G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 423 pages, $29
John Sandford’s 31st book in his “Prey” series brings together two of his most famous protagonists. Minnesota lawmen Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers join forces to roundup the drug-smuggling murderers of three Coast Guard sailors off the coast of South Florida.
“Ocean Prey” opens with Davenport and fellow marshal Bob Matees heading to Miami in a case where the FBI and local law enforcement have reached a dead end. The Coasties were killed in cold blood by smugglers who, after stowing a drug hoard undersea, burned their expensive boat, destroying all the evidence. The Yankee marshals were brought in to stir things up. And that is what they did.
Read All About It: Little Lion finds courage to face common fear
Brandy Hilboldt Allport
Abrams Books for Young Readers, $16.99; ages 4 to 7
Explore a common childhood fear in “Lion Needs a Haircut.” The title says it all. It’s time to head for the barbershop, but Little Lion, roars, “No.” Daddy Lion explores this emphatics resistance, which is accompanied by a roar for emphasis.
Daddy reassures, as Daddies do. “Don’t worry. Barber Goat will take good care of you. His scissors won’t cut your ears.”
Little Lion insists that he is not worried about scissors, he simply just does not want a haircut. Daddy asks if Little Lion is concerned he might look like an antelope after Goat finishes his handy work. No, the youngest lion says. And then comes the exasperation: “What are you talking about?”
Kung pao Brussels sprouts ($10), warm spinach and artichoke dip ($10) and maple bacon deviled eggs ($8) are the starters we decided to share. The first two were solid choices. The warm sprouts are served with freshly shaved cheese on top and a light Asian dipping sauce. Tortilla chips and crostini came with the dip, providing two options. We didn’t care for the eggs. Between their rubbery texture, and lack of flavor, we’d skip these on future visits.
Full from the appetizers, I kept dinner light and feasted upon a bowl of French onion soup ($7). It was brothy, onion-y and had plenty of melted cheese on top. Friends had the caprese board ($9), crab cake ($18) with lemon aioli, miso salmon ($16) with Swiss chard, and chicken tingo tacos ($12). One friend ordered the short rib ($22) with polenta cake and succotash ($6) and it came out cold and dry. She alerted our server, who quickly and politely remedied the situation with a do-over that my friend said came out perfect. Presentat
Grand Central Publishing, 448 pages, $29
The adventures of war veteran Aloysius Archer resume in “A Gambling Man,” the second in a post WW II-era series by best-selling thriller author David Baldacci.
After serving time for a crime of which he was innocent, Archer (he prefers to use his last name) heads out West for a fresh start as private detective-in-training. “But first, he had to get there. And these days, nothing is easy, particularly long-distance travel across a country that was so big it never seemed to end.”
A stop in Reno (“The Biggest Little City In The World”) proves eventful with Archer acquiring a classic automobile, a bundle of dough and a gorgeous traveling companion. Once in California, he hooks up with legendary PI Willie Dash and is soon involved in a political scandal/blackmail case that allows him to quickly hone his detective skills. The bodies pile up as Archer and Dash peel away the investigative layers that involve some bad cops and greed at t