Silken Prey

March 25, 2013
Governor Elmer Henderson hands Lucas Davenport a political hot potato in bestseller Sandford’s intriguing 23rd thriller featuring the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agent (after 2012’s Stolen Prey). Incumbent Republican Sen. Porter Smalls had a slight lead for reelection, until a campaign volunteer accidentally discovered child porn on Smalls’s computer. Now Taryn Grant—a wealthy, ambitious, ruthless Democratic newcomer—might pull off an upset. Though Henderson is a Democrat, he believes Smalls has been framed, and tasks Davenport with quietly and quickly investigating. Up against two of Grant’s “security” men, both tough ex-military operatives, and the election deadline, Davenport needs all his smarts plus help from fellow BCA agent Virgil Flowers (the star of his own series) and computer genius Kidd. Sandford expertly ratchets up the suspense and delivers some nifty surprises as Davenport deals with political nastiness and paybacks regardless of party affiliations. Agent: Esther Newberg, ICM.

Starred review from April 15, 2013
Dirty political tricksters give Lucas Davenport his most satisfying case in years. Even though he's a conservative Republican, Sen. Porter Smalls is widely known to be a lot more liberal in his sexual ethics. But not so liberal that you'd expect child pornography to pop up on his personal office computer. The horrified staffer who accidentally finds it there calls her father, and he calls 911. Minnesota governor Elmer Henderson, a Democrat, is no friend of Smalls, but he's impressed by his claims of innocence, and he doesn't want any blowback if the kiddie porn turns out to have been planted. So he calls Lucas Davenport, asking him to investigate but keep everything confidential. The hush-hush first phase of the case ends when Lucas finds evidence linking the porn stash to Bob Tubbs, a political jack-of-all-trades who's disappeared and hasn't used his credit cards for days. Given the cover of a homicide investigation, Lucas' Bureau of Criminal Apprehension takes the case public, solving one problem--how can Lucas talk to anybody if he's sworn to secrecy?--but raising another. For the trail leads to some very awkward spots: the Minneapolis Police Department, from which it's pretty clear the damning pictures came, and the campaign of Taryn Grant, the wealthy, well-connected heiress who wants Smalls' Senate seat. With the election less than a week away, Lucas is under intense pressure to get results without stepping on the feet of Grant, who Sandford (Stolen Prey, 2012, etc.) indicates early on is indeed in this mess up to her eyeballs. Meanwhile, another Sandford veteran to whom Lucas turns for help hatches a plot to steal Grant's jewels from the safe in her home. Complications ensue. Sandford keeps every stage of the investigation clear, compelling and suspenseful while peeling back layer after layer of a world in which "everybody was hot, everybody was rich."

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Starred review from May 1, 2013
A tight race for a U.S. Senate seat is drawing to a close when Lucas Davenport gets a call. A volunteer aide to the Republican incumbent inadvertently has found a cache of kiddie porn on the candidate's personal computer. Given the consequences of the discovery, Davenport, the lead investigator for Minnesota's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, is asked by the Democratic governor to handle a quick, discreet inquiry. Though in the opposing party, the governor has known the accused since grade school and is adamant that his friend is innocent. Inevitably, the story leaks and the Democratic candidate begins making up ground in the polls. Her name is Taryn Grant. She's in her mid-thirties, strikingly beautiful, and richer than God, and her ambition knows no limit. As the kiddie-porn scandal breaks, an amoral political operative disappears. When Davenport questions Grant about the scandal, he's taken aback by her vehement denial of any involvement. Is she guilty and attempting to intimidate him, or genuinely offended? Sandford's Davenport novels are always very good, and this is the best one in a long time. It's suspenseful, witty, and wise in the ways of modern politics. And the conclusion is darkly unforgettable. A superb thriller.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)