Heat Lightning (Virgil Flowers) (Hardcover)

by John Sandford (Author)
Key Phrases: several clicks, Red Lake, Rose Marie, Ray Bunton (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
At the start of bestseller Sandford's solid second thriller to feature officer Virgil Flowers of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (after Dark of the Moon), a gunman shoots Bobby Sanderson as he's walking his dog one night in Stillwater, Minn., then places a lemon in the dead man's mouth. Sanderson's killing is one in a series, and Flowers soon discovers that all the victims served together in Vietnam. When Flowers learns that Vietnamese firing squads stuck lemons in the mouths of their human targets, he pursues leads in the local immigrant community, where he hooks up with the attractive daughter of a radical professor who'd written a paper about Agent Orange. Eventually, he settles on the owner of a security company involved with the upcoming Republican National Convention as his prime suspect. While the less than credible plot builds to a highly unlikely resolution, most readers will enjoy spending time in the company of the genial Flowers. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product Description
Fresh from his “spectacular” (Cleveland Plain Dealer) debut in Dark of the Moon, investigator Virgil Flowers takes on a puzzling—and most alarming—case, in the new book from the #1 bestselling author.

John Sandford’s introduction of Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigator Virgil Flowers was an immediate critical and popular success: “laser-sharp characters and a plot that’s fast and surprising” (Cleveland Plain Dealer); “an idiosyncratic, thoroughly ingratiating hero” (Booklist). Flowers is only in his late thirties, but he’s been around the block a few times, and he doesn’t think much can surprise him anymore. He’s wrong.

It’s a hot, humid summer night in Minnesota, and Flowers is in bed with one of his ex-wives (the second one, if you’re keeping count), when the phone rings. It’s Lucas Davenport. There’s a body in Stillwater—two shots to the head, found near a veteran’s memorial. And the victim has a lemon in his mouth.

Exactly like the body they found last week.

The more Flowers works the murders, the more convinced he is that someone’s keeping a list, and that the list could have a lot more names on it. If he could only find out what connects them all . . . and then he does, and he’s almost sorry he did.

Because if it’s true, then this whole thing leads down a lot more trails than he thought—and every one of them is booby-trapped.

Filled with the audacious plotting, rich characters, and brilliant suspense that have always made his books “compulsively readable” (Los Angeles Times), this is vintage Sandford.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult; 1St Edition edition (September 23, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399155279
• ISBN-13: 978-0399155277
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,183 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Virgil Flowers's Second Outing is a Winner!, September 28, 2008

By	Brian Baker (Santa Clarita, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Someone's ritualistically torturing and murdering a bunch of Vietnam Vets (a subject near to my heart, as I am one), and Lucas Davenport assigns the case to that rascally womanizer Virgil Flowers in this fast-paced thriller from John Sandford.

Flowers is an engaging hero: smart, tough, witty, and ready at the drop of a skirt.

Sanford displays his usual deft skill in engaging us in the story as well as the characters, with a novel plot line, fully realized secondary characters, and dialogue that shows a true "ear" for the way people talk in real life.

This book moves like a runaway train, and will keep you entertained from first page to last.

A solid five stars.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Is This Book a Lemon?, September 28, 2008

By	Elliott (L.A.) - See all my reviews

The answer to the titular question is a resounding "No!" But a series of torture murder victims are found with lemons stuffed in their mouths. Virgil Flowers, an officer with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, investigates the murders. He finds a trail leading to a gruesome crime committed in Vietnam back in 1975, when things were falling apart there for the U.S.

John Sandford writes with a wry sense of humor about the resourceful, gritty, womanizing Flowers. Flowers uncovers a conspiracy involving the CIA, high officials in the current Vietnamese government, Homeland Security, and the smuggling of stolen heavy equipment into Canada. Things are not always as they seem. The line between good and evil gets blurry.

The focus of Flowers' romantic ardor (which seems to know few bounds) is the twenty-something daughter of a leftist professor. Said professor, during the sixties, had criticized the U.S. role in Vietnam. Flowers thinks the professor knows something about the "lemon murders." While he is investigating the professor, Flowers is also "investigating" the daughter.

The book drags a bit early on, but the last three hundred pages build to a slam-bang conclusion that is full of surprises.

Sandford skillfully captures the atmosphere of St. Paul and the surrounding region in Minnesota, as well as the state's border with Canada. Flowers is an outdoorsman, and Sandford vividly weaves this into the plot via episodes set in the backcountry.

I do have one reality check on the book: If you are thirsty and a friend throws an ice-cold bottle of beer to you from twenty yards away, would you try to catch it?

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars F@#%ing Flowers is back and better, October 3, 2008

By	Lost In Kansas "James Corbett" (Arkansas City KS) - See all my reviews

I am a fan of the Prey series and the Kidd books, so when Sandford came out with the Flowers series, I was worried that the author would over extend himself. I was wrong. Sandford has created a very novel character in Virgil Flowers. From his long hair and his vast collection of tee shirts, Virgil is a one of a kind cop. The story flows naturally and the characters sound real. Virgil is fully rounded person and his name is not about his personality, but his way with the ladies. The story is not one of those mysteries where the detective uses deduction or those where CSI plays a big part. In the novels it is plain old grinding it out leg work, look for clues, follow leads, dead ends, and luck. In between Virgil talking about God and picking the right band shirt, the action is simple and to the point. No facncy shooting or "wow" action, but realistic action of the normal cop. One reads these books for the Virgil Flower and not really for the msytery. A very satistfing novel.