Another excellent addition to the Prey series! Sandford never disappoints, and Lethal Prey is a prime example of why I keep coming back. Lucas Davenport remains one of the most compelling protagonists in crime fiction—sharp, driven, and always a step ahead. The dynamic between Lucas and Virgil Flowers continues to evolve, offering both tension and camaraderie that feels real and earned.

What stood out to me in this installment was the unpredictable, well-paced storyline. Just when I thought I had it figured out, Sandford threw in a twist that kept me hooked. The plot felt timely and well researched, especially with the inclusion of true crime sleuths—a modern, relevant angle that added a new layer of depth. It grounded the novel in the real world while still delivering the high-stakes action and intensity fans of the series expect.

If you’re already a fan of the series, you’ll appreciate how Lethal Prey builds on what came before while still feeling fresh. And if you’re new to Davenport, this book could easily stand on its own as an introduction. I was fully invested from start to finish—highly recommended!

Lucas is back! Fans of the series will be happy to see our best dressed cop in action.

Lucas and Virgil are called to investigate a cold case with political "favor" implications. What seemed to be routine quickly turns into finding a series of murders and a very unlikely suspect. The suspect has the knowledge and the means to stay one step ahead but every killer has their day....or do they?

In some ways the recent books have felt like fulfilling a contract but I had the same feeling with this book that I did with Clara Rinker several books ago. Both Lucas and Virgil seem to be ready to wind down their careers, but they also equally seem to want to stay in the game and work cases with higher stakes.
I enjoyed looking at the killer's perspective and adding social media into the case kept it current and exciting.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to spend time with some of my favorite cops.

I just could not get through this book, the narrator just was too annoying, stopped at 40%. It would maybe be better as an ebook/physical book but this was not it, i fear

In this latest episode in the long-running ‘Prey’ series, Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers – a pair of Minnesota based law officers – get to chase down a killer who’s be operating for decades. The unsolved murder of Doris Grandfelt, some twenty years back, is brought to the public’s attention when her sister – recently diagnosed with breast cancer - offers a $5 million reward for information leading to the killer’s arrest. Very quickly, an army of true-crime bloggers descend on the spot where Grandfelt’s body was found all those years ago, complete with phones, cameras (and at least one metal detector) to record and post online their attempts to solve the crime, and thereby earn the reward.

Davenport and Flowers are asked to wade into this circus in an attempt to save some face for the authorities in a situation that’s increasingly becoming an embarrassing re-living of an earlier investigative failure. As always, there’s plenty of banter between the two leading players, as they take the interesting (and controversial) step of engaging with the true-crimers in what is to become a mass joint effort. As is Sandford’s way, we also get to meet the killer very early on and bear witness to the motivations and actions surrounding this act, as well as the steps being taken to thwart this latest threat of discovery. This person is most definitely a stone cold murderer. There may be other victims.

In truth, I found that it all started a bit slowly and took quite a while to warm up. But I feel it got there in the end, about a third of the way through. From this point, I was forever champing at the bit to get back to the story, and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride from this point through to the end. I listened to an audio version, competently narrated by the excellent Robert Petkoff.

As a footnote: Sandford includes in this tale a couple of characters from the early books in this series. Jenkins and Shrake have cameo roles here in the playback of the original investigation into Grandfelt’s murder, these guys being colleagues of Davenport and Flowers. The author mentioned in an online post that this pair is based on a couple of his old mates: Dan Jenkins and Bud Shrake. He said he'd deliberately conceived the characters as opposite in many ways to their real-life counterparts - simply as a bit of fun. Sadly, both of Sandford’s friends passed away some years back, so won’t be able to enjoy their re-inclusion.

This is my first venture into this well established series and it’s a cracker! Lucas and Virgil, two offbeat detectives are inveigled into investigating a cold case. There’s a gory and dramatic start as a female is murdered. I was gripped. The police investigation at the time is based on numerous assumptions, most of which are wrong and it’s easy to see how they followed a load of dead ends. Move on twenty years and the victims twin decides to offer a $5 million dollar reward for information which leads to her killer being brought to justice. Lucas and Virgil are leading the investigation, and have their own unique approach.

This is a story packed with so many twists and turns. The reader( listener) is in the privileged position of knowing who the killer is. As the plot thickens and unfolds, we are updated with how the killer is responding to the investigation and learning more about the back story. There’s humour, intrigue and so many red herrings for the investigation. I was willing the enquiry to start joining the dots and realise the truth. Superb plotting, bags of tension and I just loved the interaction between these two unique characters throughout. I’ll certainly be looking for earlier books in the series and this is an e cell ent stand alone.

Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers are asked to investigate a cold case of a woman murdered twenty years ago and reluctantly agree.
Lara Grandfelt wants to know the truth about her sister Doris and who brutally murdered her. She even puts up a $5 million reward.
This brings a huge media storm, and a wave of true crime bloggers that get involved, one even manages to find the murder weapon.
With the whole nation watching this becomes one of the most difficult cases of their careers, one that could become deadly, because killer will do anything to keep their secret, even kill again.
John Sandford continues to produce books of the highest calibre.
Lethal Prey is as good as any of his previous books and his two main characters are just brilliant.
Narrated by the excellent Robert Petkoff, a narrator who knows how to bring the story to life and portray every scene with great aplomb.
This is an excellent story and brilliantly written by one of the greatest crime writers in the world, and the narration is of the highest quality. Thanks to W.F. Howes LTD for the opportunity to review this marvellous book.

This is my first John Sandford book and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Lara's sister was murdered twenty years earlier now diagnosed with cancer she puts up a reward and the case files for every true crime website to find the killer, Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers are tasks to review the investigation. Full of twists in the well plotted novel. I enjoyed the interaction between Lucas and Virgil. Robert Petkoff does an excellent narration on this book. Thanks to W. F. Howes and Netgalley for this review copy

Book number 35 is probably not the best place to start a series, but I didn’t notice this fact when I downloaded it. I don’t know if fans of the series would agree, but I’m pleased to say that while there were a few moments that I was aware I’d missed some back story it really didn’t seem to impact my enjoyment of the title, and it worked for me as a stand alone.

I really enjoyed the fact that this instalment really brought us to the present day, when the sister of a cold case murder opens up a 5 million dollar reward for information to find her twins murderer, Lucas and Virgil are enlisted, but with support thin in the ground they actually provide the true crime buffs with information to help. It doesn’t take long for a piece of evidence to be found and the case is well underway.

I really enjoyed this. I’d be keen to read more of the series, and the narration was great.

Huge thanks to W.F Howes Ltd and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC 🎧