You Are Next by Katia Lief

  He took everything . . . then came back for more.
Former Detective Karin Schaeffer has nothing left to live for after serial killer Martin Price destroys all she holds dear. Known as "The Domino Killer" because he leaves dominoes as a clue to his next victim, Price doesn't stop until an entire family is destroyed. Even when he's locked away in prison, the shadow he casts over Karin's life keeps her in constant darkness.
Then a policeman brings news to her door: Price has escaped. Karin knows where he's headed because of the message he left behind last time, scrawled in blood, on her bathroom mirror—
You are next.
But Karin Schaeffer refuses to run and hide. She feels no fear and has nothing left to lose. And so she waits. She won't stand by and let Price harm any more of her family. And she won't rest until she's put him back behind bars forever . . . or until one of them is dead.

Description from Goodreads

I'll be honest. When I read the blurb of this book, I got really excited, thinking it would be the first book ever reviewed on this blog that I'd be able to say I hated, but no such luck.
Granted, it's not the genre I usually read. Although I do have phases of reading detective fiction, this was much gorier than what I'm used to. Also, it differs from the stuff I usually read, int hat you already know who did it before you start. Karin's family have been murdered by the Domino Killer, and the book starts with the police informing her that he's escaped from jail and is coming for her. I did wonder where it could possibly go from there, but this book surprised me. It had great pace, believable characters and enough twists in the plot to keep me engrossed. Although it did eventually follow the usual arc of such stories, and actually the ending was very similar to a couple of Dennis Lehane novels I read a while ago (and I mean that in the most complimentary way - I really like Dennis Lehane) there was definately enough in it to keep my interested!
I was also very excited about this being my first ever review copy (won from Goodreads). It's so lovely and crisp and shiny...!

Rating: ****