Thrilling and shocking (Skin Privilege - Karin Slaughter)

Member Name: Tracy_1127

Product:	Skin Privilege - Karin Slaughter
Date:	08/09/09 (102 review reads)
Rating:

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I've read a few of Karin Slaughter's Sara Linton series books but admit I have missed a couple. Skin Privilege is the last one she has currently written in the series. Karin Slaughter lives in Atlanta and is a best selling author.

Sara Linton is a doctor and part time coroner in Heartsdale, Jeffrey Tolliver is the police chief and Lena Adams one of his detectives. Lena has a troubled past and gets a call to say her uncle needs her in her hometown of Reece. She responds to the call by reluctantly heading back to the town she hates and an uncle she has a rocky relationship with and manages to become the only suspect in an horrific murder where a woman is burnt alive in a car.

When Jeffrey receives word about this he and his wife Sara go to Lena's aid only to find a confusing set of circumstances and another victim rapidly following the first one. Can they figure out who did it and redeem Lena? Will Lena tell them what she knows?

The main characters from this book are in all the other Sara Linton books so it's best to read some of the others for background but the author does explain most of the facts about their relationship to each other so it's not vital. Sara and Jeffrey have remarried after getting divorced a few books back but Lena and Sara really don't get along. Lena is a hothead who frequently gets herself into bother but on this occasion the situation in Reece just runs away without her input.

This book shows that small towns can have all the bad elements of large cities such as drugs, conspiracy, murder and bigotry. Skinheads, meth dealing and violence abound in Reece and it seems no-one can or will stop it.

Some of the scenes are particularly gruesome, the burning of the victim in the car is just awful and the following autopsy which is described in detail. Karin Slaughter pulls no punches though and if it would be horrific in real life she writes it to make you really feel that.

The book starts in present day then we go back a couple of days to learn about how it all came about from the viewpoint of Lena and Sara and Jeffrey. This works really well because we go in at a point where it's all action and then find out how this came to pass.

The characters are all believable in this series and all their quirks and problems suit them well. Karin Slaughter brings the characters to life and within a few pages you start to feel as though you know them personally. She also doesn't forget to give all the characters faults and flaws which is a refreshing change from some authors as they often miss this out with certain characters. The relationship between Jeffrey and Sara is well written too with Jeffrey's occasional macho behaviour irritating Sara beyond belief, very true to life!

Naturally along the way some old family secrets come tumbling out of the closet, one of which surprised me immensely as I didn't see it coming at all. The action, secrets, twists and turns keep you glued to the story and the pace of the book is very fast. The characters were so well written I didn't once have to flick back to check who someone was which is unusual for me with so many characters.

The real shocker though is the ending. I didn't see this coming at all and could hardly believe the author finished the book how she did! My friend who lent me the book rang me the day I finished it and said she could finally express her shock over the ending now I'd read it! It really is totally unexpected and Karin Slaughter has even written a letter to her readers about it which can be found at www.karinslaughter.com/letter but be warned if you read this letter it contains plot spoilers so read the book first then go read the letter to find out why she did what she did! I can say no more than that!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it kept me guessing all the way through and I couldn't put it down because it moved along so quickly. Add to that the truly shocking ending and it was a brilliant read. The book is available to buy new from Amazon for £5.49 or used from Amazon Marketplace for 1p.

Highly recommended.

Summary: Highly recommended