Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter

Mary Karin Slaughter, Thriller, Wm. Morrow

Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter

August 2018 – William Morrow

Book courtesy of the publisher

Description:

What if the person you thought you knew best turns out to be someone you never knew at all?

Andrea Oliver’s mother, Laura, is the perfect small-town mum. Laura lives a quiet but happy life in sleepy beachside Belle Isle. She’s a pillar of the community: a speech therapist, business owner and everybody’s friend. And she’s never kept a secret from anyone. Or so Andrea thinks.

When Andrea is caught in a random violent attack at a shopping mall, Laura intervenes and acts in a way that is unrecognisable to her daughter. It’s like Laura is a completely different person – and that’s because she was. Thirty years ago. Before Andrea. Before Belle Isle.

Laura is hailed as a hero for her actions at the mall but 24 hours later she is in hospital, shot by an intruder, who’s spent decades trying to track her down.

What is Andrea’s mother trying to hide? As elements of the past return and put them both in danger, Andrea is left to piece together Laura’s former identity and discover the truth – for better or worse – about her mother. Is the gentle, loving woman who raised her also a violent killer? (publisher)

My take:  Being at the scene of a shooting starts a young woman on a journey that will present a side to her mother she didn’t know existed. Andrea witnesses her mother Laura methodically kill the shooter – something she would never expect to happen. A frantic solo car trip with stops in Alabama, Texas, and Illinois quickly ensues and results in the discovery of a huge truth about her mother. When I started reading this novel I didn’t know it would be a page-turner that would take just two days to read. I couldn’t stop reading! There are two time periods that allow the plot to develop: the current time when the shooting occurs and the 1980s when Laura lived a completely different life than the one Andrea knows. That’s all I’ll say. Recommended to fans of the author and a fast paced thriller. I enjoyed it.

Note: I also used an Audible credit. Narrator Kathleen Early did a great job with the various characters’ voices. 

 

11 thoughts on “Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter”

  3. I am always cautious about Karin Slaughter because usually she is too graphic for me. It does sound excellent though and I can understand your reading it through in two days. She is an excellent writer.

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    • Since this is my first book by Slaughter I don’t know if there’s more or less graphic violence than her other books. There are a couple of scenes that were pertinent to the plot – I didn’t feel they were gratuitous.
      This novel was a departure from my usual fare but I’m glad I read it. Every once in a while I like to change things up 🙂

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