OK but computer story so outdated ( )

Hacking in the 20th Century by an expert. Dated, but still quite interesting as Kidd is hired to take down a business rival. He creates a rather unique team and is quite successful in fulfilling his contract. However, his focus changes as a pair of hitmen try to take him and his team out. ( )

Long-time readers of John Sandford's Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers series may not be aware that Sandford actually introduced Davenport and another character originally known only as Kidd within a couple of months of each other. Fool's Run, the first Kidd novel, and Rules of Prey, the first Davenport novel both appeared in 1989.

My interest in the Kidd series has gradually increased as I enjoyed the brief appearances of Kidd in several books in the Davenport series. Then Kidd and his wife Luellen appeared prominently in Silken Prey. That further increased my interest in the characters to the point that I decided to dip back in time and read the four-book Kidd series.

It is hard to compare Fool's Run, written 27 years ago, to the contemporary novels featuring Davenport and Flowers. It is not surprising that in this first offering Kidd appears to be a somewhat less well-developed character than Davenport and Flowers. The plot of Fool's Run is rather slow moving and the book lacks the secondary characters that enrich the Davenport (e.g., Flowers, Shrake, Jenkins, and Letty Davenport), and Flowers (e.g., Johnson Johnson and Davenport's supporting cast) series.

Kidd is an expert computer hacker who is willing to engage in illegal activities if the price is right and the job does not offend his moral sensitivities. His persona as a computer hacker offers numerous possibilities but the problem with such characters is the tendency of authors to ascribe magical powers to them. This is especially true of Bobby, an even more accomplished hacker that Kidd consults for critical information, and Dillon, a mysterious hacker who works for the firm that hires Kidd. Bobby is so accomplished, we are told, that even the NSA has failed to discover his identity. Dillon seems similarly accomplished although his character is scarcely developed. Sandford makes no effort to describe how they o obtain the information they provide nor how they gain entre to the numerous supposedly secure computer systems they access.

After a meeting with a mysterious billionaire, his beautiful, sexy assistant, and Dillon, Kidd agrees to take on a project that involves burglary and industrial espionage. Kidd recruits LuEllen (Luellen in the Davenport novels), an expert burglar, and Dace, a former reporter with superior skills at researching print media and creating a public relations campaign. The task and Kidd's approach to the problem are mildly entertaining, but achieving the goal brings on an unexpected turn of events. His employers have misrepresented themselves and suddenly the lives of Kidd, LuEllen and Dace are in danger.

Despite this interesting plot, several weaknesses are apparent. Perhaps most disappointing is the failure to develop the LuEllen character. Kidd recruited her as an expert burglar but Sandford depicts her as having a limited skill set. Her primary approach is to take a wrecking bar and break in the door. LuEllen relies on cocaine to prepare herself for each burglary and to handle her post-burglary emotions. Personally, she comes across as unpolished and possibly uneducated when compared to Kidd, who is depicted as intelligent, organized, and rational. The two do not appear to be professionally compatible.

Kidd's frequent use of Tarot cards is another plot device that does not work for me. It added nothing to the plot and it interfered with the flow of the story. Especially at the end of the book when Kidd is supposedly developing a strategy to escape from the conundrum in which he is ensnared, his frequent consultation of Tarot cards come across as boring, inconsequential filler.

In closing I should mention that the depiction of LuEllen in Fool's Run and Luellen in Silken Prey are completely different. The latter plans a complicated burglary carefully and demonstrates great resourcefulness when an unexpected interruption occurs. Perhaps there will be growth in the LuEllen character in the remaining books in the Kidd series. ( )

The other day I went to a library book sale and as usual, there were tons of books in boxes waiting to be put on tables. It’s worth it to get down and look through them because I found a first edition of a John Sandford book published under his real name, John Camp. It’s a book I didn’t have, the first in the Kidd series, but even if I had it, I’d have bought it for the Camp name alone.

You can see where his writing is going to go. Kidd dumps the car in parking places. Every move and minute is covered. The action takes place in a short space of time. There are shades of Davenport in Kidd and even, maybe, a bit of Flowers, too. For a fan it’s great. If you’re not a fan though, you might be a bit irritated at the minutiae and the fact that so much of the technology is unrecognizable if you’re young. Being that I’m not young and entered the computer industry shortly after this book was published, I enjoyed looking back at what we all thought was amazing and wondrous. And it was. It was. Someday we’ll look back on our first smartphones with nostalgia. Awww. Weren’t they cute?

One thing that struck me was how similar Kidd is to Elvis Cole, a character in another series of books written by Robert Crais. Crais’s books pre-date this one by ½ a dozen years, and I have to wonder if Camp read them. It’s not blatant, but if you know Elvis, you’ll see the signs. I had a hard time remembering that it wasn’t a Crais book though.

The story is pretty great. It’s a caper novel through and through. Kidd is hired to sabotage a company’s rival because they stole technology and would now get an unfair advantage when it comes to a government contract. Just enough ‘right the wrong’ to make Kidd bite. That and the money. Things, of course, don’t turn out quite as expected, and it was a bit done (only because of the fact that so much time has passed and so many stories are similar), but it was fun. And if you’re not having fun reading, why are you doing it? ( )

Hackers, the tarot, a Sneakers-sort-of plot. It all makes for an entertaining story. ( )