Dark of the Moon

October 1, 2007
What a pleasure to find a novel with an upbeat hero paired with a reader who is more interested in telling a story well than in demonstrating the outer limits of his vocal range. Far from the usual cynical, borderline-depressed investigator, Virgil Flowers is a likable, hang-loose sort of sleuth who enjoys life and seems to relish handling the \x93hard stuff\x94 for his boss, Lucas Davenport (Sandford's Prey series hero makes a brief cameo). Flowers's assignment is to investigate several gruesome murders in a small town. Unlike the harder-edged Prey series, Moon is more of an entertainment, allowing Flowers to supplement his determined quest for justice with witty conversation and several romantic interludes. Conger matches the lighter moods with a mellow, almost mesmerizing matter-of-fact delivery, adjusting his vocal range just slightly to differentiate speakers. But when the action demands it\x97such as the grim opening murder scene or the suspenseful storming of the cult leader's encampment\x97Conger's voice takes on a properly hardboiled intensity. Simultaneous release with the Putnam hardcover (Reviews, July 23).

July 23, 2007
Virgil Flowers, introduced in bestseller Sandford’s Prey series (Invisible Prey
, etc.), gets a chance to shine in his own vehicle and does so brightly. The thrice-divorced, affable member of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), who reports to Prey series hero Lucas Davenport, operates pretty much on his own as he tackles a murder wave that hits the little town of Bluestem. At the center of the story is old Bill Judd, hated by many who blame him for the Jerusalem artichoke scheme that made him rich and others poor. Other motives abound as do suspects—including a religious/survivalist cult headed by a felon or some of the many who participated in the long ago orgies Judd orchestrated. Flowers likes to stir things up and see what happens, and plenty does as the killings continue. Sandford keeps the reader guessing and the pages turning while Flowers displays the kind of cool and folksy charm that might force Davenport to share the spotlight more often. 500,000 first printing.