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b_tellefsen_rescuesandreads 's review for:
Pieces of Her
by Karin Slaughter
Y'all.......this is one of the only times I have ever not felt confident enough with my feelings regarding a book to not assign it an immediate rating.
First, I have to say that to me, Karin Slaughter, especially her standalones, are usually brilliant. She is not afraid to go to dark places and put her characters through the most intense Hell you can possibly experience. So, while I didn't find this overall story amazing, I can still appreciate the journey. But my exasperation throughout this book, primarily with both of the female main characters was so insanely intense, that it affect my ability to enjoy this story immensely.
First, let me give you a brief, and very vague, summary.
This is told in two timelines. In the present day, it follows our main character Andrea who, at 31, is still struggling to "find herself." After a failed stint in New York, she is back in her Georgia hometown with her mother, Laura, who always seems perfectly put together. A well-respected speech therapist and overall beloved member of the community, no one would ever suspect that Laura is hiding a massive secret.
But one day, as Andrea and Laura are dining in the mall, a random act of violence puts Andrea in danger and Laura springs into action, showing a very different side to herself than Andrea has ever seen. And this leads to a chain reaction that puts Andrea on the run, both for her safety and for answers.
Then, we get a past timeline from 1986. I literally don't want to say anything about this timeline for risk of spoilers. I may include some more information below, so be wary.
Okay, so let's get into it.
Andrea is possibly one of the most frustrating characters I have ever read, because for roughly the entirety of book, she was basically useless. How you ask?
First, whilst the mall event was occurring, Andrea does not fight or flee. She freezes. She does absolutely nothing. Throughout the whole event, from beginning to end, she remains entirely still, even as her mother comes to her aid unable to move, unable to speak, unable to be of any functionality whatsoever.
Then, at the hospital, while being questioned by the police, she says not one word. This is not only at the advice of her lawyer stepfather, but because she, almost literally, can't speak. She is so in her own head, that she cannot formulate responses.
Later, when a second terrifying event occurs, the one that ends up being a true catalyst for what happens later, Andrea seems to prove her worth by knocking out her mother's attacker. Only to...you guess it....go absolutely completely dumb. Her mother, again, instantly takes charge, but all Andrea can do is think.. "I killed him.." like an absolute idiot. She just loses all ability to function. Her mother is desperately trying to relay instructions to her, get her to move, but she just fucking sits there. I was so furious I literally gesticulated wildly and practically shouted because I could not understand what he fuck her problem was?
And, did I mention when she finally meets someone who might be able to help her she..once again...cannot form coherent thoughts or sentences? Even the person comments on her inability to finish a sentence.
Literally useless. I am so flabbergasted by this choice of character because it seems she is beyond a normal amount if shock or incapacitation that might occur during shocking events. It is mind boggling. I do not know why Slaughter choose to make Andrea this way. I am not sure if she was trying to make her realistic, but to me, this was borderline unrealistic simply because of how unreactive and soft-minded she is. Like she literally just succumbs to panic and shock constantly.
Now, let's talk about the past timeline. Again, I don't really want to delve too deeply into it, but I had a hard time connecting with this timeline or caring about it. At first, I felt as if we were plunged into this timeline at an awkward point, so I had to quickly connect the dots and follow what we were doing and why. There definitely could have been an easier transition here.
Then, even though I grasped the overall story arc of the past plotline (it was very, Manson "take down the man" type of thing which.....give me a break), I again found myself completely infuriated with our female lead protagonist as she was completely weak-willed as well up until the very breaking point, and it was only because of two main events that she even chose to break the spell over her to begin with. It was embarrassing, frustrating, exasperating and just so ridiculous.
I really wish Karin Slaughter and gone in a different direction with this story, especially the past timeline. It just.....really, really, didn't work for me. And it didn't fully explain, in my opinion, Laura's capabilities in the present. Here I was thinking that she had been some type of mercenary or things of that nature but in reality, she had just been a victim of a paranoid cult leader who hounded self-defense into his sheeple.
Ugh. My irritation with this book is so goddam profound, I am not sure I can give this a high rating, even though, as always, Slaughter's writing is great, and it pulls you in and keeps you going.
First, I have to say that to me, Karin Slaughter, especially her standalones, are usually brilliant. She is not afraid to go to dark places and put her characters through the most intense Hell you can possibly experience. So, while I didn't find this overall story amazing, I can still appreciate the journey. But my exasperation throughout this book, primarily with both of the female main characters was so insanely intense, that it affect my ability to enjoy this story immensely.
First, let me give you a brief, and very vague, summary.
This is told in two timelines. In the present day, it follows our main character Andrea who, at 31, is still struggling to "find herself." After a failed stint in New York, she is back in her Georgia hometown with her mother, Laura, who always seems perfectly put together. A well-respected speech therapist and overall beloved member of the community, no one would ever suspect that Laura is hiding a massive secret.
But one day, as Andrea and Laura are dining in the mall, a random act of violence puts Andrea in danger and Laura springs into action, showing a very different side to herself than Andrea has ever seen. And this leads to a chain reaction that puts Andrea on the run, both for her safety and for answers.
Then, we get a past timeline from 1986. I literally don't want to say anything about this timeline for risk of spoilers. I may include some more information below, so be wary.
Okay, so let's get into it.
Andrea is possibly one of the most frustrating characters I have ever read, because for roughly the entirety of book, she was basically useless. How you ask?
First, whilst the mall event was occurring, Andrea does not fight or flee. She freezes. She does absolutely nothing. Throughout the whole event, from beginning to end, she remains entirely still, even as her mother comes to her aid unable to move, unable to speak, unable to be of any functionality whatsoever.
Then, at the hospital, while being questioned by the police, she says not one word. This is not only at the advice of her lawyer stepfather, but because she, almost literally, can't speak. She is so in her own head, that she cannot formulate responses.
Later, when a second terrifying event occurs, the one that ends up being a true catalyst for what happens later, Andrea seems to prove her worth by knocking out her mother's attacker. Only to...you guess it....go absolutely completely dumb. Her mother, again, instantly takes charge, but all Andrea can do is think.. "I killed him.." like an absolute idiot. She just loses all ability to function. Her mother is desperately trying to relay instructions to her, get her to move, but she just fucking sits there. I was so furious I literally gesticulated wildly and practically shouted because I could not understand what he fuck her problem was?
And, did I mention when she finally meets someone who might be able to help her she..once again...cannot form coherent thoughts or sentences? Even the person comments on her inability to finish a sentence.
Literally useless. I am so flabbergasted by this choice of character because it seems she is beyond a normal amount if shock or incapacitation that might occur during shocking events. It is mind boggling. I do not know why Slaughter choose to make Andrea this way. I am not sure if she was trying to make her realistic, but to me, this was borderline unrealistic simply because of how unreactive and soft-minded she is. Like she literally just succumbs to panic and shock constantly.
Now, let's talk about the past timeline. Again, I don't really want to delve too deeply into it, but I had a hard time connecting with this timeline or caring about it. At first, I felt as if we were plunged into this timeline at an awkward point, so I had to quickly connect the dots and follow what we were doing and why. There definitely could have been an easier transition here.
Then, even though I grasped the overall story arc of the past plotline (it was very, Manson "take down the man" type of thing which.....give me a break), I again found myself completely infuriated with our female lead protagonist as she was completely weak-willed as well up until the very breaking point, and it was only because of two main events that she even chose to break the spell over her to begin with. It was embarrassing, frustrating, exasperating and just so ridiculous.
I really wish Karin Slaughter and gone in a different direction with this story, especially the past timeline. It just.....really, really, didn't work for me. And it didn't fully explain, in my opinion, Laura's capabilities in the present. Here I was thinking that she had been some type of mercenary or things of that nature but in reality, she had just been a victim of a paranoid cult leader who hounded self-defense into his sheeple.
Ugh. My irritation with this book is so goddam profound, I am not sure I can give this a high rating, even though, as always, Slaughter's writing is great, and it pulls you in and keeps you going.