Book Review of Shadow Prey

Shadow Prey is a big let down from Rules of Prey.

For one, the antagonists’ cause is actually valid, and I was rooting for them all the time. I think the author realised this and came up with Shadow Love’s character, who is more the blackguard is easier to hate. That said, I think the plot was decent, though one thing baffled me. Why wait till Clay becomes the FBI director before killing him? Is it to make a statement? Oh Well.

Lucas Davenport is as flawed as always. He is more physical this time, with his informants and witnesses. And I wonder how he keeps getting away with it. If he pisses off or intimidates every informant, how does he maintain the largest net of informants in the city. Somebody like Sloan is more believable in this role. Lucas also philanders some more, with a colleague from the NYPD. This is easily the most boring portion of the book, with a soap opera type ‘will she, won’t she’ type of scenario. And once the deed is done, there is no stopping them as they do it like rabbits non-stop. And then the guilt. I really didn’t appreciate the author’s depiction of Jennifer either — she kicks him out and then reaches out to him again. She only leaves him after he does something unconnected with the affair.

But his flaws aside, Lucas and the rest of the PD does a great job in police grunt work. Finding the loosest of threads and following them all the way back to the source. There aren’t any aha movements, but rather it is the combination of effort and perserverance that helps them catch their suspects.

The story is definitely less compelling than Rules of Prey though due to these reasons.