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117 of 119 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb debut to my favorite new series!, January 26, 2001
My wife bugged me for months to read this series and when I finally broke down, I kicked myself for not starting it sooner. Sandford's books following Minneapolis Police Detective Lucas Davenport are some of the best I've discovered in a long time. I'm working my way through the series and loving it! Davenport is a maverick, brilliant, somewhat-womanizing detective. I wasn't sure at first whether or not I'd like the character, but I quickly found myself a big fan of his. He's a cocky loner on the surface, but the digger you deep, the more sensitivity and warmth you find. Sandford has done a wonderful job of creating a character who is both intriguing and believable. (If you're hoping to create a mystery series, you'd better come up with a compelling protagonist and Sandford has certainly done that.) This book finds Davenport on the trail of a cunning serial killer who sticks to a carefully thought-out set of rules in an attempt to escape capture (hence the title of the book). The mystery really kept me on my toes, wondering how Lucas would manage to capture this deranged murdered. John Sandford's Prey series is recommended to fans of Michael Connelly, Robert B. Parker, and anyone who enjoys a good detective novel.
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66 of 69 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
RULE #1 -- START A SERIES WITH A "GREAT" BOOK, September 30, 2001
A few years ago, I asked the owner of a bookstore to recommend some books for me. She said that she had been home sick for the past week and spent the time reading all of the "prey" books. At the time, I had no idea what she was talking about and thought they might have something to do with religion as in "pray" books. After some further discussion, I realized I had stumbled upon a great series by John Sandford. I started to buy the books then and it's taken me this long to finally read the first one. Since I read a lot of mysteries, many of which are part of a series, I'm pretty savvy when it comes to the most popular male protagonists out there at the moment. Now that I've been introduced to Lucas Davenport, my only regret is that I waited this long to begin my relationship with a now favorite character. The story is a good one and involves a serial killer whose identity is introduced to the reader at the beginning of the book. I like when an author does this as it enables me to get inside the killer's head and follow him around from place to place -- not only to the scene of his crimes but in his everyday life at work and home as well. I also love it when the moment arrives and I realize what the title of the book means. In Rules of Prey, the killer, referred to as "maddog", has certain rules that he follows so as not to get caught. For example, he never kills anyone he knows, he never uses the same weapon twice and he never has a motive. He always leaves a note at each crime scene communicating one of his rules. Not only does this serve as a challenge to our main character, Lucas Davenport, it is also the killer's "in your face" way of letting Lucas know that he is someone to be reckoned with. As a lead character, Lieutenant Davenport is a dream. He drives around in a Porsche, which was purchased with money he earns not only from gambling but also from a side job he has creating intense, strategic video games. He's smooth, good-looking and a real lady killer (no pun intended). I enjoyed the way he tracked down the clues, which will eventually lead to the killer. He also has no problem working around the "rules" set up by his own police department and I found this flagrant use or "misuse" of his own form of justice a bit ingratiating. But this particular case will prove not to be an easy chase as his sometimes-inept Minneapolis police department is foiled by the "maddog" on more than one occasion. I understand from other readers that these books just get better and better. That's a real incentive for any mystery reader and is an added bonus just knowing that I get to spend some more quality time with Lucas. This is certainly a series for the ladies as well as the guys. "Shadow Prey" here I come.
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30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Basic Formula Used Well, June 4, 2002
There's a basic formula at play in most suspense novels or thrillers. It's not hard to figure out the components: one demented killer, one detective, usually above the law with some interesting quirk or hobby that makes him unique, a love interest or two, the hero's haunted past...I think you get the idea. I always wish that some writer somewhere would break out of that formula but very few do successfully. But on occasion, a writer uses that formula to his advantage and just writes a darn good book. Rules of Prey is the first novel in what has become a rather extensive series featuring Lucas Davenport, part playboy, part rogue cop, part vigilante. And the Davenport character is a good one. Throw in a generic psychopath playing the part of serial killer and you've got a decent but predictable thriller. Readers of thrillers are familiar with portrayals of the bad guys and usually writers delve deeply into the motivations behind their actions. One strange thing about Rules of Prey is that Sandford does not elaborate on the killer's motivations. While I was curious what was driving him, I must say that I found the lack of childhood flashbacks and psychological ramblings refreshing. Overall, the story was simple, neat and effective. The writing was good, the characters far more developed than those normally encountered in this genre, the action fast paced and the outcome surprising. I will definitely be continuing this series.
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