Reviews

The Kept Woman by Karin Slaughter

mostlyliterate's review against another edition

5.0

hoping that the rest of this series doesn’t constantly repeat the will and sara break up and get together of the last few books

selenityelizabeth's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.0

wannasbooks's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

2.5

alejaeger's review

5.0

aaaaaaaaaaa

bookish_withsky's review

4.0

I have a really good time with this series. No one can claim the characters are not well done - they interact and think similarly to actual people. Almost every move made makes sense in a humanistic way. That being said, it can sometimes be grating as well. I had to put this down the first time I read it because I got irritated with the repetition of the Will/Sara/Angie story line. Even though their actions and reactions make complete sense in the real world (though there is definitely a lot of mental illness there as well), it can get annoying if reading them back to back. Since I had some space from it, I could appreciate it more this go around. There was also this part in the book that we get Angie's perspective. I didn't hate it and it does help to see her in a slightly different light. I still don't like her per se but her actions kind of make more sense. Seeing it from her perspective also helps shed more light on what exactly is going on, but it wasn't really a perspective I cared about. I found myself slightly skimming through that part so that I could get back to Will. It was still phenomenally written and an enticing read. I am really excited and interested to read the next book in this series.

qkat's review

3.0

This was the first Karin Slaughter book I have read and I was excited about it. Unfortunately, this story didn’t do it for me. I like a good mystery/police serial, but to capture me, there has to be a strong protagonist. Will Trent was not that. To me, he was the typical Beta male who was pining over his abusive and manipulative soon-to-be ex-wife...who also happens to be a criminal. I was waiting for him to “grow a pair”, which didn’t happen until about 400 pages in. Definitely disappointing. I might try one of Slaughter’s other books in the future, just not one involving Will Trent.

veganheathen's review

4.0

This is the first of the Will Trent books that I've read. I'm not sure if I would like it more or less if I knew the backstory since the case in this book revolves around Will. Still, it was great and everything you expect from Karin Slaughter.

hemagas's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

xxselenaj's review

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense 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

5.0

I’ve been Slaughtered yet again. I love the Will Trent series. This was such a great way to connect back to Angie as well. I wanted to know more of her story and we got it. At the centre of the investigation, it comes to revolve around Angie Polaski. Readers get to see how Will must confront Angie's complicated and dangerous history and how it becomes intertwined with his own personal relationships and identity. As painful as it was for Will to go through, it was very interested to see the depth of Angie’s spite and how deep her trauma goes. We see how her choices have shaped her into the person she became. I loved how Slaughter built the depth of her character so we understand more of how Angie does what she does and why she circles back to Will. It really opens our eyes as reader to the difference from Triptych’s Angie and now.

From “Bookey’s article The Kept Woman“ : Slaughter's vivid storytelling masterfully weaves together multiple storylines, utilizing her signature blend of fast-paced action, nail-biting suspense, and heart-wrenching drama to keep readers on the edge of their seats. I really loved how we circled back to the prologue with the added context of what we know now. It was a great way to tie in the past and present. 

I’m glad that Will got to end that chapter of his life while making an active choice and hopefully will continue to better his relationship with Sara. My heart quivered when Amanda said 

"I picked you. Faith picked you. Sara picked you. Let that be enough. Let yourself accept that you're worth it. 

I think this was such a pivotal moment for Will and for us as readers, an insight into Amanda’s relationship with Will. Faith jokingly said that (which I cried laughing at) but at the end of the day, Amanda had continually shown up for Will. Like when she  talked about VISITATION DAY

AND HOW SHE WOULD COME Amanda didn't respond. She was looking at his bare chest. The round, perfect Os that the cigarettes had seared into his flesh. The black tattooing left by the electrical burns. The Frankenstein stitches around the skin graft from when a wound refused to close. Before Sara, he would've scrambled to cover him-self. Now, he was just intensely uncomfortable. Amanda unzipped her jacket. "I used to come watch you on visitation days."
Visitation days. She meant at the Children's Home. Will had always looked forward to the visits until he started dreading them. All the kids were bathed and trotted out for prospective parents. And then the kids like Will were trotted back in.
"I couldn't adopt you. I was a single woman. A career gal. Obviously, I was unfit to take care of anything more than a pet rock." She wrapped her jacket around his shoulders. Her hands stayed there. She looked at him in the mirror. "I stopped visiting because I couldn't stand the longing. Not my own, which was hard enough, but your longing broke my heart. You wanted so badly for someone to pick you."

 

LIKE MAAM RIP MY HEART OUT INSTEAD

She was his fairy godmonster — and I say this with love, as we see from Faiths POV of their relationship [“Amanda had let an uncharacteristic edge of concern enter her tone. Will's weird, Flowers-in-the-Attic-y relationship with Angie paled in comparison to the dysfunctional freak show he had with Amanda. She was the closest thing he'd ever had to a mother, if you were constantly afraid that your mother would smother you in your sleep”]—and has always tried to do the right thing for him. Although we had a whole book on the depths of Amanda’s history with Will, this is such a pivotal moment for Will because he can finally see and feel the impact of her words. I really enjoyed this quote from the book from Amanda to Will

If you love someone, you don’t go out of your way to hurt them. You don't torture them. You don't terrify them or make them live in constant fear. That's not how love works. It's not how normal people work

lawryn's review

3.0

I can only take one Karen Slaughter book a year.. this was good writing and mystery, detective POV mysteries just aren’t my jam