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Night #5
Fear the Night
When night falls, a ruthless sniper terrorizes the streets of New York City. After the killer's next victim is murdered right before his eyes, retired homicide detective Vin Repetto makes it his personal mission to stop this madman dead in his tracks.
480 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 1, 2005
43 people are currently reading
323 people want to read
About the author
John Lutz
234 books300 followersLibrarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
John Lutz has captivated suspense enthusiasts for over four decades. He has been one of the premier voices in contemporary hard-boiled fiction. His work includes political suspense, private eye novels, urban suspense, humor, occult, crime caper, police procedural, espionage, historical, futuristic, amateur detective, thriller; virtually every mystery sub-genre. John Lutz published his first short story in 1966 in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and has been publishing regularly ever since. He is the author of more than fifty novels and 250 short stories and articles.
His novels and short fiction have been translated into virtually every language and adapted for almost every medium. He is a past president of both Mystery Writers of America and Private Eye Writers of America. Among his awards are the MWA Edgar, the PWA Shamus, The Trophee 813 Award for best mystery short story collection translated into the French language, the PWA Life Achievement Award, and the Short Mystery Fiction Society's Golden Derringer Lifetime Achievement Award.
He is the author of two private eye series, the Nudger series, set in his home town of St. Louis, and the Carver series, set in Florida, as well as many non-series suspense novels. His SWF SEEKS SAME was made into the hit movie SINGLE WHITE FEMALE, starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and his novel THE EX was made into the HBO original movie of the same title, for which he co-authored the screenplay.
Lutz and his wife, Barbara, split their time between St. Louis and Sarasota, Florida.
John Lutz has captivated suspense enthusiasts for over four decades. He has been one of the premier voices in contemporary hard-boiled fiction. His work includes political suspense, private eye novels, urban suspense, humor, occult, crime caper, police procedural, espionage, historical, futuristic, amateur detective, thriller; virtually every mystery sub-genre. John Lutz published his first short story in 1966 in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and has been publishing regularly ever since. He is the author of more than fifty novels and 250 short stories and articles.
His novels and short fiction have been translated into virtually every language and adapted for almost every medium. He is a past president of both Mystery Writers of America and Private Eye Writers of America. Among his awards are the MWA Edgar, the PWA Shamus, The Trophee 813 Award for best mystery short story collection translated into the French language, the PWA Life Achievement Award, and the Short Mystery Fiction Society's Golden Derringer Lifetime Achievement Award.
He is the author of two private eye series, the Nudger series, set in his home town of St. Louis, and the Carver series, set in Florida, as well as many non-series suspense novels. His SWF SEEKS SAME was made into the hit movie SINGLE WHITE FEMALE, starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and his novel THE EX was made into the HBO original movie of the same title, for which he co-authored the screenplay.
Lutz and his wife, Barbara, split their time between St. Louis and Sarasota, Florida.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
May 23, 2017
New York CIty cop Vin Repetto retired after taking a bullet on the job. He was the best at catching serial killers. Now, someone is killing innocent bystanders on the streets and the public has dubbed the killer as the Night Sniper. The Night Sniper insists that he will only deal with Repetto and he will keep killing until Repetto gets involved. After someone close to Repetto is killed, he is determined to bring the serial sniper to justice.
Although I didn't like this one as much as I usually like serial killer stories, I did like Repetto's character. I was also very interested in Bobby's character.
Although I didn't like this one as much as I usually like serial killer stories, I did like Repetto's character. I was also very interested in Bobby's character.
April 28, 2010
At the library, looking for a book by Lisa Lutz (not there), I saw this audio book and took a chance. Great story, good reader (always helps), full of action. There's a night sniper who tells the police who the next victim will be, not by name but by the nursery rhyme "rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief, etc." And he still kills them all. Very well written, action and suspense right to the end. I would like to read more books by John Lutz.
August 14, 2021
Excellent, There we’re so many twist and turns in this book… Great read 👍🏻
June 1, 2016
I have enjoyed many previous John Lutz novels, including those featuring NYPD Detective Frank Quinn. In Fear the Night, Lutz introduces a new character, another retired NYPD Detective named Vin Repetto. Unlike Quinn, Repetto is married and has a college-aged daughter. Although I enjoyed the book, I have to say that I prefer Quinn and the characters associated with him.
However, Lutz does his usual masterful job of creating a dark and devious villain, in this case a serial killer sniper, who prowls New York City, shooting random victims. The press dubs him The Night Sniper. NYPD wants famed serial-killer expert Vin Repetto to catch him, but he demurs. This disappoints the sniper. He believes he's the best serial-killer ever (a bit of hubris!) and he wants a worthy opponent. He deliberately executes his next victim so that Repetto will see it happen.
Game on, as they say. Repetto takes the assignment. Lutz provides plenty of twists and turns, and then it gets personal. The sniper threatens to shoot Repetto's daughter. The book comes to a satisfying conclusion, but I never warmed up to the Vin Repetto character. However, others may find him a refreshing change from Frank Quinn. In any case, I would recommend the book to fans of suspense thrillers, and serial-killer thrillers in particular.
However, Lutz does his usual masterful job of creating a dark and devious villain, in this case a serial killer sniper, who prowls New York City, shooting random victims. The press dubs him The Night Sniper. NYPD wants famed serial-killer expert Vin Repetto to catch him, but he demurs. This disappoints the sniper. He believes he's the best serial-killer ever (a bit of hubris!) and he wants a worthy opponent. He deliberately executes his next victim so that Repetto will see it happen.
Game on, as they say. Repetto takes the assignment. Lutz provides plenty of twists and turns, and then it gets personal. The sniper threatens to shoot Repetto's daughter. The book comes to a satisfying conclusion, but I never warmed up to the Vin Repetto character. However, others may find him a refreshing change from Frank Quinn. In any case, I would recommend the book to fans of suspense thrillers, and serial-killer thrillers in particular.
June 18, 2011
It was a fun read, with lots of "backstory" on the characters, but with no clue as to why the killer was so focused on the lead detective...??? Hmmmmm... I guess that this genre doessnt always have to contain plausability. LgGrin
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December 26, 2015The Night Sniper's rampage in New York has called a decorated police captain out of retirement and it turns into a lethal game of cat and mouse. The characters are well formed and the story of how the Night Sniper came to be was well done.
July 24, 2011
Fear the Night is an o.k. sniper/serial killer story. Good character development leads to big let down. Rework the ending and I would add a star. As it is, I would say "skip it."
November 29, 2024
Audiobook narrator Scott Brick does a great job performing the story as usual.
Retired “legendary” cop Repetto is called back into service when an insane sniper nicknamed The Night Sniper demands Repetto join in his sick game or he will continue killing spree… which of course the sniper continues to do as he plays a cat and mouse game with all the NYPD and Repetto. The killer stays steps ahead of everyone in part because the cops are depicted as having average intelligent and/or corrupt. The female profiler is an alcoholic who engages in a sexual relationship, unwittingly, with the sniper. Female cop Weaver lies and hides the truth to get a big promotion. Another cop Meg is drawn to one of the top candidates for the sniper. Amelia, Repetto’s daughter, stubbornly refuses to leave town when it becomes clear she’s the sniper’s next victim. Her stupidity nearly costs Meg her life. And through all of this Repetto does all the necessary leg work to track down the killer but others find the important clues and figure out the killer’s identity. Repetto is completely unnecessary to the story really. Bobby, the homeless and mentally impaired ex-cop, is the hero of the story and the one who leads the cops to killer’s tracks.
Retired “legendary” cop Repetto is called back into service when an insane sniper nicknamed The Night Sniper demands Repetto join in his sick game or he will continue killing spree… which of course the sniper continues to do as he plays a cat and mouse game with all the NYPD and Repetto. The killer stays steps ahead of everyone in part because the cops are depicted as having average intelligent and/or corrupt. The female profiler is an alcoholic who engages in a sexual relationship, unwittingly, with the sniper. Female cop Weaver lies and hides the truth to get a big promotion. Another cop Meg is drawn to one of the top candidates for the sniper. Amelia, Repetto’s daughter, stubbornly refuses to leave town when it becomes clear she’s the sniper’s next victim. Her stupidity nearly costs Meg her life. And through all of this Repetto does all the necessary leg work to track down the killer but others find the important clues and figure out the killer’s identity. Repetto is completely unnecessary to the story really. Bobby, the homeless and mentally impaired ex-cop, is the hero of the story and the one who leads the cops to killer’s tracks.
October 29, 2019
Omg! Absolutely fantastic. The last seven chapters had me holding my breath, rooting for Repetto, cursing all obstructionists as the net closed on the Night Sniper. I thought his death was too easy though after all the suffering and panic he caused and I was sorry it wasn't done in a fashion where he could see his death in a more dramatic fashion.
My first reading of John Lutz but anxious to read another...just in case Fear the Night was a fluke. Excellent read.
My first reading of John Lutz but anxious to read another...just in case Fear the Night was a fluke. Excellent read.
January 18, 2020
I wanted to go 4.5 stars, so I rounded up. Any fan of serial killers should read this book, and will love it. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. However, I never really quite “bonded” with Repetto, although I loved him and his family...I never really got the feeling he was as great as he was supposed to be. But again, for me, it really didn’t take away from the story. Quite the story, too. Highly recommend.
August 3, 2017
I really enjoyed this story and its characters, with all their short comings. I especially liked Bobby. To bad Lutz didn't develop this character further. Yet I have to say that I didn't like the way the book ended. I feel like Lutz just lost interest or his muse.
July 19, 2019
Good thriller but felt it was a little long-winded for me. I'll admit, some parts were pretty good though. Vin Repetto is the main character in here. He is a retired homicide detective who gets drawn into hunting down the killer known as The Night Sniper.
December 30, 2021
Always fun to read about a sniper serial killer! What? I don't know why I actually enjoy such nonsense, but it was fun to see a highly trained detective take on a highly skilled sniper in NYC.
Ah well, I will return to the historical fiction again.
Ah well, I will return to the historical fiction again.
October 9, 2022
This was a really well-written suspense thriller with a mastermind sniper terrorizing New York City and taunting the NYPD to catch him. Solid back story and character development and an overall great read. I'm happy to see this is part of a series so I'm going to check out some of the others.
November 20, 2023
It’s a page-turner of tale about a sniper terrorizing New York City. Good backstory about how he became evil. Interesting characters and a red herring about a possible suspect. So WHY did this story have an extremely abrupt ending? A five star book right until that last point. Barf..
May 27, 2018
A much better read. Characters were better developed and the mystery behind the killer was done well.
July 13, 2020
good good good
December 29, 2024
Enjoyed the mystery of this book tied to a child's rhyme. Was satisfying catch on the killer.
July 3, 2025
This was probably my favorite one in the series so far.
October 9, 2011
10/6/11 Oh, man, I have to set this aside. It is very slow going. Two days and I haven't gotten to page 100 yet. That's not typical of my reading. Nothing against the book otherwise just not moving very quickly through the story. I won't say boring but it's close.
10/9/11 I persevered and finished this book this morning. It was excellently written but could have been considerably shortened. Page count over 480 could have been 100 less and still told the story.
Vin Repetto, retired NYPD serial killer expert, is called into service when the city's newest serial killer taunts the police and demands Repetto be activated. Vin is the only person smart enough to give the killer a run for his money.
Vin puts together a team to find the "Night Sniper." The body count rises as the team tries to get ahead of the sniper in his game of words and death.
A secondary character, Bobby Mays, former Philly cop now a homeless man on the streets of New York, was a nice touch. The women of the story were interesting: Zoe, the profiler; Weaver, ambitious cop; Meg, cop and member of the team; Lora and Amelia, Repetto's wife and daughter. They were all well written even when the women themselves went off track.
10/9/11 I persevered and finished this book this morning. It was excellently written but could have been considerably shortened. Page count over 480 could have been 100 less and still told the story.
Vin Repetto, retired NYPD serial killer expert, is called into service when the city's newest serial killer taunts the police and demands Repetto be activated. Vin is the only person smart enough to give the killer a run for his money.
Vin puts together a team to find the "Night Sniper." The body count rises as the team tries to get ahead of the sniper in his game of words and death.
A secondary character, Bobby Mays, former Philly cop now a homeless man on the streets of New York, was a nice touch. The women of the story were interesting: Zoe, the profiler; Weaver, ambitious cop; Meg, cop and member of the team; Lora and Amelia, Repetto's wife and daughter. They were all well written even when the women themselves went off track.
February 25, 2013
This book was a disappointment to me, but don't let that stop you if you like this sort of writing. The story was decent but predictable. While I enjoyed listening to it on CD, many things about the writing gave me pause, interupting the flow of the story. It's extremely cliched in every way. Every female is beautiful and described physically in detail. Come on. LAPD? Full of gorgeous women?
This isn't a book for more sophisticated tastes. There are enough awkward adjectives for the reader to take notice. The author does too much telling and warning, leaving nothing to the imagination or not giving the reader credit for ability to deduce. Even a 5th grader could deduce things the author seemed compelled to point out. Some of the conversations simply aren't realistic.
There's more but enough said. The points are for the story only, not the way it's told. There's no mystery here.
This isn't a book for more sophisticated tastes. There are enough awkward adjectives for the reader to take notice. The author does too much telling and warning, leaving nothing to the imagination or not giving the reader credit for ability to deduce. Even a 5th grader could deduce things the author seemed compelled to point out. Some of the conversations simply aren't realistic.
There's more but enough said. The points are for the story only, not the way it's told. There's no mystery here.
July 21, 2008
I read this book because it was on a shelf at the lodge we stayed at during vacation, and I'd already read the book I brought with me.
Fear the Night was okay, but pretty formulaic. Also, the proofreader should be shot. There was one page in which the word "arugula" was misspelled 3 times, and in 3 different ways. Also, the lead character's daughter's last name was misspelled twice in one paragraph.
Fear the Night was okay, but pretty formulaic. Also, the proofreader should be shot. There was one page in which the word "arugula" was misspelled 3 times, and in 3 different ways. Also, the lead character's daughter's last name was misspelled twice in one paragraph.
April 15, 2010
Pretty good mystery about a serial sniper. Until I got to the part about the chief investigator's 21-year old daughter refusing to leave her apartment when she became a target of the sniper. Talk about tstl! The characters in the book kept calling her "brave" when in fact she was a spoiled selfish bratty princess who was too stupid to live. I wish the sniper had knocked her off.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 4, 2010
There's a pattern to Lutz's books. With a serial killer terrorizing New York City, a retired policeman is hired to set up a task force with two other policemen [or women]. They are always good books, but I do wish he used Frank Quinn for all his books rather than changing the retiree. I suggest you don't read two of his in a row because they blend together!
September 18, 2012
This one started out slow but got better as it progressed. I liked Repetto, though all of John Lutz's books seem to have the same characters and the same story lines, just different killers. I still like the Frank Quinn series the best.
June 27, 2012
This was a story with interesting characters and a quick pace. It was good, but it has pretty graphic (and a multitude of) death scenes, and I kept feeling like this was a sequel to a previous book or series, but I don't find any evidence of that.
November 21, 2013
Audiobook narrated by Scott Brick: a sniper stalks New York City; chilling and realistic. Compelling. Great ending. Lead detective was disappointing as a crime solver. Women play key rolls in the story. Great ending but no justice.
July 4, 2014
I have yet to be disappointed with a John Lutz novel. He's characters are always well developed and believable. While this serial killer was somewhat "tame" in comparison to previous stories, it was still a page-turner from start to finish.
September 1, 2007
Very good and fast-paced.
December 19, 2007
Not a bad read - not quite police procedural, not quite thriller. Not really a mystery. I'm not sure it falls into a category...was expecting one of the three I guess.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews