Heat Lightning

I've read almost every Davenport "Prey" book and Virgil Flowers book and some of them twice. They never fail to keep my interest and make me feel like I'm right there.

HEAT LIGHTNING is the second book by John Sandford to feature Virgil Flowers. Flowers works with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and his boss is Lucas Davenport. In this novel, men are being killed and then left at veteran's memorials. The victims all have a lemon in their mouth. Virgil gets called in after the second killing. He ties the victims to a veteran's center and discovers both victims had been talking to a 1960s radical named Mead Sinclair. Sinclair has ties to Viet Nam and so might the case. Virgil discovers the killers might have more targets, so he tries to protect them while the killers try to find them. It's a big cat and mouse game with plenty of twists. No need to go into the plot anymore. Sandford is one of the best at taking the reader on a thrill ride and including them in the thrill of the chase that the characters feel. Flowers also has time to hook up with Mai Sinclair, Mead's daughter. Flowers is an interesting character who can't help but falling in love with beautiful woman. Flowers also continues to hook up with his ex-wives. Sandford also does a great job of recreating the feel of Minnesota. Flowers and Davenport spend a lot of time together in this novel. It's hard to tell Flowers apart from the younger Davenport. Also present are many Davenport regulars like Sloan, Shrake, Jenkins, Carol and the flirtations but innocent Sandy. I love that I get to read a Sandford novel every sixth month. Longtime Sandford fans will really enjoy this novel. You'll get the great plot, the violence, the foul language, and the sense of pure fun that Sandford puts into his novels.

This is another usual fantastic effort from John Sandford. Now that Kidd and Davenport are old w/kids and family, Virgil Flowers steps in to carry the torch. I think the author is more comfortable with the character in this book and it comes through in the writing. I know these are formula books, but this formula works well for me. Once I started reading this book, I couldn't stop. If you are any kind of Kidd or Davenport fan you won't be disappointed by this book.

I bought this book because of Brian Baker's review featured here. I have followed his choices before and he and I seem to look for similar things in a book and I have come to trust his judgement. I had read one of the Prey series and for whatever reason, it didn't do it for me. So I was not inclined to read more of this author until Brian made his recommendation. Flowers is a true character. One I would like to see more of. However, it is Sandford's use of dialogue, the development of several of the characters in the book and that he keeps the reader guessing at about the same level those in the book are operating at, as to what people are going to be killed and why. You know, there are some times you come across a passage that you just say: "Dang! I wish I was smart enough to write that." Mine occurred at page 199, when Virgil had crawled into bed "...and thought about God and the people who were dead on this case...and wondered what all that was about, and how somebody like the dumb-ass preachers on TV could think this could all be part of God's plan. God didn't have a plan, Virgil believed. God had his limits, and one of them was, He didn't always know what would happen; or if He did know, He didn't care, or if He cared, He was constrained by His own logic and couldn't do anything about death and destruction. Virgil believed that God was actually a part of a rolling wave front, hurtling into an unknown future; and that humans, animals and, possibly trees and chinch bugs had souls that would rejoin God at death. Which brought him to Camus' big question, and he didn't like to think about Camus, so he went to sleep." Now that is good. And so is the rest of it. So saddle up. A really good book is waiting for you.

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?

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.