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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is a tough one for me... there were many heavy topics conveyed in this book - sexism, racism, homophobia, xenophobia, transphobia. And the setting was 1970's Atlanta's "Cop" town, so I'm not entirely sure if the depiction was accurate, exaggerated, or underrepresented. All I know is that certain topics received closure and recognition (like sexism), but others did not. And I feel like if a majority of your plot is relaying stories of extreme pain, prejudice, and persecution then you need to follow through and provide an empathic side to those stories. Otherwise, it's using pain for sensationalism and I'm not okay with that.
So this only gets 3 stars for me. It was okay. But there was an air of sensationalism that didn't sit well.
So this only gets 3 stars for me. It was okay. But there was an air of sensationalism that didn't sit well.
Not as suspenseful as her other books. The story centers around two female cops in Atlanta during the male-dominated early 1970s. Maggie Lawson has been on the force a while, but she is still totally dominated by her family: her distant mother, adored brother, and abusive uncle. Her brother and uncle are also cops, but they in no way take Maggie seriously. One day new recruit Kate Murphy stumbles into the squad room. She's gorgeous, rich, well-educated -- in other words, it's a mystery why she wants to subject herself to the abuse that's heaped upon her both inside and outside the police station.
Kate and Maggie are thrown into the investigation when the Shooter, a cop killer, decides to target Maggie's brother, Jimmy. Jimmy is hurt, but his partner is killed. Soon, however, Jimmy disappears and it's up to the two female cops to find him before his enemies do. At the same time, Kate is also being stalked.
While I appreciated that there were no gruesomely inventive women-torturers this time around, the story was not as compelling as her books usually are. I felt there was a pretty strong message (things are changing, and the old way of doing things won't last much longer), but that didn't especially make me want to turn the pages!
Kate and Maggie are thrown into the investigation when the Shooter, a cop killer, decides to target Maggie's brother, Jimmy. Jimmy is hurt, but his partner is killed. Soon, however, Jimmy disappears and it's up to the two female cops to find him before his enemies do. At the same time, Kate is also being stalked.
While I appreciated that there were no gruesomely inventive women-torturers this time around, the story was not as compelling as her books usually are. I felt there was a pretty strong message (things are changing, and the old way of doing things won't last much longer), but that didn't especially make me want to turn the pages!
4.5/4.6 out of 5 stars
As this novel is based in 1970’s Atlanta at a time when women and African-Americans were breaking into the Atlanta police force, expect to hear language reflecting the sexism, misogyny, and racism that women and people of color faced in that universe. Language emphasizing homophobia also plays a role in this book (many characters were homophobic). The use of abusive language and behavior in Cop Town is not of a gratuitous nature, but rather used to reflect societal norms in that era. Although hard to take in, for Slaughter to have written these characters in any other way would have compromised the authenticity of those characters in that time period.
Cop Town had me sitting at the edge of my seat several times. And although I hoping the reveal at the end would have packed more of a punch with respect to the character, it was nonetheless crazy (crazy in a good way). If there are any plans for you to read this book in the future, do yourself a favor and listen to the audiobook version of this book. The narrator is fantastic as is the fast-paced, griping manner that Karin Slaughter writes this novel.
As this novel is based in 1970’s Atlanta at a time when women and African-Americans were breaking into the Atlanta police force, expect to hear language reflecting the sexism, misogyny, and racism that women and people of color faced in that universe. Language emphasizing homophobia also plays a role in this book (many characters were homophobic). The use of abusive language and behavior in Cop Town is not of a gratuitous nature, but rather used to reflect societal norms in that era. Although hard to take in, for Slaughter to have written these characters in any other way would have compromised the authenticity of those characters in that time period.
Cop Town had me sitting at the edge of my seat several times. And although I hoping the reveal at the end would have packed more of a punch with respect to the character, it was nonetheless crazy (crazy in a good way). If there are any plans for you to read this book in the future, do yourself a favor and listen to the audiobook version of this book. The narrator is fantastic as is the fast-paced, griping manner that Karin Slaughter writes this novel.
Another great book by Karin Slaughter. It's just sometimes a bit too gory for me. The book takes place in 1975 Atlanta and I can't believe so much racism and sexism existed during my lifetime. It's very interesting to read during this #metoo movement. The way women were treated in the working world in the 70's was crazy and really opened my eyes to the progress already made.
I usually like Karin Slaughter books, however this one felt a little clichéd. Riddled with some stereotypical, some unlikely
characters and events.
characters and events.
Wederom weer een ijzersterke thriller van Karin Slaughter!
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Recensie volgt ...
Love Slaughter's books! Awesome historical detail about Atlanta, plus badass female characters! A winner ....
Ms. Slaughter has done amazing research into what it was like for women to first join the Atlanta Police force in the 1970's. And then she wrote this fabulous book. Loved it.