“Gathering Prey” by John Sandford – The Great American Chase for Manson's Return

Nomadic lifestyles are far less prevalent today than in the past, something that is increasingly true the further back we look. However, there are those who, even with all of the advantages modern technology and society brings, prefer to stay on the move, travelling from one place to the next, and basically living life on their own terms.

In some places of the world these people are referred to as “Romani”, others describe them as “gypsies”, and in John Sandford's Gathering Prey, they are called “the travellers”, and play a central part in a madman's killing spree.

Being part of the “Prey” series, Sandford's book brings into the picture once again Lucas Davenport, as well as his adopted daughter Letty. The latter one day encounters some of the afore-mentioned travellers and helps them out with a bit of food.

At that moment, they tell her about Pilate, who for lack of a better word is the second coming of Charles Manson. Having his own cult of around twenty men, Pilate is known as a bloodthirsty savage, and lately it seems that he, or someone close to him, has taken to murdering the travelers.

When a woman troubled by the disappearance of her husband turns to Letty, she brings Davenport in to put a stop to it all. Needless to say, Lucas finds himself not only a stranger in a strange land amidst a culture he knows very little of, but also on a hunt far more tenacious than what he had anticipated.

He ends up chasing Pilate and his gang across multiple states, all the while knowing that their killing sprees won't stop and many are at risk while these people still exist.

To begin with, the main story arc that we are following, Davenport's chase for Pilate, is nothing short of thrilling and riveting, only hindered by the general predictability it falls into. In other words, we know that the bad guys will be appropriately dealt with while Davenport and those around him will love on to appear in many more novels.

Even though it is a murder investigation, there aren't really any exceptional twists and turns that are worth discussing... rather, it's more about the race against the clock, the need for speed in solving the problem. With that in mind, it still does a good job of hooking you in and making you want to turn the page to see the villains brought to justice, one way or another.

Stepping away from the main plot, we are used to having rich, unique, deep and engaging characters in the “Prey” series, and I have to say that in this case Sandford seems to have taken a step back. There is very little character development to speak of, even when it comes to the protagonist.

Many of them end up feeling somewhat two-dimensional, certainly not memorable like Weather, Jenkins or Del from the previous books. There is so little personal information interjected about Davenport that it's almost possible to forget you're reading one of his books rather than a standalone thriller.

While this lack of focus on the characters does make the action move faster, I believe it takes away a certain charm that the series has been building on, that of becoming intimately acquainted with the people and their internal worlds.

All things considered, even though Gathering Prey does falter in a few places, it still remains a rather enjoyable work of writing, one that will definitely suck the boredom out of a couple stale afternoons... as long as you don't expect a groundbreaking masterpiece, this thriller is definitely worth a shot.

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John Sandford Personal site John Sandford is an American novelist and Journalist who has a Bachelor’s degree in American History as well as a Master’s in Journalism from the University of Iowa. He is best-known for writing novel series, with his most acclaimed ones being the Prey and Kidd series.