A Tense Plot with a
Humorous Backstory So You Can Catch Your Breath
I’m
a long-time, John Sanford fan (full disclosure) and Stolen Prey is another excellent read in the now 28-book
series. This one opens with a grisly, multiple
murder of husband, wife, children, and pets in a well-to-do suburb of
Minneapolis/St. Paul. Obviously, you’ll
need some stomach for violence to get into this story, but if you can handle
that, you’ll be rewarded with good action and gripping, didn’t-see-them-coming
twists. Because it is a tale of
retaliation by a Mexican drug gang, a host of agencies and individuals become
involved – the DEA for what they can learn about the drug cartel; the local
police to pursue the murderers; and Lucas Davenport, the protagonist of the
series, to pursue the thieves that precipitated events by stealing drug
money. It’s an intricate plot, but
Stanford does an excellent job of describing the division of labor and the
interplay of these characters and agencies.
Complimenting
the main plot is a significant backstory, featuring a cameo by Virgil Flowers
(the hero of another Sanford series).
Everything about this secondary tale is custom made to feature
Davenport’s generally sarcastic sense of humor, from the (smelly) clues they find
to the capture of the bad guys. It
provided a nice counterpoint, a break from the tension.
Most
of the early books in the series involved demented, serial killers, and like
many, that’s where I developed my interest in this author. Stolen
Prey strays from that theme, and the story suffers as a result … but only
slightly. For example, the development
of the characters of the three Mexican killers, while less about psychosis and
more about a way of life, is solid.
There is also a touching father/daughter moment, where Lucas and Letty,
his adopted daughter, bond at the shooting range. Makes me wonder if this is a preview for a
series to come?
Overall,
Stolen Prey diverges from Sanford’s
bread-and-butter, serial-killer theme, but it’s still excellent, with a tense,
action-filled plot and a humorous backstory so you can catch your breath.
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