YOU KNOW HER by Meagan Jennett is a literary suspense novel filled with darkness and rage. Sophie Braam is a bartender at the Blue Bell Bar in a small Virginia town.  She’s used to being harassed by drunk patrons and fellow employees, but on the night Mark Dixon asks for a ride home, Sophie’s had enough, and after a violent struggle in her car, Sophie’s life takes on a whole new meaning.

Mark never makes it home and his body is later found in a dumpster. He’s been strangled and parts of his body have been mutilated including his mouth, which is missing a tongue. Sophie’s first kill ignites in her a feeling of power and retribution. Soon she finds another victim and the body count continues to rise. 

Officer Nora Martin is new to the small town police force and is spending time in the investigation unit. Nora has demons of her own. She sees “haints” or ghosts of previous victims she has encountered on the job. Battered and beaten women, souls that won’t let her rest. Nora tries her hardest to ignore them, but they are always there. When Nora encounters Sophie at the Blue Bell during Mark Dixon’s death investigation, she likes the young bartender and imagines they can be friends. The two women bond over their feelings of mistreatment by men in their personal and workplace lives. Nora senses a darkness in Sophie, but she doesn’t see her as a suspect. As Nora continues in her search for a serial killer, Sophie continues her attacks until she sets her sights on someone close to Nora.

YOU KNOW HER is a vengeful sinister thriller with a female serial killer descending into the depths of depravity. Sophie is angry and seeks revenge on men, first discriminately, but later indiscriminately. The graphic and brutal killings give her pleasure and a sense of power that transcends her. The characters are complex and interesting, although Nora’s story surrounding seeing “haints” never fully develops. The writing is atmospheric and definitely brings a creepy vibe, but sometimes the prose is over-taxing and exhaustive and the plot tends to be repetitive in the middle. There are many good things about this novel, but I would have liked more action and less character introspection.  Overall, YOU KNOW HER is an interesting and worthwhile read that leaves an impression.