Now I’m a self-confessed Karin Slaughter fan who has recently picked up her books again after a long break, only to question why I chose to take that break at all. I love her work, and have been with Jeffery and Lena and Will since the very beginning. But this book – wow!
Samantha and Charlotte Quinn are sisters whose lives are brutally changed one day when armed intruders walk into their home, killing their mother Gamma and leaving Samantha for dead in a shallow grave. Charlotte, managing to get free and run for help, is left traumatised by the terrible event and the ensuing secrets, and the family is torn apart irrevocably.
28 years later, eighteen year-old Kelly Wilson walks into her middle school with a revolver and shoots dead a teacher and a child.
Rusty Quinn, notorious defence attorney for the guilty, takes on her case and is soon convinced of her innocence. When he is stabbed by an unknown assailant, his daughters Sam and Charlie, both damaged after the attack at their home 28 years earlier, are reluctantly reunited and the past decides to rear its ugly head.
For those of you who are familiar with KS’s work, this is a stand-alone novel and in no way related to her hugely popular Grant County series. Quite often, when you have fallen in love with a series of books and familiar characters, it is difficult to attempt a novel about strangers. Don’t let that deter you.
This book was amazing and shocking and emotional all rolled into one. I was devastated when Gamma was shot. I cried when I read Charlotte’s story. I was jubilant when the sisters finally repaired their relationship. It was a rollercoaster ride of emotions, and I really warmed to the characters, all of who were broken or flawed in some way.
An easy five stars. Can’t wait to read the prequel.
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