From the TBR Pile: Blog Tour: Review of Pieces of Her by Karen Slaughter

Author: Karen Slaughter

Publisher: William Morrow
Date of publication: August 2018

What if the person you thought you knew best turns out to be someone you never knew at all . . . ?

Andrea knows everything about her mother, Laura. She knows she’s spent her whole life in the small beachside town of Belle Isle; she knows she’s never wanted anything more than to live a quiet life as a pillar of the community; she knows she’s never kept a secret in her life. Because we all know our mothers, don’t we?

But all that changes when a trip to the mall explodes into violence and Andrea suddenly sees a completely different side to Laura. Because it turns out that before Laura was Laura, she was someone completely different. For nearly thirty years she’s been hiding from her previous identity, lying low in the hope that no one would ever find her. But now she’s been exposed, and nothing will ever be the same again.

The police want answers and Laura’s innocence is on the line, but she won’t speak to anyone, including her own daughter. Andrea is on a desperate journey following the breadcrumb trail of her mother’s past. And if she can’t uncover the secrets hidden there, there may be no future for either one of them. . . .

Pieces of Her is the latest stand alone novel from this author. This happens to be the first book of hers that I have ever read. It opens with a mother and daughter having lunch. When an armed gunman enters the diner and starts shooting, everything Andy thought she knew about her mother changes in the blink of an eye. The book waffles between the present, as Andy tries to find out the truth about her mother, and events that took place in the late 80s.

I have to admit that I almost didn't finish this book. I found the beginning a bit slow and disjointed. I also didn't like Andrea at first. Her shock and wishy-washy attitude were grating after a while. However, I am glad I stuck with it because after the story switched to events in 1986, the story really got going. Andy ended up being quite street smart and a pretty good amateur detective. I liked her a lot. There are a few twists that kept me on my toes. Overall, it was a good mystery that asks the question, "How much do we really know about our parents' past?". I do recommend this book and I think fans of hers will love it.

Purchase Links

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

About Karin Slaughter

Photo by Alison Rosa

Karin Slaughter is one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed storytellers. Published in 120 countries with more than 35 million copies sold across the globe, her eighteen novels include the Grant County and Will Trent books, as well as the Edgar-nominated Cop Townand the instant New York Times bestselling novels Pretty Girls and The Good Daughter. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, Karin Slaughter lives in Atlanta. Her standalone novels The Good Daughter and Cop Town are in development for film and television.

Find out more about Karin at her website and connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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