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A review by book_concierge
Kisscut by Karin Slaughter
1.0
The second Grant County thriller, featuring pediatrician Sara Linton and her ex-husband, Police Chief Jeffrey Toliver. I read the first book a few years ago and only gave it 2 stars; but I felt I might have been extra harsh because one of the characters targeted by the serial killer in that book shares my first name and that freaked me out a bit. So I decided to give Slaughter another chance.
This book starts with a Saturday night at the local skating rink where Sara is waiting for her ex-husband to show up. They’re “dating” again, though Sara says she wants to take it slow because she’s not sure she forgives him yet for the cheating that resulted in their divorce. But an altercation in the parking lot between two young teens interrupts this date, and results in Chief Toliver’s shooting one of them. Sara, who is also the medical examiner, is tasked with performing the autopsy; what she finds shocks her, the police and the victim’s mother.
Sounds promising, doesn’t it? It isn’t. Slaughter throws in everything but the kitchen sink … a newborn found in the toilet, child abuse, a fragile female officer not yet over her own trauma (see book one), Sara and Jeffery’s budding re-romance, a young rookie cop’s efforts to overcome embarrassment and inexperience, etc. Some of these threads stretch credulity too far. A therapist volunteers to provide his case notes to the police when a suspect is not talking openly. One young person vacillates between crying vulnerability, predatory sexuality, and a near catatonic trance … all within one interview.
It’s a fast read, but you would still be better off spending that time reading something else.
This book starts with a Saturday night at the local skating rink where Sara is waiting for her ex-husband to show up. They’re “dating” again, though Sara says she wants to take it slow because she’s not sure she forgives him yet for the cheating that resulted in their divorce. But an altercation in the parking lot between two young teens interrupts this date, and results in Chief Toliver’s shooting one of them. Sara, who is also the medical examiner, is tasked with performing the autopsy; what she finds shocks her, the police and the victim’s mother.
Sounds promising, doesn’t it? It isn’t. Slaughter throws in everything but the kitchen sink … a newborn found in the toilet, child abuse, a fragile female officer not yet over her own trauma (see book one), Sara and Jeffery’s budding re-romance, a young rookie cop’s efforts to overcome embarrassment and inexperience, etc. Some of these threads stretch credulity too far. A therapist volunteers to provide his case notes to the police when a suspect is not talking openly. One young person vacillates between crying vulnerability, predatory sexuality, and a near catatonic trance … all within one interview.
It’s a fast read, but you would still be better off spending that time reading something else.