John Sandford's "Ocean Prey". Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers!
 

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Looks to be coming out in April 2021 and will feature both Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers.

Ocean Prey

Will be reading it for sure

These book are like candy - I cannot get enough of them!

I can't wait. I have read everyone. I love the books but have told him in an email, I'm not fond of his politics.

He always slips in a couple political digs which tend to spoil an otherwise enjoyable and riveting read.

I e-mailed Tom Clancy around 2004 or maybe later and he actually answered back then. Basically I think he told me to talk to some lawyers.

Not sure if I ever e-mailed John Sandford but do not recall any answer from him. He does have a lot of connections to Minnesota. I read with great interest his descriptions of the U of MN.

Last I heard he has been living in Santa Fe, NM, a town I know well. My grandparents on one side and an aunt lived there. It is an artsy-fartsy town and kinda nutso. He would fit right in.

I have been there a few times.

It will be good to hear more about the adventures of Davenport and Flowers though in the new book. The leanings of the writer(s) do not mean that much to me. As long as it is a good story I stick with the author.

He puts in a sentence or two giving his political leanings, but he is a very creative writer and will keep reading his works.

Can't wait to read the new one. I've read all the intertwined "Prey", "Virgil Flowers" and "Kidd and LuEllen" books, even the Lincoln Rhyme crossover short story. Also his "Singular Menace" trilogy and his three standalone novels (The Night Crew, Dead Watch and Saturn Run). So, yeah, I like the way he writes.

It is good so far.

I think the political content from Sanford is overblown. I'm pretty conservative and don't like to be preached at from the left wing (in fact I'm personally boycotting baseball for obvious reasons), but that little bit of left wing politics in Sanford's last novel was really minor. It didn't even get my radar up. Anyway, all of us Flowers fans already know that he's always been a hippy with a gun (when he hasn't forgotten to take it out of his pickup truck).

You just made my day. Love me some Davenport and some Flowers! These are always such great reads.

I've recently started re-reading entire series of books. I'm in the process of reading the entire Larry Niven Known Space universe of books, which comprises more than 70 novels, individual short stories and collections of short stories. I was thinking of reading the Tim Dorsey Serge Storms series of books next but now I may have to consider reading all the Prey, Virgil Flowers and Kidd and LuEllen books in order. It's been ages since I've read Rules of Prey.

Edit -

Whoops - just realized this isn't a new thread and that I'd already made a note to look for this book. Now I have to actually go and look for it as it is now April!

It ends with the Corona Virus showing up in Minnesota hospitals.

Bought it on Amazon and read it in three days. Another high-quality "Prey" novel. It's especially good in that it brings Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers together in the same novel with both having major roles. Enjoyed it and I'm already looking forward to the next one.

Yup, this was another fun read. Don't you hate that you can read SO much faster than great authors can actually write? Sandford spends several months toiling over a new book, you read it in a couple of days and grouse about how you can't wait for the next one!

Certainly agree there. I believe I have read all of his Prey books.

I wish I knew how many I've read. I have a lot, though. Over the past few years, I've gone exclusively audio though, and love it because they use the same reader for all the books.

Just a quick post for fun on this drizzly day...

I'm about to start Ocean Prey. I'm looking forward to it. Based on reviews and this thread I have a feeling it's right up my alley. For some reason, I've never read any of Sandford's books. Do you think this book will motivate me to try the separate Flowers and Davenport series? I would love to get hooked on such large collections of good detective novels.

Whaddayathink? :)

They are very different in how they approach things. Davenport shoots and Flowers talks.

Flowers seems to have a number of notches on his guns.

Be glad you’re not a Nelson DeMille fan! Had to wait five years for a new John Corey book

Or...

Do you think it might even be a mistake to make Ocean Prey my first Sandford novel? I hope not...heheh...I'm kinda of excited to start it. But I still welcome your opinion. :)

I would start with the first one but to see if you like it ok to try this one.

I thought this was the first Flowers AND Davenport book. No?

They have been in books together but one or the other has been the dominant character in the book.

I like how the characters have developed during the series of books so if it was me would start at the beginning.

In the Prey series, Davenport has been Flowers' boss over the years in the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, but now Davenport is working for the US Marshall Service. Davenport has always been the protagonist of the Prey novels, with Flowers as a relatively minor character. Then several years ago the author decided to give Flowers his own books, which I have thoroughly enjoyed. The differences in approach between Davenport and Flowers are striking, but the friendship and respect between them is great. Personally I wish Sandford would write a book about two other cops, Shrake and Jenkins, Davenport's "enforcers" in Minnesota. A couple of interesting dudes.