Source: Edelweiss+
Publication: 9th August 2018 from Harper Collins (UK) and 21 August 2018 from William Morrow(US)
Pp: 480
ISBN-13: 978-0062430274
You’ve known her your whole life…
Andrea Oliver knows everything about her mother Laura. She knows she’s always lived in the small town of Belle Isle; she knows she’s a pillar of the community; she knows she’s never kept a secret in her life.
but she’s hiding something…
Then one day, a trip to the mall explodes into a shocking act of violence and Andy suddenly sees a completely different side to Laura.
and it could destroy you both…
Hours later, Laura is in hospital, her face splashed over the newspapers. But the danger has only just begun. Now, Andy must go on a desperate race to uncover the secrets of her mother’s past. Unless she can, there may be no future for either of them…
I am such a fan of Karin Slaughter, she simply never disappoints and I chased and chased to get a copy of her latest stand-alone novel. It is, of course, a cracker.
In a fast paced, page-turning psychological thriller, Slaughter explores a mother and daughter relationship and asks the reader, how well do we know anyone? Andrea Cooper has been cossetted by her mother all her life. Laura works as a well respected speech therapist in a small town outside Savannah, Georgia. Andrea is more reserved and an introvert; she works night shift as a police dispatcher. She once tried living in NYC, but didn’t like it, and returned home to nurse her mother through breast cancer treatment, from which Laura has now recovered.
The pair are celebrating Andrea’s 31st birthday over lunch when a young man, Jonah Helsinger, starts on a shooting spree. What follows is captured on mobile phone footage that goes viral, leaving Andy to wonder whether she knows her mother at all.
Written in a dual timeline, the present and 1986, Pieces of Her is a strong and visceral story that captures the reader’s interest and draws you in to a maelstrom of events at which shy and cossetted Andy is at the centre.
Under strictures to leave home and not return, Andy is determined to find out more about her mother, to pull together the pieces so that she can make sense of what she knows and what she is finding out. In doing so, she runs the risk of bringing more danger down on both their heads.
Seeing Andy come out of her mother’s shadow and find a purpose is intensely satisfying and the whole issue of how far a mother will go to protect her child is dealt with here in a heart pounding and propulsive manner. Can Laura escape her past, or will she and Andrea fall victim to it? I raced through this book desperate to find out.
Characterisation is excellent and the action is heart-stoppingly good.
Verdict: Another addictive, cracking suspense filled action thriller from a superb author we love.
About Karin Slaughter
Karin Slaughter has sold over 35 million books, making her one of the most popular crime writers today. She is the author of more than a dozen novels, including the Will Trent and Grant County series and the instant New York Times bestsellers Cop Town and Pretty Girls. Her previous novel, The Good Daughter, was a no.1 Sunday Times bestseller in paperback. She is passionate, no-nonsense, provocative, and is one of suspense fiction’s most articulate ambassadors. Her Will Trent Series, Grant County Series, and stand-alone novel Cop Town are all in development for film & television. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
Read more about Pieces of Her on the blog tour.
Live and Deadly 
Really well done review.
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