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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very, very, very rape-y. Just be prepared for a lot of very violent rape
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Every time we go back to Grant County I get nervous.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m sad to report that Karin Slaughter is back on her bullshit. And this after I’ve genuinely liked her last Will Trent book.
What I liked about this book: it was at least marginally more aware of social issues and a smidge less cop propaganda than her earlier books
What I didn’t like about this book: so much. The initial murder is not a part of the story in any way whatsoever, it is not solved, it is not discussed after the first 10%, not even mentioned in passing, it is not important. Why? And why make the initial murder so gruesome then if you are not going to focus on that? It just felt like violence for violence’s sake and shock value.
Then, I just absolutely hated Lena, positively despised her. Her character is so over the top, she seems like a caricature of what she is meant to be. I also did not care for Jeffrey at all, he was annoying, whiny, a bad cop and just generally a man who could not face the consequences of his actions and instead spent the entire time pitying himself for EVERYTHING. He died how many books ago? Five? Seven? Can Karin Slaughter just let him go already please? In this book she describes NUMEROUS instances in which he abuses his power as a police chief to abuse prisoners, get other police officers to abuse prisoners and to fake evidence. Tell me again how he is one of the good guys?
But as much as I disliked Jeffrey (and it really was a lot), I also think it is very understandable that re-working an old case she had previously worked with her husband would bring back a lot of (painful) memories to Sara, his widow, especially if she spends all day reading his case notes. For Will, a police officer WHO NEEDS HER TO DO THIS, to then be jealous of Sara thinking about her dead husband is weird, childish, immature and tiring to read. It was even weirder that everyone seemed to agree that Sara was in the wrong here when she was not. It’s not like she made Will listen to endless lists of how great her late husband was, she just quietly read his relevant case notes. That’s it. How is that a problem in a loving and stable relationship that is so committed that you are living together and talking about marriage? Jeffrey is not an ex Sara cheated with, he is her dead husband. And to then get all jealous and basically forbidding her from visiting Jeffrey's grave when her job leads her to a place that is across the road from the graveyard… Visiting your dead husband's grave when you are in the vicinity by coincidence is not “mental cheating” it is a normal part of grief and to imply anything else sounded borderline abusive and like gaslighting.
Finally, and I don’t know how much of this is the fault of the author, the audiobook narrator was simply atrocious when she did the different voices for the different characters. Way too exaggerated to be taken seriously.
What I liked about this book: it was at least marginally more aware of social issues and a smidge less cop propaganda than her earlier books
What I didn’t like about this book: so much. The initial murder is not a part of the story in any way whatsoever, it is not solved, it is not discussed after the first 10%, not even mentioned in passing, it is not important. Why? And why make the initial murder so gruesome then if you are not going to focus on that? It just felt like violence for violence’s sake and shock value.
Then, I just absolutely hated Lena, positively despised her. Her character is so over the top, she seems like a caricature of what she is meant to be. I also did not care for Jeffrey at all, he was annoying, whiny, a bad cop and just generally a man who could not face the consequences of his actions and instead spent the entire time pitying himself for EVERYTHING. He died how many books ago? Five? Seven? Can Karin Slaughter just let him go already please? In this book she describes NUMEROUS instances in which he abuses his power as a police chief to abuse prisoners, get other police officers to abuse prisoners and to fake evidence. Tell me again how he is one of the good guys?
But as much as I disliked Jeffrey (and it really was a lot), I also think it is very understandable that re-working an old case she had previously worked with her husband would bring back a lot of (painful) memories to Sara, his widow, especially if she spends all day reading his case notes. For Will, a police officer WHO NEEDS HER TO DO THIS, to then be jealous of Sara thinking about her dead husband is weird, childish, immature and tiring to read. It was even weirder that everyone seemed to agree that Sara was in the wrong here when she was not. It’s not like she made Will listen to endless lists of how great her late husband was, she just quietly read his relevant case notes. That’s it. How is that a problem in a loving and stable relationship that is so committed that you are living together and talking about marriage? Jeffrey is not an ex Sara cheated with, he is her dead husband. And to then get all jealous and basically forbidding her from visiting Jeffrey's grave when her job leads her to a place that is across the road from the graveyard… Visiting your dead husband's grave when you are in the vicinity by coincidence is not “mental cheating” it is a normal part of grief and to imply anything else sounded borderline abusive and like gaslighting.
Finally, and I don’t know how much of this is the fault of the author, the audiobook narrator was simply atrocious when she did the different voices for the different characters. Way too exaggerated to be taken seriously.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
Heinous and graphic crimes, disturbing the entire way through, but interesting storytelling! I was curious to see where it and how it ended. This being said, bit anti climactic as ending was predictable from a certain point in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Stalking, Murder
Captivating the whole way through. Consistency in the different timelines. A lot of gorey details of murders. Another Karin Slaughter great read. Still unsure of the title tying in though..