This is an outstanding book. I struggle to figure out why Karin Slaughter writes so amazingly well about events that surround horrendous crimes. She can develop characters so completely that you expect to actually meet them. You, as a reader, could describe their reactions to new situations. She can create the setting and atmosphere so realistically that even if you are reading in the heat of summer, when her story describes the cold of winter; you are there. Her dialog is realistic. You end up feeling you are eavesdropping rather than reading. So, given those considerable talents, the question is, has she given us a good tale this time? Has she created something we can really puzzle over? The story is complex and simple, simultaneously. Something awful happened to two young sisters and then 20 years passed and now time catches up, as it always does. The ability to pace the story and hold back pieces while moving forward is a real skill. That's the part that keeps the reader turning pages late at night and looking bleary-eyed in the morning. As I did and I presume you will also. I've worked hard not to give anything away here. The less you know when you start, the better. Let Slaughter tell her own tale. All I want to tell you is the book is fantastic and yes, go read it. -Suzanne R.

Very well written and narrated

Intense and violent but I couldn’t put it down.

I would give 4.5 stars if I could, but GoodReads doesn’t allow that. This was a fantastic story that made me really emotional multiple times, but it was really tough to read in some spots and extremely graphic. It was too much for me to stomach. I wish the author had left those parts out - they were not needed to get the trauma across.

The very beginning of the book was amazing. Dark, gory, suspenseful, traumatizing; I couldn't stop reading even though I was uncomfortable. I had to know what happened. And then it fast forwards 28 years later and we're dealing with unresolved family issues and a school shooting. I lost interest somewhere towards the end of the school shooting event. I couldn't tell where this book was trying to go and everything was moving too slowly for me to care. There was a lot of rehashing, ruminating, and pointless details and I just couldn't take it anymore. It was suggested that the girl they initially thought was responsible for the shooting wasn't actually the right person, but meh. DNF.

I really enjoyed this twisty tale with an ending I didn't see coming. A fun, engaging mystery. 4 stars because there were a few loose ends and some explanations that didn't ring true for me.

4.5⭐️