The book tells the story of two sisters, Leigh and Callie, who are hiding a dark secret from their past. Having endured a difficult childhood, the sisters have forged very different paths in life - Leigh is a successful lawyer at a leading Chicago law firm with a teenage daughter and a cordial relationship with her ex-husband. By contrast Callie, following an injury sustained whilst cheerleading as a teenager, developed a drug addiction and now leads a somewhat chaotic life.
Leigh is asked to take on a new case defending Andrew Tennant who is accused of rape. it is a high profile case that could do wonders for her career but she soon discovers that it is no coincidence that he has requested her as his lawyer - he is the one person who knows the truth about her and her sister’s secret and she soon has a fight on her hands to protect herself and those close to her.
This is not a book for the faint hearted. It is gritty, dark and brutal at times and covers plenty of difficult topics - drug addiction, child abuse, sexual assault and murder. But somehow it never feels gratuitous, just part of a heartbreaking story of how much humans can endure, and at its heart it is about family and a sibling relationship that is unbroken despite everything that has happened to them. Slaughter’s characterisation is exceptional - you find yourself rooting for the sisters despite their flaws as we get to know more about them and their heartbreaking past. Its a damning portrayal of male entitlement - Andrew comes across as the worst kind of toxic male - but is balanced by the compassion shown by Dr Jerry the vet who Callie works for. Slaughter was also brave in her choice to set the book in the present day and adds a background of the pandemic in a clever way that adds relevance but stops short of feeling trite.
Its been some time since I read a Karin Slaughter book but I am now wondering why I waited so long - I will definitely be reading more of her in future.
Leigh is asked to take on a new case defending Andrew Tennant who is accused of rape. it is a high profile case that could do wonders for her career but she soon discovers that it is no coincidence that he has requested her as his lawyer - he is the one person who knows the truth about her and her sister’s secret and she soon has a fight on her hands to protect herself and those close to her.
This is not a book for the faint hearted. It is gritty, dark and brutal at times and covers plenty of difficult topics - drug addiction, child abuse, sexual assault and murder. But somehow it never feels gratuitous, just part of a heartbreaking story of how much humans can endure, and at its heart it is about family and a sibling relationship that is unbroken despite everything that has happened to them. Slaughter’s characterisation is exceptional - you find yourself rooting for the sisters despite their flaws as we get to know more about them and their heartbreaking past. Its a damning portrayal of male entitlement - Andrew comes across as the worst kind of toxic male - but is balanced by the compassion shown by Dr Jerry the vet who Callie works for. Slaughter was also brave in her choice to set the book in the present day and adds a background of the pandemic in a clever way that adds relevance but stops short of feeling trite.
Its been some time since I read a Karin Slaughter book but I am now wondering why I waited so long - I will definitely be reading more of her in future.