the setting must look like.

Very enjoyable.

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LibraryThing member ecw0647

Audrey MacDonald is the power-hungry wife of a loathsome bank executive who wants to become president and CEO of the Polaris Bank. The current president, who is in the midst of negotiating a merger that would drastically alter the future plans of the other bank executives, is shot while on a

hunting trip with many of those same executives. Lucas Davenport is asked to assist with the investigation. Certain peculiarities emerge that point to links between the Kresge killing and the ostensibly accidental deaths of several other bank executives that had occurred years earlier. Audrey’s husband, Wilson, who when drunk regularly beat her, was the only one who profited professionally from each of the deaths. He and Audrey are now trying to capitalize on Kresge’s death by attempting to manipulate the board into appointing him the new CEO. He is opposed by Jim Bone and Susan O’Dell, who also lust after the top job. Sandford’s descriptions of the back-biting and political machinations are brutal and priceless. An amusing side plot concerns a number of very well-connected old ladies who have been growing opium poppies for fun and now insist on being arrested for their flagrant violation of the law. Audrey soon realizes that, despite her best efforts, the investigation is beginning to focus on Wilson and, weak as he is, he will be unable to withstand the strain and will undoubtedly reveal the sordid truth behind the killings. She resolves to kill him, manipulating him into a situation that justifies her homicide. How she does this is truly cold and calculating. The investigation would have ended, had she left well enough alone, and not made the mistake of trying to distract Lucas – it had worked before – by creating several diversions. Specifically she assaults and firebombs two of his friends. Audrey is a librarian and hasn’t forgotten all those handy research skills to help choose her victims. The irrational and unlikely coincidental nature of these attacks leads Lucas’s team of investigators to discover the intricate pattern behind the murders that ultimately benefit only one person. You’ve really got to watch out for these librarians. . . .

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LibraryThing member JohnWCuluris

Sandford’s early Prey novels seemed to be more mystery based. Even when we knew who the killer was, there remained some element that Lucas Davenport had to figure out, which usually came as a surprise to the reader. Though the author tries to create something different about each book, they’ve

evolved into “here’s the villain, here’re the good guys, let’s follow both until they converge.” Secret Prey splits the difference. The killer is concealed for the first half of the book, and then it’s a race to the end.

The chairman of the board of a major bank is murdered while deer hunting, and thanks to a forthcoming merger there are plenty of suspects. Actually, the suspect pool is considerably bigger than usual. But if you like Sanford’s work--and I do--you’ll be entertained as Davenport wades through the various possibilities. Maybe not Sandford’s very best but up there.

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LibraryThing member Carol420

If you combine cop humor and series murder, you have a Lucas Davenport mystery. Four friends on a hunting trip, one, a bank president on the verge of becoming a very rich man, ends up dead. Davenport looks at what seems to be a hunting accident, but as he digs deeper into the lives of the employees

that stood to lose their jobs, it seems to be much more. A great Davenport mystery.

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LibraryThing member CatherineBurkeHines

I really enjoy the Sanford Prey books. However, I wish Goodreads had a differentiation between literary fiction and entertainment. (Yes, there is overlap; yes, the difference is subjective; move along.) I started The Prague Cemetery by Eco immediately after, so I'm reluctant to give this book four

stars, although it was enjoyable and suspenseful and did everything it was supposed to do, and then some. The Prague Cemetery is a different kind of fiction, and evokes a completely different response, and it, also, would get four stars. But there really is no comparison, and it annoys me that these two books are lumped into the same category.

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