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  • The Night Stalker

  • The Life and Crimes of Richard Ramirez
  • By: Philip Carlo
  • Narrated by: Tom Zingarelli
  • Length: 18 hrs and 29 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (1,957 ratings)

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The Night Stalker

By: Philip Carlo
Narrated by: Tom Zingarelli
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Publisher's summary

Decades after Richard Ramirez left 13 dead and paralyzed the city of Los Angeles, his name is still synonymous with fear, torture, and sadistic murder. Philip Carlo's classic The Night Stalker, based on years of meticulous research and extensive interviews with Ramirez, revealed the killer and his horrifying crimes to be even more chilling than anyone could have imagined. From watching his cousin commit murder at age 11 to his 19 death sentences to the juror who fell in love with him, the story of Ramirez is a bizarre and spellbinding descent into the very heart of human evil.

Incredibly, after The Night Stalker was first published, thousands of women from all over the world contacted Carlo, begging to be put in touch with the killer. Carlo interviewed them and here presents their disturbing stories and the dark sexual desires that would drive them towards a brutal murderer. And in an exclusive death row interview, the killer himself gives his thoughts on the "Ramirez Groupies" - and what he thinks they really want.

©1996 Philip Carlo (P)2016 Tantor

Critic reviews

"This book will provide true crime readers a chilling inside perspective of a serial killer." (Library Journal)

What listeners say about The Night Stalker

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,203
  • 4 Stars
    514
  • 3 Stars
    183
  • 2 Stars
    40
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Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
    411
  • 3 Stars
    138
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    38
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    11
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,121
  • 4 Stars
    414
  • 3 Stars
    162
  • 2 Stars
    34
  • 1 Stars
    19

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Be prepared; this is not an easy book to listen to

What did you love best about The Night Stalker?

The author is very methodical and carefully takes you through each case. He studies the crime itself and then reports on the courtroom testimony. It may seem a little monotonous but he is providing precise details of each crime.

Any additional comments?

The book is graphic, probably more so near the end but still very raw. This will leave you wondering about issues of good vs. evil and will probably cause you to lock your doors and windows and support the 2nd Amendment.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

very detailed and I like the interview at the end

very good book very detailed gruesome details about the murders. I especially like the interview at the end with Richard Ramirez himself

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Must read!

So much I didn't know about his story. What surprised me the most was the closeness to his family. I for some reason always thought he was alone. Must read if you like stories about serial killers.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Perfect and fascinating!

It goes into great detail about everything except the gruesome parts of his crimes. It is well researched and thorough. Performance was great. No complaints. I have recommended it to everyone I know.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating story. Inappropriate narration.

Fascinating story. I especially like that the author gave equal, if not more, focus to the trial process as he did to the actual murder spree
Would have been much better had the narrator not performed unnecessary and inappropriate voiceovers for the victims, namely an Asian woman he impersonates with a pretty racist accent.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Horrifying

Great work by Carlo. I could not stop listening. Carlo's writing style is not for individuals who get offended easily.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great book

Such a great book , I love how I learned every aspect of the night stalker case

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Well…

That was… enlightening. I wasn’t bored, for sure, and I learned quite a lot more than I expected to.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The narrator shouldn't "do" the voices

Would you consider the audio edition of The Night Stalker to be better than the print version?

I never read the print version

What did you like best about this story?

The story was fascinating. I left LA shortly before all this took place, so I never experienced all the horror and shock Angelenos felt.

What aspect of Tom Zingarelli’s performance would you have changed?

Please, please don't do the voices. It's offensive when you try and do a Spanish accent (or your idea of a Spanish accent), or when you make your voice higher for a woman's voice, especially since you didn't give each male character a different voice to distinguish one from the other. I understand this is a performance, but it's not a stage play. You have a pleasant voice, so a straight reading would have been great.

Any additional comments?

Great story. I knew the bullet points of extreme violence, a neighborhood of concerned citizens catching Ramirez, and the fan clubs, but the specifics were shocking.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Hard Listen At Times But Worth It

There are very graphic descriptions of Ramirez's attacks that can be difficult to listen to at times but the overall story is compelling enough sit through them. The narrator does a creditable job.

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2 people found this helpful