The 7th Victim

The 7th Victim by Alan Jacobson started off feeling a bit like an episode of Criminal Minds as the main character is an FBI profiler who works for the BAU. However, as the story continued I started to realize that this woman was in no way capable of being a member of such a prestigious group. Her credibility is basically nil as she rants and raves at the office while dealing with a lot of drama in her personal life. To say the drama was overdone would be to put it mildly. (There isn't an area of her life where she isn't faltering in some way and the obvious course of action to fix said problem never seems to occur to her.) Our main character, Karen Vail, has been trying to find the Dead Eyes Killer for several weeks with virtually no show more leads. The killer's signature is gruesome and the bodies keep piling up but she's too wrapped up in her own life to really spend a lot of time working the case efficiently. (And then it's further complicated by her relationship with the members of her task force.) I don't want to spoil the ending but it was so ridiculous that it really sealed the lid on the coffin for me. I didn't like the main character, I didn't like the plot, and the killer reveal was dumb. 0/10 do not recommend

Adding insult to injury, this is the first in a series. That's a no for me. show less

Book on CD read by Lila Wellesley

One thing I can’t stand in a thriller/mystery is a hero or heroine who behaves stupidly. The reader is supposed to believe that Karen Vail, FBI profiler, will: 1) marry a total scumbag despite her training in psychology; 2) talk to the cops when she knows she should keep her mouth shut and ask for an attorney; 3) stay on the task force despite the threat of domestic violence case against her; 4) continue working when her child lies comatose in an ICU (even going out of town a couple of times). Also, Jacobson did some shameless stealing from Thomas Harris’s [Silence of the Lambs] . And then there are the subplots that go nowhere. As for the narration – Wellesley mostly has just one voice; except for show more one “Southern black” character, everyone sounds the same, making it difficult to distinguish who is speaking when there is a two-(or even three-)way conversation.

Still, it’s fast-paced (a must for this genre); there is a somewhat plausible love interest; and Vail does work hard to get herself out of most the messes she puts herself in, vs relying on a nearby strong male. So I still give it 2 stars. show less

[b: The 7th Victim Karen Vail 1|4008488|The 7th Victim (Karen Vail, #1)|Alan Jacobson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388856695s/4008488.jpg|4054844] by [a: Alan Jacobson|171422|Alan Jacobson|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1316276000p2/171422.jpg] is a suspense filled novel. I have a "girl crush" on Protagonist Karen Vail.

I got hooked on Alan Jacobson when I read [b:The Lost Codex: An OPSIG Team Black Novel]. I received that book for free in exchange for an honest review. It is number three in a series. The mark of a fine writer is that each book in a series can stand alone, and "The Lost Codex..." does.

My only gripe is that I had not read any of the Karen Vail books before "The 7th Victim." If I had, by the time I got to "The Lost show more Codex..." I would have been better prepared with my fan club garb.

"The 7th Victim" introduces Karen Vail as a Profiler for the FBI. This novel, published in 2008 was of an era that did not appreciate the methods of criminal profiling. The lack of appreciation was double for women.

This story grabbed this reader, and slammed me against the passenger seat. This journey is full of twists, straightaways and sharp turns.

As a voracious reader, I appreciate not seeing what is coming.

When I saw this, I had other books on my plate to read and review. As I peeked open the cover of "...7th Victim," I was unable to stop the momentum. With six books in the series, this reader has much to look forward to.

Thank you [a: Alan Jacobson|171422|Alan Jacobson|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1316276000p2/171422.jpg] for feeding my addiction. show less

This was actually kinda cool. Relates to the way America is going these days with fascination in advertising, violence and politics being the underlying message. The "murder mystery" is well done, although horrifying in its own way. Easy read but interesting.

Karen Vail is a profiler with the FBI. Women are being murdered and their eyes stabbed, hence the “Dead Eyes Killer” nickname for the serial killer. When written from the killer’s POV, naturally it is creepy. Clues are dropped along the way that the killer may be in law enforcement, even an FBI agent. Although the killer’s identity is a total surprise it is also a tired, clichéd revelation. I found myself more interested in Karen’s private life. Her ex –husband is a total jerk. Her son is mentally abused by his father but there’s nothing Karen can do about it since her ex has visitation rights. Then the jerk presses charges against Karen because she takes a needed swing at him. When her son ends up in the hospital in a show more coma, this reader was more interested in the ex getting his just desserts than the killer. show less

FBI profiler Karen Vail hunts down a serial killer, while battling an abusive ex-husband and dealing with an elderly parent.

The story sounds good .... but .... I really disliked the heroine, who is pushy and arrogant, and just could not suspend disbelief over all the personal connections she has to a case that she is assigned to investigate. Publisher Weekly summarized this book best with "Though Jacobson's research into the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit is evident, he overloads his story with too much information and unbelievable coincidences."

***spoiler alert***
The unbelievable coincidences include: the profiler's birth mother being one of the serial killer victims, her birth father being the suspected killer, and her show more separated-at-birth twin sister being the ultimate killer (though the profile naming a male killer was correct, because the sister has multiple personalities).... show less

I chose to read this book as it was selected from my Kindle Shelf Post. While I had been told by others to read this book and series, I had never actually committed myself until now.

I enjoyed this book for the most part. While I enjoy mystery thrillers and have read several similar books in the past, this book just didn’t pull me quickly through it. I’m not sure why. It was a fairly slow and heavy read.

I enjoyed the main character Karen Vail. As a profiler and woman, she is up against a lot in her job. However, throughout this book she has more obstacles than one could ever think. At one point, I was against liking this book. There was so much that had happened to Karen that it was just not real to me. Yes, I know it’s fiction, show more but wow the overload. I kept going on, just barely turning page by page. I’m glad I did because it really did set up where the story was going. There is a lot that happens to her, and maybe not all of it needed, but I did enjoy the story.

There are a lot of typical things she has to deal with such as being the female in a male dominated career, especially the specialized job as profiler. While some of the men are supportive, she has many that are not. Quite a hurdle to overcome. However, she does it well and when she is with these men, she does not wallow in her problems. I did like that about the story.

Wayne Rudnick is not a main character. He only appears in one chapter. However, he made me laugh. What a great character portrayed as a head of his unit. Very knowledgeable, but definitely knows how to have fun. He provided my LOL moment of the book. show less