Girl, Forgotten
As seen:
By Karin Slaughter
avg rating
2 reviews
The stunning new thriller from international No.1 bestseller Karin Slaughter, author of Pieces of Her, now a major Netflix series
A girl with a secret…
Longbill Beach, 1982. Emily Vaughn gets ready for prom night, the highlight of any high school experience. But Emily has a secret. And by the end of the evening, she will be dead.
Forty years later, Emily’s murder remains unsolved. Her friends closed ranks, her family retreated inwards, the community moved on. But all that’s about to change.
One final chance to uncover a killer…Andrea Oliver arrives in town with a simple assignment: to protect a judge receiving death threats. But her assignment is a cover. Because, in reality, Andrea is here to find justice for Emily – and to uncover the truth before the killer decides to silence her too…
A Sunday Times No.1 bestseller for w/c 20/05/2018, 23/06/2019, 28/06/2020, and 04/07/2021 ‘This thriller delivers. It’s twisty, touching and intense. I find it totally absorbing’ Adele Parks, author of One Last Secret ‘This first-class detective thriller is a dark, sophisticated gem of a read’ Janice Hallett, author of The Appeal ‘An effortlessly accomplished thriller’ The Times TweetReviews
Firstly, I must thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book. I requested this book as soon as I saw it was available.
I have read a lot of the previous books by this author, and as always, this book is up to her usual high standard. I didn’t realise that this was a sequel but it didn’t detract from this story that I hadn’t read the previous book.
It has an exciting plot told in two time frames. It features the unsolved killing some 40 years ago of a young pregnant teen, Emily. In the present day, US Marshall Andrea is sent to protect a judge with connections to this case. A well written book which I read in a couple of sittings.
Girl, Forgotten is a fast-moving, female-centred crime novel set in two timeframes that shows the impact of past events on the present. It’s the second in Karin Slaughter’s series about Andrea Oliver, here seen becoming a US Marshall. It would be best to read this book after the first one, but there’s still more than enough to enjoy if you don’t manage to do that.
The small town atmosphere of everyone knowing your business is portrayed very well, as is the inability to get away from the past. This is clearly demonstrated by the two timeframes as we see characters in their teens in 1981 who are still there in the present day. Events from that earlier time are festering and the arrival of Andrea is the catalyst for them to come to the surface. I loved the relationship between Andrea and her new partner, US Marshall Bible, which grows as the book continues.
It’s hard to say too much about the plot without giving anything away, but there are enough twists and turns in both the historic and current cases to satisfy even the most jaded of crime fiction fans. When it comes, the ending is both surprising and satisfying.
Thanks to LoveReading for sending me a proof of the book.
