Karin Slaughter | CRIMINAL

Plot (via Goodreads):

Will Trent is a brilliant agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Newly in love, he is beginning to put a difficult past behind him. Then a local college student goes missing, and Will is inexplicably kept off the case by his supervisor and mentor, deputy director Amanda Wagner. Will cannot fathom Amanda’s motivation until the two of them literally collide in an abandoned orphanage they have both been drawn to for different reasons. Decades before, when his father was imprisoned for murder, this was Will’s home. It appears that the case that launched Amanda’s career forty years ago has suddenly come back to life—and it involves the long-held mystery of Will’s birth and parentage. Now these two dauntless investigators will each need to face down demons from the past if they are to prevent an even greater terror from being unleashed.

Review:

CRIMINAL is probably one of my top favorites in this series. I loved the dual timelines and how they connected both of the cases. The present case was harrowing and more reminiscent of some of the Grant Co. cases and the darker ones that make Slaughter one of the best storytellers who really isn’t afraid to go as deep as she needs to in order to tell the stories she wants. While the case from the past involving Amanda and Evelyn took a while to get off the ground for me, I was immersed by the time it started to take form and read this entire book in one sitting due to its palpable pacing and the fact that I was hooked on not only one story, but two. The Sara and Will moments were phenomenal as usual and in this story, I found them even more heartfelt. It was amazing to finally get the answers to all of the questions I’ve had throughout this series regarding Wills past and found the full story to be even more harrowing and shocking than what I had expected. This is definitely a standout for me in this series, especially given the twisty and scream-induced ending.

Rating: 5/5