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Saturday, October 12, 2019

Review: Field of Prey by John Sandford

I worry about Sandford's imagination reading this book and some of the other titles where he inserts the actions and thinking of the bad guys. The killer in this one rapes and kills women and the vividness and detail with which Sandford recounts his actions is beyond chilling; it's obscene and pornographic. There's a vast chasm between erotic pornography that's loving and tender and that which is brutal and sadistic. This is the latter and it's not pleasant. One wonders about a mind that can even think up this stuff. I'm not sure I would want Sandford over for dinner.

There is a side plot (one wonders why it was included at all) involving the brother of a man shot by police during a bank robbery. Lucas is portrayed by the media as celebrating the man's death ("the police showed great restraint" in striking the man with only 20 bullets) and having been involved setting the man up for the shooting. From other comments made during the book, it's clear Sandford despises the media (ironic as Sandford is a pseudonym for John Camp a former journalist), and the name of the brother, "Immanuel Kent" can't possibly be an accident and must be a reference to Immanuel Kant, who gave us the "categorical Imperative" and the moral worth of an individual comes less from the consequences of his actions than from his motivations. Lucas' motivations in warning the police of the bank robbery was good, but the actual consequence was bad. The brother (supported by the media) seems to argue that he should be responsible for the unintended consequences, distinctly un-Kantian.

No need to repeat the plot. Lots of those descriptions available. That said, he has created some interesting characters. Davenport and his sidekicks have become more interesting as the series has progressed. And having Flowers make an appearance never hurts, either. I enjoyed this audio-book which was well read (as ever) by Richard Ferrone. 

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