3.5 stars. This was fast-paced with lots of action. It was a little predictable though.

I have had a harder and harder time getting into Karen Vail stories of late. I loved the story and characters at the beginning, now not as much. May be my state of mind, and will try again later.

Karen Vail is an experienced FBI profiler, but when she helps investigate an especially difficult case, she turns to a retired profiler for help; the profiler, however, isn’t very cooperative, and Vail is perplexed as to why. Jasmine Marcks is the daughter of a notorious serial killer, Roscoe Lee Marcks, and was instrumental in getting her father sent to prison for life without parole. Jasmine then writes a tell-all book on how it was growing up with a father who was a serial killer. While she is on tour promoting her book, her father escapes from prison and immediately begins another violent killing spree. Vail and her team are charged with capturing Marcks, and want to protect Jasmine, since her father is after her and plans to kill her.

The Darkness of Evil is the seventh installment in the Karen Vail series, and the story will grab readers from the outset. Jacobsen is an excellent storyteller, and has a talent for steering readers away from what is actually happening so that there are unexpected scenarios throughout. He builds suspense from the very beginning, and that suspense doesn’t quit until the end. His characters are well-developed, and believable. Vail has attributes that make her tough, yet human, and that aspect is what makes readers devoted to the series.

Although The Darkness of Evil can easily be read as a standalone novel, and is definitely enjoyable, fans will agree that reading the series from the first installment will help them understand more about the hero of the story. This book is one that will keep readers on the edge of their seats, and is highly recommended.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

Jasmine turned her father in when she found out he was a serial killer. Now her father - Roscoe Lee Marck had escaped from prison and is on the run leaving dead bodies behind him. FBI profiler Karen Vail has been assigned to the team to recapture Roscoe. Jasmine had to cancel her book tour for the non fiction book she had wrote detailing her life with Roscoe the serial killer and almost immediately receives threats. Her testimony had helped put Roscoe in prison with a life sentence and no chance of getting parole. Roscoe is a dangerous killer and a brilliant psychopath who seems to know a lot about law enforcement. Karen had given Jasmine protection before but it failed so this time no one know where Jasmine is and she uses burner phones. Jasmine gives Karen a blank piece of paper that Roscoe had mailed from prison. Karen finds out that the paper has a menacing message for Jasmine. Roscoe has been in maximum security for the last seven years Roscoe is a sadistic serial killer. Karen tried tried to keep in contact with Roscoe while he was in prison.
I thought this was an excellent read. I won’t say I love it as I don’t love the violence but that’s the way this had to be written. In fact it seemed very realistic to me. This had a great plot. This story grabbed me from the start and kept me there until the very last page of this book. I really didn’t want to put it down unless I absolutely had to. I enjoyed seeing the soft side as well as the tough side of Karen who was the profiler. There was a lot of violence but this was about a serial killer. I enjoyed how there was focus on the profiling and getting into the mind of a killer. Every now and again this dragged a little but not enough harm to say so.There were several twists and turns and I love the characters and I highly recommend.

Jacobson and Vail are always good, and though this one was a great story with twists and turns, it was way too long with unnecessary descriptions. We all know there are left and right turns whenever you need to drive anywhere (for example).
I don't read fast and halfway through I found I could skip quite a bit in most of Vail's descriptive text. - but read every word of the villain's doings.

The Darkness of Evil is the 7th book in the Karen Vail series but it is my first read from this author. FBI profiler, Karen Vail, is on the hunt for a serial killer who escaped from prison. Roscoe Lee Marks is a dangerous and brilliant psychopath who seems to know a lot about law enforcement. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters in this story. It was well-written and you can tell Alan Jacobson did a lot of research before writing this book. I will definitely be reading the other books in this series. If you are looking for a fast-paced crime thriller, I highly recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Open Road Integrated Media for supplying a copy of Alan Jacobson's "The Darkness of Evil" in exchange for a honest review.

An engrossing read. Action and suspense aplenty. I did figure out the twist before it was revealed but it was still enjoyable. Recommended

Review of THE DARKNESS OF EVIL by Alan Jacobson
(Karen Vail #7)

THE DARKNESS OF EVIL is the seventh in the series of FBI Special Agent (Behavioral Analysis Unit) Karen Vail. In this engrossing thriller, Vail is “hand-holding” (in the view of her unit commander) Jasmine Marcks, the woman who as an adolescent repeatedly informed local police that her father Roscoe was a serial killer. Finally investigated, charged, and convicted, Roscoe Marcks has been incarcerated in maximum security for the past seven years. Now Jasmine's nonfiction book detailing her life with a murderous father has been published, and simultaneously she receives threats, while Roscoe engineers a prison escape. Vail is in the midst of the new investigation, despite an arrogant U.S. Marshal who holds no approbation for the FBI.

There's plenty of violence, of course, since Marcks is a sadistic killer, but it's not gore for its own sake. THE DARKNESS OF EVIL is a well-constructed, tautly-written page-turner.

THE DARKNESS OF EVIL (Karen Vail, #7) by Alan Jacobson

Jasmine Markes has to cancel her book tour that she wrote about her father Roscoe Lee Marks who is a serial killer. Her testimony about some bloody duct tape and other items helped to put her father in prison with a life sentence and no chance of parole. Now Jasmine is terrified that her father wants to kill her. Roscoe Lee Marks is a dangerous and brilliant psychopath who seems to know a lot about law enforcement. Karen Vail gave Jasmine protection and it failed, so Jasmine will take her chances hiding and replacing phones and keeping her whereabouts secret.

Karen Vail is a tough and seasoned FBI profiler that inherited Roscoe Lee Marks when the famous profiler before her retired and is now writing books. Karen Vail is a worthy adversary of Roscoe Lee Marks and is doing her best to check in with Jasmine and make sure she stays safe. Vail goes to visit Marks in prison to evaluate how much of a threat he is to Jasmine and question him. When he refuses to cooperate Karen Vail thinks that she should let Jasmine know that she went to see her father. While meeting with Jasmine at a place and time of her choosing, Jasmine gives Karen a blank sheet of paper that her father mailed from prison.

Karen Vail has a colleague at the FBI forensically analyze the blank sheet of paper and it is brought to Karen's attention that the blank sheet of paper has a menacing message for Jasmine they meet again. Between the paper and Karen's interview she desperately tries to convince Jasmine to let the United States Marshall service put Jasmine in witness protection. Jasmine tells Karen that she is not a witness and reminds her that the previous attempt to have someone stay with Jasmine did not work.

This is not giving anything away about the several twists and turns that take place throughout the entire book. Everything above takes place in the beginning of the book. I don't particularly like books about serial killers or gratuitous violence. What I love about this book is the tremendous amount of research that gives this book its authenticity. The Author consulted with many different people who have specialized in different departments of law enforcement to bring this book its accuracy. I have only read this one book by Allan Jacobson. I have respect for an Author that goes to the sources and people who have worked in vast amounts of law enforcement positions. Not only does this author consult and interview these experienced individuals that he writes about, these professionals also read the manuscript for accuracy. I will definitely read the entire Karen Vail series. I look forward to the six that precede this book and anything this author writes.

I didn't know this book was a series and since I was lost reading this I will have to start reading the series first. Thanks

Where have I been? Obviously, living under a rock. This is the first time I am discovering this author and this series. I am a fan of the dark murder mysteries. As I stated, I am knew to this series. However, I am already a fan of Karen Vail. She is one tough cookie.

There was no surprise as to who Karen was chasing after Roscoe Lee Marcks. Yet, I found Marcks to be a good adversary to Karen. There was a good balance of dialect and storyline to keep the story moving along at a good, steady pace. I kind of did not connect all of the dots. So you could say I was surprised by the twist. A good ending to a good story.

Fiction - Crime

Score: 8/10


Karen avail would have to be one of the coolest profilers going around and Alan Jacobson would have to be one of the best authors of books about profilers. He really knows how to give you the heebejeebees! Another great instalment of the Karen Vail series, I can't wait to see what she gets up to next time!

Alan Jacobson consistently fantastic with every book he writes!

'The Darkness of Evil' puts us right in the midst of tracking a vicious serial killer. We're with the FBI team, working through each detail, learning the killer's unique profile, and trying to anticipate his next move.

I liked Karen Vail's character. She's tough and smart, but also a normal woman with fears and flaws. She pushes herself hard. We feel her dedication to her job, her coworkers, and the people she is sworn to protect.

The author clearly knows his subject matter. This is not the kind of story that grips you with intensity, while you simultaneously know it would never happen. This story could play out just as it's written, and that realism might be the most terrifying aspect.

For me, this book's major strength is tied up in its one weakness. The author is a detail man, which I greatly appreciate. The plot has no holes, no loose threads, no moments that require a leap of faith for the readers. I also enjoyed the focus on profiling and getting inside the mind of a killer. At the same time, the immense amount of detail included sometimes slows the story a little too much. I also thought some of the conversations were unrealistic, with the dialogue obviously meant to educate readers in the art of profiling.

While violence is always an undercurrent in this story - clearly, we're talking about serial killers - that violence is never gratuitous or overly graphic. This is an intricate, well plotted crime novel that will grip you with the very real psychopathy of the killer.

*I have not read the previous books in the Karen Vail series, and I had absolutely no problem understanding the characters or their relationships. This book works exceptionally well as a stand-alone.*

Not bad, but not phenomenal either. I'm neither pleased or unhappy I read it