Toxic Prey

A Prey Novel

By: John Sandford

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

Lucas Davenport and his daughter, Letty, team up to track down a dangerous scientist whose latest project could endanger the entire world, in this latest thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author John Sandford.

Gaia is dying.

That, at least, is what Dr. Lionel Scott believes. A renowned expert in tropical and infectious diseases, Scott has witnessed the devastating impact of illness and turmoil at critical scale. Society as it exists is untenable, and the direct link to Earth’s death spiral; population levels are out of control and people have allowed disarray and disorder to run rampant. While most are concerned about deadly disease, Scott knows that it is truly humanity itself that will destroy Gaia. It’s only by removing the threat that the planet can continue to prosper, and luckily, Scott is just the right man for the job…


When Scott then disappears without a trace, Letty Davenport is tasked with tracking down any and all leads. Scott’s connections to sensitive research into virus and pathogen spread has multiple national and international organizations on high alert, and his shockingly high clearance levels at various institutions, including the Los Alamos National Laboratory, make him the last person they’d like to go missing. As the web around Scott becomes more tangled, Letty calls in her father, Lucas, help her lead a group of specialists to find Scott as soon as possible. But as Letty and Lucas begin to uncover startling and disturbing connections between Scott and Gaia conspiracists, their worst fears are confirmed, and it quickly becomes a race to find him before the virus he created becomes the perfect weapon.

Critic reviews

One of Library Journal’s Stars of 2024

"A believable, timely, edge-of-one’s-seat thriller involving climate change and a virus. Whenever Letty Davenport is involved (as in previous outing Dark Angel), it’s disaster on a grand scale.” —Library Journal (starred review)

"John Sandford delivers yet another unputdownable reading experience in Toxic Prey, a gripping thriller that combines nail-biting suspense with thought-provoking commentary on the intersection of science, morality, and environmentalism. Longtime fans of the Lucas Davenport series will devour this one.” —The Real Book Spy

I miss Richard Ferrone

Richard Ferrone WAS Lucas Davenport, and I don't expect anyone will be able to fill his shoes.

The new reader is fine (does a nice job with Letty and the MI5 agent), but it doesn't have the edge of the earlier Lucas novels in terms of both the storyline and the audio performance. The story is a little muddy - who is the main character? Who's responsible for the search?

I do like having the recurring/crossover stories, and would love to see more with the new characters and their ongoing PTSD.

For readers new to the Lucas books, I suggest starting at the beginning, to see how we got here - the series, while not having to strictly go in order, is helpful for people looking to understand the background and history of the characters.

It was Lucas and Letty together! 'Nuff said

I was a little disappointed. I think it was the pacing but may have been character development. I never really felt like I knew Hawk and he was pivitol. However, it was 2 of my favorite characters kicking a## and taking names, so that part was excellent.

Relationships

I’m hooked on his characters and their lives. The premise is great. The ending too quick.

Sanford did it again! Home run for Toxic Prey

Completely believable in the age we live in now. This story could have come from headlines from any major newspaper. Both fascinating and frightening.

good but not the best of the series.

so very sorry to say but this one fell a bit flat for me. the usual snappy crisp banter is gone.