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| Phantom Prey (Lucas Davenport Mysteries) | 
 enlarge | Author: John Sandford
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $39.95
Buy New: $19.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  100 reviews
Sales Rank: 118419
Format: Audiobook
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Unabridged
Number Of Items: 9
Pages: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.8 x 5.3 x 1.6
ISBN: 0143143115
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780143143116
ASIN: 0143143115
Publication Date: May 6, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Factory Sealed and Brand New
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Product Description
Lucas Davenport has had disturbing cases before but never one quite like this, in the shocking new Prey novel from the #1 New York Timesbestselling author.
John Sandfords most recent Davenport novel, Invisible Prey, was hailed as one of his best books in recent memory (The Washington Post); as fresh and entertaining as ever (Chicago Sun-Times); and rivetingly readable (Richmond Times-Dispatch). But this time, hes got something quite special in store.
A widow comes home to her large house in a wealthy, exclusive suburb to find blood everywhere, no bodyand her collegeaged daughter missing. Shes always known that her daughter ran with a bad bunch. What did she call themGoths? Freaks is more like it, running around with all that makeup and black clothing, listening to that awful music, so attracted to death. And now this.
But the police cant find the girl, alive or dead, and when a second Goth is found slashed to death in Minneapolis, the widow truly panics. Theres someone she knows, a surgeon named Weather Davenport, whose husband is a big deal with the police, and she implores Weather to get him directly involved. Lucas begins to investigate only reluctantlybut then when a third Goth is slashed in what is now looking like a Jackthe- Ripper series of killings, he starts working it hard. The clues dont seem to add up, though. And then theres the young Goth who keeps appearing and disappearing: Who is she? Where does she come from and, more important, where does she vanish to? And why does Lucas keep getting the sneaking suspicion that there is something else going on here . . . something very, very bad indeed?
Filled with his brilliant trademark suspense and some of the most interesting characters in thriller fiction, Phantom Prey is further proof that Sandford is in a class of his own (The Orlando Sentinel).
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| Customer Reviews: Read 95 more reviews...
 Another excellent Lucas Davenport police procedural May 11, 2008
30 out of 33 found this review helpful
Back for his eighteenth appearance, Lucas Davenport of the Minnesota State Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) is not only on the job, but in top form.
The main story concerns Alyssa Austin, recently widowed when the airplane carrying her millionaire pilot husband Hunter crashed in Canada, comes home to discover the alarm system of her tony suburban home turned off, but no one in the house. Knowing the housekeeper Helen is gone for the day, Alyssa calls out for her daughter Frances who might be visiting. Alyssa searches the house and finds what turns out to be a small blood stain on the wallpape. The blood belongs to Frances and the police find that more blood has been wiped from the floors.
But there is no corpse.
A sub-plot concerns Lucas Davenport and colleague Del staking out the apartment of the wife of dope dealer, who apparently is immodest of often peels off her top with the shades up. The cops are trying to nab her currently absent drug kingpin husband.
Lucas Davenport is independently wealthy because he developed and sold a software company. He doesn't have to work, but he likes being a cop and solving the really tough cases, which just happens to be what the BCA does. In earlier stories, Sandford spent a lot of time developing Lucas Davenport. This time around, Davenport, married to surgeon Weather, with a young son and adopted teenage daughter is less introspective and more action oriented.
And there is plenty of action. As it turns out, the distraught mother, Alyssa Austin, owns several exclusive fitness centers, knows Weather and asks her to get her husband involved in the case. Reluctantly, Lucas gets involved - just in time for a series of gruesome murders of young Twin Cities "Goths". Frances, the missing daughter, was into the Goth scene.
Sandford is one of the best police procedural writers around today. He doesn't miss a beat in this one. Davenport is a cerebral cop who is constantly dogging a case, wondering how the leads and clues fit together. Almost as an aside, he tracks a money trail through the Goth community as one after another is murdered. Davenport himself comes in for a close call.
It's a taut thriller, with Davenport displaying more than the occasional flash of brilliant inspiration that brings him one step closer to solving the crimes.
The only unfortunate part of the plot is that Davenport relies upon a device he used to great effect in an earlier "Prey" novel, but it doesn't work so well here. Nope, I'm not going to spoil it for you. You'll know when you see it, even if you haven't read the prior Davenport novels.
It's a small thing that doesn't take any pleasure from the reading because John Sanford is simply one of the finest authors of police procedurals in the business. The nice thing about the "Prey" series is that if you start with one, you might be drawn to reading the others. Start with the first and work your way through all of them. They really are excellent reading.
Jerry
 fun police procedural May 6, 2008
25 out of 47 found this review helpful
There is one case that Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Chief Lucas Davenport likes very much; watching the home of Heather Toms whose husband Sigites "Siggy" is on the run from the police for drug dealing. Siggy fled after making bail, but Lucas believes he will return for his wife and their child, as he loves both of them very much. Heather keeps her shades open giving the surveillance cops a peep show when she strips and breastfeeds.
Davenport leaves this scene when his wife Weather is asked by her friend Alyssa Austin to have him look into the case of her missing and presumed dead daughter Frances. Alyssa came home one day, found the alarm off, Frances gone, and blood splattered all over the house. Frances was into the Goth scene; her friend Fairy egged on by Loren kills three people who the pair believes are connected to Frances' death. As Lucas investigates, he finds this is one of the most bizarre cases of his career as people are not quite as they first seem and those he thinks might have a grudge with Frances prove innocent.
Putting aside the obvious issue that Lucas is not earning chief pay as the boss needs to take care of resources (funding, people, equipment and supplies, etc) while strategically planning instead of field work, fans will enjoy his latest police procedural. The protagonist is shot at and overworked with a load of paper waiting at the office, but none of that prevents him from working both cases. Neither inquiry intersects as each is separate as they run parallel subplots. PHANTOM PREY is a riveting work in which readers will need to know who the killer is and if Siggy will come home.
Harriet Klausner
Lucas never lets me down. May 8, 2008
15 out of 18 found this review helpful
OK, right off the bat I'll say that this book kept me up until the early morning hours, it was that good, but I'll also say this story may not be my favorite of the Davenport stories. It's good, it's intriguing, it's fun as only Sandford can make cop work fun, but the last two Prey novels were so very fine -- heck, what author is capable of hitting a grand slam every time he comes up to bat? This book would be a triple -- and that's the rarest hit in the ball game, ain't it?
What's right: Lucas. Lucas. Lucas. And Del's back, hallelujah! The cop jokes. The stake out. The governor's Ferragamo socks. Letty. References to Virgil Flowers. Oh, shoot, Sandford just nails the flow of the story and all of the little details that make these people come alive for me. Minneapolis-St. Paul just lives in my mind because of Sandford. I sometimes think I could go there and drive around, and not only recognize locations in the books but I would also know how to get from one location to another without a street guide or GPS.
What's wrong: Nothing wrong, exactly, just a couple of things felt slightly out of kilter to me. And it's hard to voice what those are without writing spoilers. There was one character who logically should have been closely examined from the get-go in regards to a murder. And another character, a main character, was something of a disconnect for me, in how she became what she was. See? I can't be specific without writing spoilers, darn it.
Sum total: This 18th entry in the Prey series still shows plenty of the sass, vigor and originality that has made this series last so long. Sandford is quality consistent and this is still a solidly fun read. IMO, there's no such thing as a bad Lucas Davenport story.
(And you know, I only noticed two proofing errors this time around. Either Sandford's team is improving in this regard or the story was so good that I just missed any others.)
 Not the best, but the Davenport series is still a lot of fun May 19, 2008
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
John Sandford returns with another entertaining installment in the Lucas Davenport series. In PHANTOM PREY, Alyssa Austin returns home to her gigantic mansion. Something doesn't seem right. She fears there may be an intruder. In a few moments, she discovers some blood on the wall. She fears the worst, and it is confirmed that the blood belonged to her daughter, Frances.
The great Lucas Davenport is spending his days on a stakeout of the beautiful and pregnant Heather Toms. With binoculars, Lucas and friends get to watch her every move. They are watching her in hopes of her fugitive boyfriend showing up. Lucas gets called off the stakeout to do a favor for the governor, who is friends with Alyssa Austin. Mrs. Austin would like Lucas to look into her daughter's disappearance (no body had been found) because the police investigation is at a standstill.
So, Lucas begins investigating Frances Austin. Frances dabbled some in Goth circles, and Lucas pursues many clues in that area. More murders occur and a "fairy" is the likely suspect. The fairy is a waif like figure dressed in black with black hair and black make-up. Lucas can't figure out how the fairy ties in with Frances Austin or the other murders that start piling up.
Prey novels have always been known for their spectacularly evil villians and the ingenuity of Lucas and his pals in finding out who the killers are. To me, what sets Sandford apart from other authors is his ability to get into the minds of the killers and write the story from their point of view as well. He's created some truly evil villians. In Phantom Prey, the villian is a weak point. The reader doesn't get much of look the villians but Sandford makes up for it. While waiting for the plot to thicken and the evil of te villians to take over, the reader gets to follow Lucas as he investigates the crime and just lives his life, and that is a lot of fun.
Sandford also throws out a lot for fans to enjoy, such as references to Kidd and his marriage, Virgil Flowers, and Davenport's contempt for fools her are new age and use Tarot cards.
Bottom line, Sandford fans will enjoy this book. If you're new to Sanford, start at the beginning. The first books in the Prey series are just as good as the last.
(3.5) "It might be chaotic, but there were threads in the chaos." May 17, 2008
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
Sandford takes a detour in Phantom Prey, our favorite Twin Cities detective, Lucas Davenport, uniquely challenged by a case that delves into the counter culture for clues to a young woman's disappearance, possibly her violent death. When Alyssa Austin returns home late one night, she experiences an eerie sensation. Something is amiss in her upscale home- either there is an intruder or some other menace, so unsettling that Mrs. Austin carries a loaded handgun while she searches the darkened rooms. No one is there after all, but blood-spatter on the wallpaper, almost invisible against the design, suggests recent violence. Since there is no body, Austin can only speculate on the fate of her daughter, Frances. When the police investigation yields little information, Austin turns to her friend, Weather Davenport, hoping Weather's husband, Detective Davenport can find some answers for her.
With little to go on, Davenport begins one of his most frustrating investigations, tracking the daughter's latest activities and her flirtation with the Goth community. Contrary to the social status of the wealthy Austin family, the Goths represent the opposite of the success and privilege that defines Frances' world, at least on the surface. Unwilling to believe her daughter is dead, the widow Austin, CEO of a fitness empire, provides Lucas with a list of names, a slender thread to her daughter's rebellious affiliations. Armed with only this short list, Davenport's job becomes more critical when certain individuals, all Goths, are savagely murdered, an unfamiliar "fairy" (attractive female Goth) appearing shortly before each of the deliberate killings. Determined to untangle this knotted web of dark intentions, Lucas is somewhat diverted by another investigation, the long term surveillance of an attractive young woman married to a career criminal of particular interest to the police.
While Davenport applies himself enthusiastically to the surveillance case, he also pursues the enigmatic society of Goths, most of whom tend to surface after hours at particular clubs, arrayed in black clothing, a stark contrast to the usual club familiars. Wherever he goes, Davenport just misses the tantalizing fairy, the unknown element in a mystery that includes theft, murder and the bizarre activities of a behind-the-scenes player. Juxtaposing the two cases, Lucas methodically traces Frances' acquaintances, sensing a terrible pattern that yields shocking consequences. As always, Davenport is a man of many talents, although this particular plot doesn't deliver the punch of the earlier "Prey" series. But after eighteen mysteries, Sanford can be forgiven going out on a limb in search of new material. Some unusual twists surface, albeit without much meat left on the bone for real fans. Luan Gaines/2008.
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