In Karin Slaughter’s most recent novel “Broken,” Dr. Sara Linton, Grant County’s dual pediatrician and coroner, is still suffering the loss of her late husband Jeffrey Tolliver, ex-chief of police. The book begins without holding back, as Slaughter takes every reader through a memorable ride of suspense by intertwining character analysis, a string of murders and the surrounding mysteries of Jeffrey’s death that is soon to be illuminated.
Sara cannot help but blame detective Lena Adams for the death of her husband. Jeffrey was in charge of the Grant County police department, and now in his death, the department has gone awry. But to her dismay, Sara cannot stay focused on her late husband when a young woman named Allison Spooner is found dead near the town lake. A note is placed near Allison’s body to make her death seem as though she had committed suicide. However, investigators realize all too soon that Allison was murdered.
Tommy Braham, the young man who found Allison, is taken into custody. Sara grows even more mistrusting of just how wayward the police department has become when Tommy dies in the custody of Grant County characters, Lena and acting chief of police Frank Wallace.
It is important to note that Slaughter has more than one series. One series is based on the character Will Trent, a special agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the other two series are based in Atlanta and Grant County, Ga. In “Broken,” Slaughter takes the book to new levels by having characters from these separate projects collide.
Lena and Frank are in many ways complicated characters, because readers are often led astray about who is good or bad. In doing this, Slaughter creates a commonality among the characters based on conflict, a technique she uses to her advantage in providing high tension throughout the book. That tension builds and resolve becomes something of a distant memory, causing Sara and Will to become that much more apt to solve the case.
The driving force of the characters in this book is impeccable. Slaughter takes the current economic crisis and places it in a fictional country town in Georgia. Readers can see that the town has become stark since Jeffrey’s death — businesses are closed down and the town is the perfect setting for suspense and terror.
The title of this novel is flawless, as each one of the characters is dealing with his or her own inner demon that creates disconnection within them. Slaughter creates imperfect characters that are thrilling and realistic with every turn of the page.
While a reader did not have to read any of the series to understand the plot development of the book, her series is recommended, as Slaughter will not disappoint.
Rating: W W W W 1/2
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