Excellent thriller / audio book listened to on vacation to Maryland

Off the police force, not committed to any organization, Davenport is called in to help with the brutal murders of a family in the backwoods of Wisconsin. It's the dead of winter, and the Iceman is at work. Turns out there's a photograph that the Iceman is trying to make sure never sees daylight, and if that means murdering a bunch of people, then so be it.

Driving, fast-paced, it's Davenport at his finest. Also, first introduction to Weather Karkinnen, Davenport's future wife although we don't know that yet. ( )

You remember Winter Prey because that's where Lucas Davenport meets Weather Karkinnen, instead of anything else about the book, which is a little sad. It's a clever book. Notice that in at least the first three chapters that each scene will either mention the word "weather" or Weather (32x). For comparison, cold is mentioned 24 times. As for as Davenport goes, the detective work doesn't work as much as it stirs up the conspirators and causes trouble for innocents, which plays on the "cold" and "storm coming" themes. When A leads to B and a trap is set, the storm comes in, and the famous line of Davenport is shot by a teenaged psychopath and saved by Weather becomes reality. But why was Weather there? Who was the teenager? Why did she shoot Davenport? Don't take the line, read the book and appreciate the weather. ( )

As John Sanford's signature Prey series expands into 30 plus years, it is easy to forget just how good some of those early books were. As of late I have been going back and re-reading them as a reminder.

Winter Prey is the 5th book in the series and the one that introduces his future wife, Winter.

Lucas Davenport has resigned from the Minneapolis police force and retreated to his cabin in the north to lick his wounds. The town is hit by a series of gruesome murders and thus Lucas is less than reluctantly pressed back into service.

This book was written back in the early 90's, and as such, serves as a reminder of a very different time. I'm not sure that many of Davenport's strategies would be endorsed in today's world. That might be an interesting exploration for author John Sanford in an upcoming edition.

This one is a good read and a example of just how good Sandford can be when he's on. ( )

Burning desires in the frigid Wisconsin winter. ( )