Reviewed by Lotte:
Firstly, this book needs a serious content warning. It’s not that I wouldn’t advise reading it, more just to be aware it contains some pretty graphic details and events that some people may find difficult.
A dead body, an arrested perpetrator, all things seem to add up. That is until another body turns up 8 years later with an identical MO yet the original attacker is still in prison. So is it a copycat? Or was the wrong person put away? Our convict is certainly saying he’s innocent and apparently now has proof. Will Trent – Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Agent for Grant County (GC) – has to work alongside medical examiner Sara and fellow officers both past and present to find the killer, but will he have to go back to those incidents 8 years ago and why does there seem to be a pattern emerging for a serial killer? Both timelines play out until the two come together in a shocking conclusion.
This book is the tenth in the Will Trent series but it works well as a standalone novel. It was truly compelling! I did initially struggle with the content, mainly because I had no warning of quite how graphic it would be so be prepared for detailed, brutal descriptions that leave nothing to the imagination. But despite that, each chapter ending left me wanting more and more, and as the two timelines began to play out, I became even more enthralled. Even as the facts came to light it seemed the questions just kept coming, pulling me further and further into the story. I definitely didn’t have to work to stay engaged!
Having both past and present timelines playing out simultaneously, flicking between them, was incredibly clever. It provided such a rich tapestry for Slaughter to fill with complicated, interwoven details that she brought together as we made our way through the plot. I really loved this continuing change in perspective!
Then there were the twists and turns, the unfolding of the investigation…wow…I really didn’t see them coming! Slaughter staged them well and shared them between characters so each one was tempered and experienced in a slightly different way, only adding to the depth and scope of her writing. The whole storyline was so intense, twisted, dark and at times utterly horrifying – but in that good way – everything you’d want from an epic crime/thriller novel.
I did find all the names and the two timelines a little difficult to get my head around to begin with but within a few chapters I got into a rhythm and really appreciated that fully fleshed approach. Slaughter has a well-built world with really well-developed characters, making the whole thing feel so complete. I’m sure this comes from having 9 previous novels in this series but she managed to write in such a way that I still felt like I really knew the characters well, like I was living it with them. I felt the heartbreak of Jeffery, the complexities of Sara’s past and the overall reactions of each character to the disturbing events. I found myself relating to different characters at different times, feeling their shock, fear, hope, devastation, and love. The way Slaughter weaves in this very human experience: it’s messiness; it’s brutality; it’s beauty; only added another layer to the story. It was so honest, so raw, so real.
It’s been such a good read that I’m pretty certain I’ll be reading the previous 9 books!
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for the opportunity to read this ARC post-publication date.
Author: Karin Slaughter
Publisher: Harper Collins UK
Release date: 23 June 2020
Lotte's Library 