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Lena Padget #1
Satan's Lambs
Lena Padget was a mild-mannered grad student in a quiet Kentucky town until her sister was brutally murdered, and everything changed. Over the seven years that the killer has been in prison, Lena has honed her anger to a razor's edge, working as a private-eye for women too scared to help themselves. But with her sister's killer out of jail -- and high on the twisted beliefs of the religious cult that raised him -- Lena is suddenly her own most desperate client. Lena could give any of the tough chicks in mystery fiction, and not a few of the guys, a run for their money: While she may not carry a gun, she packs a lethal baseball bat. But on this go-round, she'll need every weapon she can muster to avoid becoming another lamb to the slaughter. Winner of the Shamus Award for Best First Private Eye Novel of 1993.
324 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1993
About the author
Lynn Hightower
42 books87 followersLynn Hightower grew up in Kentucky, and graduated from the University of Kentucky, where she studied creative writing with Wendell Berry and earned a degree in Journalism. She also teaches novel writing in the Writer’s Program at UCLA. Survival jobs include writing television commercials, catering waitress, and bartender for one day.
Her books have been included in the New York Times List of Notable Books, the London Times Bestseller List, and the W.H. Smith Fresh Talent Awards. She has received the Shamus Award, and been nominated for the Kentucky Literary Award, the Kentucky Librarians First Choice Award, and the Mary Higgins Clark Award. Hightower’s books have been published in numerous foreign countries, including Great Britain, Australia, Japan, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Israel and The Netherlands.
Hightower spends ridiculous amounts of time curled up reading, but also enjoys small sports cars and tame horses. She is married to The Frenchman, writes full time, shares an office with her Belgian Shepherd, Leo the Lion, plays bad but fierce tennis, loves to dance and is learning to Tango.
Hightower enjoys canoeing and is witty after two glasses of wine. She has studied French and Italian, but is only fluent in Southern.
Hightower is a Kentucky native, and lives in a small Victorian cottage with a writing parlor.
Her books have been included in the New York Times List of Notable Books, the London Times Bestseller List, and the W.H. Smith Fresh Talent Awards. She has received the Shamus Award, and been nominated for the Kentucky Literary Award, the Kentucky Librarians First Choice Award, and the Mary Higgins Clark Award. Hightower’s books have been published in numerous foreign countries, including Great Britain, Australia, Japan, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Israel and The Netherlands.
Hightower spends ridiculous amounts of time curled up reading, but also enjoys small sports cars and tame horses. She is married to The Frenchman, writes full time, shares an office with her Belgian Shepherd, Leo the Lion, plays bad but fierce tennis, loves to dance and is learning to Tango.
Hightower enjoys canoeing and is witty after two glasses of wine. She has studied French and Italian, but is only fluent in Southern.
Hightower is a Kentucky native, and lives in a small Victorian cottage with a writing parlor.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
April 9, 2020
Lynn S. Hightower is one of those gems I discovered a few years back. I first read The Debt Collector, the last book in her Sonora Blair series and I've also enjoyed No Good Deed, the 3rd book in the series. She hasn't published a whole heck of a lot of books, 14 books since 1986. I've had considerable difficulty finding them. Anyway, I finally managed to get the first book in her Lena Padget mystery series, Satan's Lambs. All I can say is Wow!
Lena Padget is a PI who works in Kentucky. She became a PI when her sister and young nephew were murdered by her sister's husband Jeff Hayes. She takes on special cases, helping women escape from abusive marriages. These women return the favor by feeding Lena, helping her with information, etc.
Lena finds out from cop, Detective Mendez, that Jeff has been released from prison. At the same time, Jeff's partner-in-crime, Archie Valletta, has also been released. Archie has threatened his ex-wife Eloise and she hires Lena to protect her and her son, Charlie. Jeff starts intimidating Lena with phone calls, secret visits. Archie kidnaps Charlie and Lena now must try to find him before something worse happens. It turns out that both Jeff and Archie had been part of a group of Satan worshipers.
So that is the gist of the story, a tense, at times disturbing, thriller. Lena uses every resource possible to find Charlie and to stop Archie and Jeff. These include her ex-husband Rick and his wife, the various people who she's helped in the past and also Detective Mendez with whom she has conflicting feelings. It's a scary story that will keep you turning pages to find out what happens but it's also filled with such fascinating characters, bad ones but at the same time, wonderful characters and friends who you will find yourself becoming invested in. There is so much about this story that I loved. Hightower spins a wonderful yarn and will draw you in. I'm so glad that I discovered her and I will read her other stories if I can find them. (5 stars)
Lena Padget is a PI who works in Kentucky. She became a PI when her sister and young nephew were murdered by her sister's husband Jeff Hayes. She takes on special cases, helping women escape from abusive marriages. These women return the favor by feeding Lena, helping her with information, etc.
Lena finds out from cop, Detective Mendez, that Jeff has been released from prison. At the same time, Jeff's partner-in-crime, Archie Valletta, has also been released. Archie has threatened his ex-wife Eloise and she hires Lena to protect her and her son, Charlie. Jeff starts intimidating Lena with phone calls, secret visits. Archie kidnaps Charlie and Lena now must try to find him before something worse happens. It turns out that both Jeff and Archie had been part of a group of Satan worshipers.
So that is the gist of the story, a tense, at times disturbing, thriller. Lena uses every resource possible to find Charlie and to stop Archie and Jeff. These include her ex-husband Rick and his wife, the various people who she's helped in the past and also Detective Mendez with whom she has conflicting feelings. It's a scary story that will keep you turning pages to find out what happens but it's also filled with such fascinating characters, bad ones but at the same time, wonderful characters and friends who you will find yourself becoming invested in. There is so much about this story that I loved. Hightower spins a wonderful yarn and will draw you in. I'm so glad that I discovered her and I will read her other stories if I can find them. (5 stars)
June 17, 2017
fearless female private investigator in the South takes on a satanic cult that practices human sacrifice in this gripping Shamus Award–winning mystery.
Seven years ago Lena Padget’s life exploded when Jeff Hayes, her devil-worshipping brother-in-law, killed her sister and two-year-old nephew. The horrific double-murder hardened the once-gentle Kentucky native and compelled her to leave graduate school in order to help protect abused and endangered women from human monsters.
Now Hayes and his sadistic partner in satanism, Archie Valetta, have been inexplicably released on parole. Lena’s past has returned with a vengeance to haunt her—and to prey on yet another frightened mother and her helpless child. Approached by Valetta’s desperate ex-wife, Eloise, Lena will do everything in her power to prevent history from repeating itself. Otherwise, Eloise’s four-year-old son will be the next innocent victim.
Before Laura Lippman’s Tess Monaghan and Karin Slaughter’s Sara Linton, there was Lena Padget. The winner of the Shamus Award for Best First Private Eye Novel, Satan’s Lambs marked the acclaimed debut of author Lynn Hightower’s tough-as-nails, sexy, and smart female sleuth on a fictional PI scene long dominated by male mystery writers and established Hightower as a force to be reckoned with in crime fiction
What did I think:
five stars
OMG great start to a new series, and I'm so glade that I picked this up , once I started reading it I just couldn't stop , loved how it had a touch of darkness to it, and it show you what Satanism is kind of like, loved the characters , loved the ending , ok so I loved everything about the story. There is a bit of a romance that is just starting between 2 of the characters but it doesn't take away from the story at all. With that said I would love to also say that I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion and review and that these are 100 % my own thoughts to what is truly a great book
July 15, 2016
Review: SATAN'S LAMBS by Lynn Hightower
Definitely not for the faint of heart, SATAN'S LAMBS is a high-powered detective/metaphysical/psychological study, not amiss for the fact that it's original publication was in 1993, before the era of cell phones and before widespread home computer use. In context, it doesn't seem bewildering when the protagonists must hunt a pay phone, because the storyline flows so smoothly and definitely captures the reader's attention. The author adds a plethora of scenic details, as the story travels from University community Lexington, KY, to Appalachian Eastern Kentucky, and Knoxville and Nashville, TN, with points in between. An abducted child, badly injured mother, and a generational satanist family cult are bright splashes of colour, again riveting readers' attention. I look forward to exploring more mysteries by this accomplished author.
Definitely not for the faint of heart, SATAN'S LAMBS is a high-powered detective/metaphysical/psychological study, not amiss for the fact that it's original publication was in 1993, before the era of cell phones and before widespread home computer use. In context, it doesn't seem bewildering when the protagonists must hunt a pay phone, because the storyline flows so smoothly and definitely captures the reader's attention. The author adds a plethora of scenic details, as the story travels from University community Lexington, KY, to Appalachian Eastern Kentucky, and Knoxville and Nashville, TN, with points in between. An abducted child, badly injured mother, and a generational satanist family cult are bright splashes of colour, again riveting readers' attention. I look forward to exploring more mysteries by this accomplished author.
April 3, 2013
SATAN’S LAMBS is more police procedural than PI yet this off balance of investigation and blind luck leads to an interesting array of characters, leads, and unfortunate events. Lena Padget, is a smart and sassy PI who has a somewhat undefined relationship with the law by virtue of her romantic encounters with Detective Mendez. Like any PI novel, the hardnosed dick has some form of interaction with the boys in blue, and in this case is more between sheets than competing for justice.
SATAN’S LAMBS is driven by the kidnapping of a 4yr old boy presumably to be used in a sacrifice as part of an offering to the devil by a satanic cult. What makes this horrific tale even more sinister is the link between Lena’s brother in-law (and murderer of her sister and nephew) and the case of the missing boy. I got the feeling there was much more to Lena’s back story with this event mentioned but not elaborated to any great depth. There are also a number of characters with whom Lena has built a relationship which feels as though this were a second or third in a series rather than book 1.
Books in the Lena Padget series: http://www.lynnhightower.com/?page_id=19
While there are a number of tension brimming moments and intoxicating chases (the ending was pretty well constructed), I felt SATAN’S LAMBS was a little two dimensional with all those characters on the prophetical needing more fleshing out. I just didn’t find myself caring for much other than the core plot element surrounding the missing boy.
Despite its shortcomings, the first boy in the Lena Padget mysteries is well worth the read. It’s thrilling, fast paced and a tad menacing. The cult aspects and lone wolf actions of Lena are worth the price of admission.
SATAN’S LAMBS is driven by the kidnapping of a 4yr old boy presumably to be used in a sacrifice as part of an offering to the devil by a satanic cult. What makes this horrific tale even more sinister is the link between Lena’s brother in-law (and murderer of her sister and nephew) and the case of the missing boy. I got the feeling there was much more to Lena’s back story with this event mentioned but not elaborated to any great depth. There are also a number of characters with whom Lena has built a relationship which feels as though this were a second or third in a series rather than book 1.
Books in the Lena Padget series: http://www.lynnhightower.com/?page_id=19
While there are a number of tension brimming moments and intoxicating chases (the ending was pretty well constructed), I felt SATAN’S LAMBS was a little two dimensional with all those characters on the prophetical needing more fleshing out. I just didn’t find myself caring for much other than the core plot element surrounding the missing boy.
Despite its shortcomings, the first boy in the Lena Padget mysteries is well worth the read. It’s thrilling, fast paced and a tad menacing. The cult aspects and lone wolf actions of Lena are worth the price of admission.
January 13, 2009
I hope I may be forgiven for not remembering much about this book, since it's been 15 years since I read it. It's a detective novel by one of the people who belonged to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Workshop which I ran for more than 15 years and for which I put out a monthly newsletter. I stopped with issue #300 a few years ago.
What I recall is that this is a horror plus mystery novel (or maybe vice versa) and that it was well-written with an interesting sleuth.
What I recall is that this is a horror plus mystery novel (or maybe vice versa) and that it was well-written with an interesting sleuth.
May 4, 2022
A well written detective thriller with a Satanic cult at its center, this book introduces us to Lena Padget, a private investigator who has lost a family due to the cult. When a member from that past gets out of jail, he wants the hidden away money owed to him from a job gone wrong, and Lena gets involved.
As a detective novel, this is fine. Hightower gets high praise from me regarding characters and their relationships. Also, for her research of occult practices to fill in that part of the story. For the horror fan, this is more of a detective story with horror set pieces.
The ending was a bit of a letdown for me, feeling unfinished in a way that didn’t quite leave me satisfied but with an open door for more. I don’t mind open ended stories that tease the next book, not at all. But this one felt rushed to try and save the ones in need of saving without a high climactic finish. There was danger, but I didn’t feel the danger deep into my own toes. So, while it’s a solid 3+ for me, I didn’t feel compelled to push it to a 4.
It's still a more than worthy consider though for those who like a dash of gruesome with their detective stories.
As a detective novel, this is fine. Hightower gets high praise from me regarding characters and their relationships. Also, for her research of occult practices to fill in that part of the story. For the horror fan, this is more of a detective story with horror set pieces.
The ending was a bit of a letdown for me, feeling unfinished in a way that didn’t quite leave me satisfied but with an open door for more. I don’t mind open ended stories that tease the next book, not at all. But this one felt rushed to try and save the ones in need of saving without a high climactic finish. There was danger, but I didn’t feel the danger deep into my own toes. So, while it’s a solid 3+ for me, I didn’t feel compelled to push it to a 4.
It's still a more than worthy consider though for those who like a dash of gruesome with their detective stories.
May 17, 2017
Enjoyable
Thought this true crime. It's not, however, author has written it like it is. She has done much research and made it very believable. I really enjoyed this. Fast paced, page turner.
Thought this true crime. It's not, however, author has written it like it is. She has done much research and made it very believable. I really enjoyed this. Fast paced, page turner.
October 8, 2024
this book is simply amazing
July 11, 2016
A chilling foray into satanic cult depravity, this book will make your skin crawl. It doesn't provide overly-graphic descriptions of the atrocities performed by the cult members, but rather leads you "gently" into the madness and allows your imagination to run wild. Characters are vividly drawn; so much so that you are truly emotionally invested in the plot. On more than one occasion, I found myself suspicious of certain individuals, and questioning their motivations... that's a sure-fire way to snag your attention and drag you through Hell, willing or not.
Ms. Hightower's writing style is provocative and engaging, and she pushes all the right buttons. The subtly-crafted action is perfect, and the tension palpable. I raced to the end, and then wished I had read more slowly to savor each chapter. This book will make you nervously glance over your shoulder, and you may never look at seashells the same way again. A fun, fast, nasty ride all the way. Highly recommended.
*** This book was provided to me by the publisher and/or the author as an ARC in return for my honest review. ***
Ms. Hightower's writing style is provocative and engaging, and she pushes all the right buttons. The subtly-crafted action is perfect, and the tension palpable. I raced to the end, and then wished I had read more slowly to savor each chapter. This book will make you nervously glance over your shoulder, and you may never look at seashells the same way again. A fun, fast, nasty ride all the way. Highly recommended.
*** This book was provided to me by the publisher and/or the author as an ARC in return for my honest review. ***
August 10, 2012
It took me quite a while to get into Satan’s Lambs. Hightower writes proficiently, but the story took some time to develop and whilst the characters were well drawn it wasn’t until well into the book that I started to identify with them. My feeling was that the first half of the book spent too much time trying to set out the context for the story and flesh out the characters and their relationship with one another. In the second half of the book there was a better balance between description, action and contextual material and it morphed into a page turner and I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next. The relationship between Padget and Mendez develops nicely, and there is a good cast of supporting characters. I won’t give any spoilers, but I thought the moral ambiguity of the ending was excellent. Overall, a slow burner that got better as it progressed.
October 28, 2012
Once upon a time, Lynn Hightower was my idol. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED her Alien Blues series and so wish they were still around.
This is a mainstream mystery/thriller, not science fiction, still excellent, but Ms. Hightower is never one to pull punches, she is graphic and brutal as the situation calls for.
It's beyond me why she never became as huge as Faye Kellerman or Laura Lippman, or Karin Slaughter. She paved the way, and I miss her books.
This is a mainstream mystery/thriller, not science fiction, still excellent, but Ms. Hightower is never one to pull punches, she is graphic and brutal as the situation calls for.
It's beyond me why she never became as huge as Faye Kellerman or Laura Lippman, or Karin Slaughter. She paved the way, and I miss her books.
November 13, 2011
The tension starts early in this novel as a killer is released from jail and announces his intention to complete a mission by killing Lena Padgett the sister and aunt of the original victims. More tension is piled on as a child is taken foe evil purposes. Take your Xanax before you start of just skip to the end and see what happens.
April 27, 2011
I read some other books by this author some years ago and they were pretty good. I'm figuring this might have been one of the first things she ever wrote as it was pretty bad. Plus the printing was awful! But it filled a hole I had in a board challenge!
January 6, 2010
A gory tale of detectives and devil worshipers. It was a fast read.
December 4, 2012
I couldn't finish this book - my tastes must have changed ...
June 1, 2013
Easy read. Good storyline. It ended a bit quickly, but was engaged in the story the whole way through.
February 10, 2014
Quick moving mystery. Catches you from the beginning and keeps you hanging.
November 14, 2017
Great start to a series. Very suspenseful.
Want to Read
September 6, 2014signed
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews