Judgment Prey

I have said it before, and I will say it again.....John Sandford is a national treasure! How does he keep turning out spectacular mystery novels, again and again? This time he goes my favorite route, combining his two main characters, Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers. Together they make an unstoppable team of detectives. A shocking crime in the Twin Cities, as a federal judge and his two sons are gunned down in their home. The plot is exciting, but the interaction between Lucas and Virgil is what really sets this book apart from other mystery novels. Easily readable, and I could not put it down! And the ending....I'm often surprised at the ending of Sandford novels, but this one completely surprised me and blew me away! Bravo, bravo, show more bravo Mr. Sandford! Please keep your books coming! show less

I always like a Lucas Davenport novel, and in Judgment Prey, he is partnered again with Virgil Flowers. I loved the wisecracking back and forth between them as they try to solve a case of a murdered judge and his sons. The judge's wife is a suspect, but there is no evidence to support this. However, she decides to take justice into her own hands and decides to go after whomever killed her family.
This is another solid entry in the Prey series.

Judgment Prey is the 33rd entry in John Sanford's long running, much loved and still fresh, Lucas Davenport series. Virgil Flowers started as a supporting player, but evolved and now has his own series. I was so excited to see that Judgment Prey brings the two back together. I knew this would be a fantastic read - and it was!

Margaret Cooper comes home and finds her husband and sons dead. Her husband was a prominent judge, so there's a lot of pressure to find the killer, and multiple forces are brought in. Virgil and Lucas team up and start working the case 'their way.' Which isn't always appreciated.

I really enjoy the back and forth of Virgil's and Lucas's interactions. The dialogue is short, snappy and often darkly humorous. The reader show more is with them as they chase leads, interview witnesses, annoy the other agencies and use their considerable skills to chase the case. But the reader is also privy to a number of other character's inner thoughts, actions and more. We know 'whodunit', but can Lucas and Virgil get there in time to stop more killings? The plotting is intricate and there's no way to predict how things are going to shake out. Which makes for some really addictive reading!

An easy five stars. show less

Classic Sandford, complex and compelling. Pursuing the assassin that murdered a federal judge and his two teen age sons becomes complicated quickly as it connects with a longstanding "con game" and the mom and wife of the judge is determined to find and kill the killer. Bullets fly, missing Lucas and only dinging Virgil, jurisdictions are trampled and the repartee is relentless before the several villains are brought to justice. An excellent entry in this very good series.

Judge, Jury and ...
Review of the Penguin Audio audiobook edition (October 3, 2023) narrated by Robert Petkoff of the simultaneously released G.P. Putnam's Sons hardcover/eBook.

A Federal judge and his two young sons are murdered and U.S. Marshal Lucas Davenport and Minnesota BCA agent Virgil Flowers are put on the case along with other authorities. Davenport is still recovering from the incident at the conclusion of Righteous Prey (Lucas Davenport #32 - 2022) but is eager to get away from his stay-at-home & rehab routines.

The villain makes a fairly early appearance but the motive remains elusive for a long time. The case is complicated by a possible vigilante retribution effort. Lucas and Virgil banter their way through a complex series show more of interviews, often playing bad cop and good cop roles. The showdown in inevitable but there is also a final surprise twist from an unexpected direction.

Sandford continues in fine form here and this is a guaranteed winner in the police procedural genre. I'm not entirely convinced by Sandford's novels with Lucas's adopted daughter Letty Davenport - the bad-ass Homeland Security Agent, but the Lucas and Virgil partnership in the Prey novels is an annual welcome return.

The audiobook edition is well narrated by the new narrator Robert Petkoff, who takes over duties from the series regular Richard Ferrone (1946-2022). I miss Ferrone's gravelly voice which always added an additional gravitas to Davenport's voice.

Soundtrack
John Sandford himself provides the soundtrack reference for this one:

they listened to Otis Taylor’s Banjo album as they made the short trip across town.

You can hear Otis Taylor (1948-) interviewed about his life and music career and the making of the "Banjo..." album on YouTube here.
Listen to samples of the tracks on the "Banjo..." album at Octave Records here.
Bonus Tracks: Many will know Otis Taylor's music from his appearances on the soundtracks of various films such as "Public Enemies" (2009) and "Shooter" (2007). Listen to "Ten Million Slaves" from the former here and to "Nasty Letter" from the latter here. show less

Another great book with Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers teaming up again. This book starts out with Lucas, still at home recovering from a shoot out several months ago. Right away, you can tell he's frustrated and at loose ends with his slow recovery. His boss calls him to see if he's up to helping on a new case, and of course before you know it, he's running the show. There were several things in this book that made it very enjoyable. First Lucas teams up with Virgil Flowers, and their chemistry is great. Virgil doesn't play second fiddle here, when he's not helping out Lucas, he's either writing his second book, (that impresses Lucas, even though he really doesn't admit it,) or he's going home to be with his wife and twins; a man show more of many hats.
The case involved is a triple murder, and the sole survivor is working just as hard to figure out who murdered her family, only we're not sure what her end mission is.
There's murder, fraud, multiple law enforcement branches working/competing...Lots of good action. A quick read. show less

It is October as Judgement Prey by John Sandford opens and Lucas Davenport is still dealing with the aftermath of the violent events of earlier in the year. He still has some pain from his various injuries. The bigger issue is the nightmares of the shootout that killed FBI agents, wounded others, and damn near killed Virgil Flowers and himself. The pain is worse at night, as is depression, but he is making slow progress. Getting back physically is slightly ahead of getting back mentally. When he is not trying to exercise, he spends his days reading or watching way too much tv while thinking about how close he and Virgil came. Everything could have easily ended that night. It very well might have been his closest call yet in his long law show more enforcement career.

Then U.S. Marshal for the Minnesota District, Eddie Lamb, calls and claims that she is just checking on how he is doing. They both know that is not at all why she called. What she really wants to know is if Lucas can work. She wants him to take a look at a murder scene nearby. Lamb is out of town or she would probably do it herself. A federal judge who she very much liked and respected is dead and she is mad.

Federal Judge Alex Sands and his two sons were murdered a few hours ago in their home. The only reason his wife and newborn daughter are also not dead is because they were not home. Unfortunately, they were also the first to discover the bodies.

St. Paul Police, The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and the FBI are all there at the scene, among others. It is a bad deal and Lamb is sure that the various members of the assembled law enforcement still have no idea who did it or why. She gets that Lucas is in no shape yet to be actively chasing a fugitive. All she wants is for him to get out of the house, go over to the nearby crime scene, and take a look while making the presence and interest of the U. S. Marshal Service known to all. The FBI is the lead agency and they have the case. He may see something or suggest something they are not coming up with and can show the flag. The plan is for him to be present in an advisory capacity and nothing further.

Lucas is bored as things stand and is immediately interested in the case. Long time readers know that when Lucas is interested in a case, he always stays involved. It isn’t long after he reviews the scene that he is actively working it, alongside Virgil Flowers, and back doing what he does so well--- hunting killers.

What follows is a complicated and fast-moving thriller that works well in all areas. While, as with any other series it is best to read in order, if you don’t mind knowing major details of the last book-- Righteous Prey – via the extensive recap in the first pages here, then you could start with this read. It is a solidly good one and recommended.


My reading copy came by way of the publisher, G.P. Putnam's Sons, through NetGalley.


Kevin R. Tipple ©2023 show less