Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Publication
New York, NY : Pinnacle Books/Kensington Pub. Corp., 2007.
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. HTML: Frank Quinn, the relentless detective who made his debut in John Lutz's acclaimed thriller Darker Than Night, faces his toughest�and most personal�case yet... An Invitation Written In Blood... A madman is stalking women in the city. By the time his victims are found, they've been dismembered with careful precision, their limbs stacked into a gruesome pyramid and completely cleansed of every last drop of blood. To Catch a Killer�Or Die Next... Accustomed to working on the most grisly homicides, detective Frank Quinn's nerves don't rattle easily. But when the last names of the killer's victims spell out "Q-u-i-n-n," the veteran cop feels a chill run down his spine. Then a fresh victim is linked to the one woman Quinn can't stop desiring. Hunting down killers is what Quinn does best. But this time, Quinn is up against a psychopath that will test him as never before....… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member rrabbit
Interesting beginning, too much time spent slicing and dicing. I forced myself to finish the book when I was done by chapter 46. I usually like Lutz.
LibraryThing member BeckyJG
A serial killer with a very bad mommy. A grizzled cop brought out of retirement--along with his former team--to hunt him. A hot, hot summer in a very gritty New York. Who could ask for anything more?
In the New York of In For the Kill a serial killer, soon to be dubbed "The Butcher" because of his
They read the clues, always a tantalizing step or two behind the killer. They arrest the wrong man. And in a predictable--but still enjoyable--twist at the end, the bad guy almost gets somebody dear to one of the cops.
While the novel could have used some deft editing--there are a several instances where the exact same description of a character's quirk is given--still, the writing is workmanlike and gets the job done. A good beach read.
In the New York of In For the Kill a serial killer, soon to be dubbed "The Butcher" because of his
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practice of carefully dismembering and then fastidiously stacking the remains of his victims in their own bathtubs, is stalking the city. He's called out retired NYPD detective Frank Quinn, chosen him as his nemesis, and Quinn has answered the call. He's brought along--also out of retirement--the team who'd helped him nab serial killers in the past. They read the clues, always a tantalizing step or two behind the killer. They arrest the wrong man. And in a predictable--but still enjoyable--twist at the end, the bad guy almost gets somebody dear to one of the cops.
While the novel could have used some deft editing--there are a several instances where the exact same description of a character's quirk is given--still, the writing is workmanlike and gets the job done. A good beach read.
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LibraryThing member judithrs
In For the Kill. John Lutz. 2007. This is the second Frank Quinn novel I have read by Lutz. Quinn is a retired police detective who is asked to come back to work with his old team so they can catch a serial murderer who is terrorizing New York City. The novel moves between the killer’s childhood
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and adulthood and the search for him. There are several twists and turns in the plot that make it interesting. Quinn’s teenage daughter is drawn into the mix. This is a good series, not great but good Show Less
LibraryThing member jimmaclachlan
I may try this again, but this seems to be one of Lutz's slow, wordy stories & Brick's reading just isn't doing it for me. Actually, I find it really irritating right now.
LibraryThing member NewLiz
This book was surprisingly good. I purchased it from Amazon through Book Bub and that is always a hit or miss experience. The majority of the characters are rich and well developed. There are a couple of exceptions and unfortunately that's when things begin to sour.
A serial killer prowls the
My biggest problem with the characters is the way they show up far into the story and often behave illogically.
While the story is gritty and suspenseful it's predictability eventually left me hoping things would just get to the point.
The end is very unsatisfactory. Dangling story lines, actions unexplained, and a sense of the author rushing through the last improbable chapter left me feeling unfulfilled.
A serial killer prowls the
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streets of New York, taunting police with notes. In desperation and because the killer drives the police in that direction Frank Quinn, a retired police detective is called in to action. Along with Quinn his former partners are drafted as well. Pearl Kasner, who is also Quinn's ex lover, and Larry Fedderman (Feds) are called in to assist in the hunt for the Butcher. Along the way Quinn's daughter shows up complicating things even more.My biggest problem with the characters is the way they show up far into the story and often behave illogically.
While the story is gritty and suspenseful it's predictability eventually left me hoping things would just get to the point.
The end is very unsatisfactory. Dangling story lines, actions unexplained, and a sense of the author rushing through the last improbable chapter left me feeling unfulfilled.
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LibraryThing member roguehomebody
The amount of filler in this novel was disappointing. Lutz is an adept enough writer, but he chooses to toss in endless points-of-view (most of them ultimately pointless, since it's obvious when a woman is going to get killed off) and a ho-hum backstory about the serial killer.
The good guys, the
The serial killer is just another serial killer. His murders are shockingly gruesome, which does raise the stakes, but there isn't much to distinguish him from a host of other fictional killers. His flashback sections drag on and on, for reasons I can't ascertain. His grievances with his mother could've been explained in a few chapters of him reminiscing instead of transporting us back in time for pages and pages.
Again, I question why Lutz used so many female victim POVs, and why he has Team Quinn trot off to basically identical crime scenes over and over. I don't need to read Nift, the medical examiner, explaining how this crime scene is the same as the last one – just like he explained how the last one was the same as the one before that.
The police work (if you want to call it that) isn't exactly top-tier. Team Quinn interviews people, then waits until they're called to the next murder scene. The climax only happens because the cops forget fairly obvious points regarding building construction, and because one of the cops doesn't think it's necessary to inform Quinn that his own daughter is in the same hotel as the “Mom bait” operation. I realize this is fiction, but please, don't run completely off the rails.
This novel is able to keep a three-star rating mainly because Lutz is a technically sound writer. Most of the descriptions are outstanding, and most of the observations and social commentary are spot-on. I just wish the story was better structured, and that the “WTF” moments were culled.
The good guys, the
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folks we should root for, are...drab. Quinn is your typical grizzled cop. Pearl is the quick-tempered, buxom love interest. Feds is the rumpled cop. Renz is the PR-conscious boss. None of them did much of interest. Pearl has the most interesting story – or I should say the most titillating. Her actions are unprofessional and mystifying, and the fact that she gets off with a slap on the wrist boggles the mind.The serial killer is just another serial killer. His murders are shockingly gruesome, which does raise the stakes, but there isn't much to distinguish him from a host of other fictional killers. His flashback sections drag on and on, for reasons I can't ascertain. His grievances with his mother could've been explained in a few chapters of him reminiscing instead of transporting us back in time for pages and pages.
Again, I question why Lutz used so many female victim POVs, and why he has Team Quinn trot off to basically identical crime scenes over and over. I don't need to read Nift, the medical examiner, explaining how this crime scene is the same as the last one – just like he explained how the last one was the same as the one before that.
The police work (if you want to call it that) isn't exactly top-tier. Team Quinn interviews people, then waits until they're called to the next murder scene. The climax only happens because the cops forget fairly obvious points regarding building construction, and because one of the cops doesn't think it's necessary to inform Quinn that his own daughter is in the same hotel as the “Mom bait” operation. I realize this is fiction, but please, don't run completely off the rails.
This novel is able to keep a three-star rating mainly because Lutz is a technically sound writer. Most of the descriptions are outstanding, and most of the observations and social commentary are spot-on. I just wish the story was better structured, and that the “WTF” moments were culled.
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LibraryThing member susandennis
Frank Quinn picks up a new case in his New York City stomping grounds. This time a serial killer who meticulously cuts his victims up in pieces. He is joined by two other retired cops as they pull special duty to find The Butcher.
This was a pretty good story fairly well told. It had a few too many
This was a pretty good story fairly well told. It had a few too many
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cliches for my taste but I will admit that by the time I got about 3/4ths the way through there was no way I could abandon it. Show Less
LibraryThing member RobertaLea
2nd book was a bit like the first. serial killer. cop. no mystery.
Subjects
Language
Physical description
456 p.; 18 inches
ISBN
0786018437 / 9780786018437