From Publishers Weekly
The pseudonymous Sandford (he's Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Camp) keeps turning out better and better thrillers. In this sixth entry in his Prey series, streetwise Minneapolis deputy police chief Lucas Davenport is beleaguered by perplexing females. Charged with saving the political life of Rose Marie Roux, the ambitious police chief who has her eye on a Senate seat, he's given the assignment of tracking to ground the sex-crazed perpetrator of a series of murders of young women. Davenport's unwelcome colleague in this case is feminist Meagan Connell, an abrasive State Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigator who's obsessed with catching the killer before she dies of cancer. Also bedeviled by the ill-timed assignment of a new partner, a yuppie who was formerly assigned to the grade schools as "Officer Friendly" and who happens to be the husband of the mayor's niece, Davenport is additionally saddled with the mystifying death of an elderly woman who died rather conveniently, freeing some local hoods to profit from a real-estate scam. Juxtaposing the dark consciousness of the sex-fixated murderer against the narrative perspective of Davenport, Sandford builds a compelling counter-rhythm of suspense. The narrative is sensitively embued with Davenport's humaneness as, in awe, he watches Connell courageously fight to postpone her impending death. Yet, credibly flawed, the cop also displays a roving eye when he's momentarily distracted from his deep commitment to the lovely physician Weather Karkinnen by a beautiful and seductive TV anchor. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club main selection; Mystery Guild alternate. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
This novel is sixth in the "Prey" series, written by journalist John Camp under the Sandford pseudonym and featuring Porsche-driving Minneapolis police detective Lucas Davenport. Here Davenport, who has just returned to duty after recovering from a serious gunshot wound, must face a serial killer named Koop, who is dropping bodies all over the metropolitan area. Koop makes the mistake of becoming a little too obsessed with a potential victim and thus leaves a trail that Davenport and his fellow officers finally discover. Despite its length, Night Prey is a tight, fast-moving thriller with appealing good guys and a suitably evil villain. Especially fascinating among the characters is Policewoman Connell, who is dying of cancer and whose fate becomes linked to Koop's in the spectacular climax. Buy wherever thrillers are read.--A.J. Wright, Univ. of Alabama, BirminghamCopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.


New York Times Book Review
"Sandford knows all about detonating the gut-level shocks of a good thriller."


From Booklist
Sandford's sixth "Prey" novel follows the same formula as the first five: sharp-tongued Minneapolis deputy police chief Lucas Davenport is on the trail of a serial killer--this time a particularly nasty specimen with a yen for disemboweling his victims. Meagan Connell, an investigator from a state agency, plays the de rigueur role of Davenport's feisty, determined female assistant. Davenport is also peripherally involved in a case that appears to involve the Seeds, a loosely organized group of white supremacists. The third-person narration takes the reader along with the serial killer as he makes his rounds, choosing and stalking his victims. Alternately, the narrative follows the victims and the investigators. There is no mystery here; the killer's identity is clear from page one. The suspense lies in the investigation. Will Davenport and Connell catch the killer before he gets that one, last, innocent victim? Yes, the plotting seems lifted from dozens of interchangeable slasher flicks, but the dialogue crackles and individual scenes can be almost unbearably suspenseful. This may be the first good suntan book of 1994. A little sunblock, a tall cool one, and a serial killer--ah, summertime. Wes Lukowsky


From Kirkus Reviews
Sandford's sixth entry in his bestselling series (Winter Prey, 1993, etc.) is another fast-paced and convincing thriller starring detective Lucas Davenport. State Investigator Meagan Connell believes that Minneapolis has a serial killer on its hands, a killer who has stepped up the frequency of his attacks. Connell is dying of cancer and is determined to catch the killer in the few weeks she has left, but Minneapolis police are skeptical. A new police chief with her eye on the Senate passes both the case and Connell on to Deputy Chief Lucas Davenport. Recently returned to the force after a two-year hiatus, Davenport agrees to work with the abrasive state investigator. A body is found in a dumpster, and then another in a park, and then there are some seemingly unrelated attacks. Cat burglar Robert Koop, a bodybuilder and former prison guard, has indeed stepped up his gruesome and deadly attacks on women. He has become obsessed with burglary victim Sara Jensen. She is unaware that Koop is watching her from the roof of the building across the street and spending time in her bed when she's not at home until she spends the night with a man. Koop, who had been leaving her initials on his victims, becomes both sloppy and even more deadly. Solid police work and good luck lead Davenport to Koop, but he needs Jensen to act as a decoy. Will Davenport be able to catch the monster before he kills again? And can they catch him before Connell's cancer kills her? A hair-raising and shocking ending provides the answers, and Davenport will be able to concentrate again on his beautiful live-in love, but there's that TV reporter who keeps inviting him for coffee... Strong on atmosphere and suspense, with a vivid cast of major and minor characters, this is a potent and compelling addition to the series. (Literary Guild main selection; Author tour) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Publishers Weekly
"A compelling counter-rhythm of suspense."


Book Description
A master thief becomes obsessed with a beautiful woman--then carves her initials into his victims.


Download Description
"Lucas Davenport tracks a murderous master thief. "

ANNOTATION

From the author of Winter Prey comes a "potent and compelling addition to the (Lucas Davenport) series" (Kirkus Reviews). Deputy Police Chief Lucas Davenport returns to face his most brilliantly elusive opponent yet--a master thief-turned-murderer who carves into his victims the initials of a beautiful woman with whom he has become obsessed. LG, Doubleday, and Mystery Guild Selections.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

It was a very cold, very clear morning in the Carlos Avery game reserve - cold enough to preserve the body lying there, clear enough so the state investigator couldn't miss it. There was something familiar about the stab wounds, she thought - but the Minneapolis police dismissed her theories, and the city's new police chief has problems enough of her own. The cops are wary of her, the public thinks she's too political, the feminists think she's sold out. And this damn murder just won't go away. Caught in the middle, the chief turns to Lucas Davenport for help, and reluctantly, he agrees. Still recovering from his near-fatal wounds of the year before, trying for once in his life to settle down with one woman, Lucas has his own concerns, but something about this murder, and another like it - the body found in a dumpster this time - teases him, and the more he looks into them, the more he's sure the investigator is right. There is something disconcertingly familiar about the wounds not only in these two cases, but just maybe in several others as well. Somewhere out there lurks a killer of unusual skill and savagery. And if Lucas is right, he's just getting warmed up....

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

The pseudonymous Sandford (he's Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Camp) keeps turning out better and better thrillers. In this sixth entry in his Prey series, streetwise Minneapolis deputy police chief Lucas Davenport is beleaguered by perplexing females. Charged with saving the political life of Rose Marie Roux, the ambitious police chief who has her eye on a Senate seat, he's given the assignment of tracking to ground the sex-crazed perpetrator of a series of murders of young women. Davenport's unwelcome colleague in this case is feminist Meagan Connell, an abrasive State Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigator who's obsessed with catching the killer before she dies of cancer. Also bedeviled by the ill-timed assignment of a new partner, a yuppie who was formerly assigned to the grade schools as ``Officer Friendly'' and who happens to be the husband of the mayor's niece, Davenport is additionally saddled with the mystifying death of an elderly woman who died rather conveniently, freeing some local hoods to profit from a real-estate scam. Juxtaposing the dark consciousness of the sex-fixated murderer against the narrative perspective of Davenport, Sandford builds a compelling counter-rhythm of suspense. The narrative is sensitively embued with Davenport's humaneness as, in awe, he watches Connell courageously fight to postpone her impending death. Yet, credibly flawed, the cop also displays a roving eye when he's momentarily distracted from his deep commitment to the lovely physician Weather Karkinnen by a beautiful and seductive TV anchor. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club main selection; Mystery Guild alternate. (May)

Library Journal

This novel is sixth in the ``Prey'' series, written by journalist John Camp under the Sandford pseudonym and featuring Porsche-driving Minneapolis police detective Lucas Davenport. Here Davenport, who has just returned to duty after recovering from a serious gunshot wound, must face a serial killer named Koop, who is dropping bodies all over the metropolitan area. Koop makes the mistake of becoming a little too obsessed with a potential victim and thus leaves a trail that Davenport and his fellow officers finally discover. Despite its length, Night Prey is a tight, fast-moving thriller with appealing good guys and a suitably evil villain. Especially fascinating among the characters is Policewoman Connell, who is dying of cancer and whose fate becomes linked to Koop's in the spectacular climax. Buy wherever thrillers are read. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 2/15/94.]-A.J. Wright, Univ. of Alabama, Birmingham

BookList - Wes Lukowsky

Sandford's sixth "Prey" novel follows the same formula as the first five: sharp-tongued Minneapolis deputy police chief Lucas Davenport is on the trail of a serial killer--this time a particularly nasty specimen with a yen for disemboweling his victims. Meagan Connell, an investigator from a state agency, plays the de rigueur role of Davenport's feisty, determined female assistant. Davenport is also peripherally involved in a case that appears to involve the Seeds, a loosely organized group of white supremacists. The third-person narration takes the reader along with the serial killer as he makes his rounds, choosing and stalking his victims. Alternately, the narrative follows the victims and the investigators. There is no mystery here; the killer's identity is clear from page one. The suspense lies in the investigation. Will Davenport and Connell catch the killer before he gets that one, last, innocent victim? Yes, the plotting seems lifted from dozens of interchangeable slasher flicks, but the dialogue crackles and individual scenes can be almost unbearably suspenseful. This may be the first good suntan book of 1994. A little sunblock, a tall cool one, and a serial killer--ah, summertime.

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