Book Review: Blood Will Out by Jo Treggiari

Summary: Ari Sullivan is alive—for now.

She wakes at the bottom of a cistern, confused, injured and alone, with only the shadowy recollection of a low-pitched voice and a gloved hand. No one can hear her screams. And the person who put her there is coming back. The killer is planning a gruesome masterpiece, a fairytale tableau of innocence and blood, meticulously designed.

Until now, Ari was happy to spend her days pining for handsome, recent-arrival Stroud Bellows, fantasizing about their two-point-four-kids-future together. Safe in her small hometown of Dempsey Hollow. But now her community has turned very dangerous—and Ari may not be the only intended victim.






Release Date: June 2018
Age Group: YA, Thriller
Source: Review Copy from Publisher
Reviewed By:  Nat

Review:
Blood Will Out started off with a really nice creep factor... a really deep, dark hole where no one can hear your screams. 😱 Creepy right.

The main characters are relatable but I still felt they could have been fleshed out a bit more. Sometimes I thought Ari and her bestie were girlfriends but then they weren't, it was a bit confusing. And I really wanted to think of Stroud Bellows as a super hot swimmer but his name might as well have been Senor Butts.

Overall, I liked the plot and the way the story was laid out. The story is told in alternating POV's, one chapter you are in the killer's journal and in the next you are living a nightmare with Ari. It was clever and brought you into the making and design of a serial killer. The journal entries reminded me of Barry Lyga's Jasper Dent series (which will ALWAYS be the creepiest).

It took a few chapters to get invested in the story but once the pieces started to fall together, I found I was a bit disappointed.  I thought I had it all figured! BAM the killer was this person, duh. I only like to predict plots in my Hallmark flicks and if a thriller is "easy" then it really loses the "thrill" factor. But I was dead wrong! (💀 pun intended 💀)

The twist was really a surprise and didn't come until the last 10 pages! I am really glad I hung in there because my entire mindset on the killer was so wrong. The serial killer fit the description perfectly: someone everyone likes, someone that can go unnoticed, someone you would never suspect... really makes me wonder about Mr. Rogers!

Fans of YA, psychological thrillers and crime shows will enjoy Blood Will Out.  

PS. I caught the reference for the book title but it still seemed odd. 🙎🏼

PPS. I was adding my review to goodreads and WOW some of the reviews were pretty harsh! Bottom line, the writing style was good, the characters were typical of YA and the twist was worthy of RL Stine's approval. #BAM

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