Fractured (Will Trent, #2)

by Karin Slaughter

Set in Atlanta and featuring maverick Special Agent Will Trent from Triptych, this is vintage Karin Slaughter - a fast-paced, utterly compelling read. A seventeen-year-old girl is found murdered in her home by her mother. At first the Atlanta police believe it is a simple case of one victim, one killer. But when more girls of a similar age and profile start getting picked off, one by one, they realise they are dealing with a brutal serial killer. And the young female rookie detective heading up the case suddenly finds herself out of her depth. Atlanta Special Agent Will Trent of the Criminal Apprehension Team is quickly brought in to help the investigation. But with the body count mounting and the local community frozen in terror the killer is proving almost impossible to trace.

• ISBN10: 1846571073
• ISBN13: 9781846571077
• Publish Date: 3 July 2008 (first published 1 January 2008)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 10 August 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Random House Audio
• Format: Audiobook (CD)
• Duration: 5 hours and 47 minutes
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amanda]

I don’t think this plot line was quite as stunning as the first Will Trent book, but it was still good. Karin Slaughter has a talent for dropping bombshells only to move onto to something else, forcing you to read on until you’re able to further understand the full meaning of the bombshell. We were introduced to Faith Mitchell in this book, and I have to say that I like Faith Mitchell a whole lot more than I like Angie Polaski. I think Faith and Will could make a good team, and I look forward to see them work together again.

Perhaps this book was meant to build and develop the characters rather than focusing on the mystery and plot itself the way that the first Will Trent book did. I still found myself really intrigued by Will Trent, and I feel like there is so much more to learn about him.

See my review in its entirety here.

[ibeforem]

I really loved Triptych when I read it, but it took me some time to warm up to Fractured. Will Trent is a very unconventional main character — after all, he’s a GBI investigator that can’t read. He’s awkward, socially inept, and at times, easily flustered. I tend to waffle back and forth in my belief of the scenario but by the time I get to the end, I have to admit that I feel for him. Slaughter takes his illiteracy and really makes it matter, as his dyslexia leads to him discovering some key facts later than he should. I’m glad she’s decided to give him a partner and really test his comfort zone. I think it makes him more of a fully flushed-out character, and that’s why I root for him in the end.

But enough about Will! The real mystery here, What Has Happened to Emma?, is a good one. Not only is this the story of a brutal kidnapping (or murder? or both?), but much like in Triptych, you’re never completely sure who are the good guys and who are the bad. Also, Slaughter does a good job of telling a story about the foster care system, and how shared upbringings can have very different results. There is not yet a third book in this series, but I hope there will be.