Heat Lightning (Virgil Flowers) |
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List Price: $26.95
Our Price: $17.79
Your Save: $ 9.16 ( 34% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
Average Customer Rating:  
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PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780399155277
ISBN: 0399155279
Label: Putnam Adult
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 400
Publication Date: 2008-09-23
Publisher: Putnam Adult
Reading Level: Young Adult
Studio: Putnam Adult
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Editorial Reviews:
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Fresh from his “spectacular” (Cleveland Plain Dealer) debut in Dark of the Moon, investigator Virgil Flowers takes on a puzzling—and most alarming—case, in the new book from the #1 bestselling author.
John Sandford’s introduction of Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigator Virgil Flowers was an immediate critical and popular success: “laser-sharp characters and a plot that’s fast and surprising” (Cleveland Plain Dealer); “an idiosyncratic, thoroughly ingratiating hero” (Booklist). Flowers is only in his late thirties, but he’s been around the block a few times, and he doesn’t think much can surprise him anymore. He’s wrong.
It’s a hot, humid summer night in Minnesota, and Flowers is in bed with one of his ex-wives (the second one, if you’re keeping count), when the phone rings. It’s Lucas Davenport. There’s a body in Stillwater—two shots to the head, found near a veteran’s memorial. And the victim has a lemon in his mouth.
Exactly like the body they found last week.
The more Flowers works the murders, the more convinced he is that someone’s keeping a list, and that the list could have a lot more names on it. If he could only find out what connects them all . . . and then he does, and he’s almost sorry he did.
Because if it’s true, then this whole thing leads down a lot more trails than he thought—and every one of them is booby-trapped.
Filled with the audacious plotting, rich characters, and brilliant suspense that have always made his books “compulsively readable” (Los Angeles Times), this is vintage Sandford.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating: 
Summary: Heat Lightening
Comment: Heat Lightning (Virgil Flowers)
A good mystery with a lot of different angles but the main character, Virgil Flowers, just lacks something. He just seems like such a loser. Certainly not as polished and finesse as his boss.
A Vietnam era connection for the murders and going back to examine those times was interesting. It does move at a good pace. A couple of surprises along the way.
I read a lot of books because I get in to the characters, like some people do with TV, but all of Sandford's books are good murder mysteries. They are worth reading for that alone.
I do hope we get Lucas Davenport back though.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I LOVE Virgil Flowers
Comment: Another great Sanford novel! I have been a big fan through all the Prey books. This new guy ROCKS! I love how this still ties in with Davenport, but gives us a new direction.
Customer Rating:
Summary: More flash than substance
Comment: I am trying to figure out if I would like these books more if I hadn't read the Davenport series first. It just feels to me that Virgil is Lucas light. There isn't a substantive difference between the two, and Virgil, frankly, isn't as smart as Davenport. I saw the 'twist' at the end, coming a mile off, and it annoyed me that Virgil didn't. The person with the most detectiing capacity in this book was Lucas's old friend the Nun.
The plot centers around 2 men who are killed and displayed conspicuously at war memorial sites with a lemon in their mouth. Virgil is told of a Vietnam connection and the rest of the book is spent figuring out a) who is going to be killed next and b) why are they being killed. I didn't mind them being killed but the collatoral damage seemed rather high.
So, Sandford is always readable but this is definitely a second tier outing for me. A library loan, not a keeper...
Customer Rating:
Summary: Kudos to John Sandford for a new character
Comment: The Prey series has always been one of my favorites, and Sandford gets credit for allowing Davenport to mature in age and career. In this book, the main character Virgil Flowers is very different from Davenport, who appears pretty much as a supporting 'actor'. Virgil is a portrayed as someone I think I'll grow to like quite a bit.
The plot is interesting, the book is hard to put down. Isn't Sandford's BEST, but it's quite good.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Sanford at his storytelling best
Comment: A familiar setting freshened nicely with the continued development of a new protagonist, Virgil Flowers.
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