Broken (Grant County) [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

With such tense novels as Blindsighted and Kisscut, Karin Slaughter has firmly positioned herself as one of the most capable exponents of the crime novel at work today – and certainly one of the most disturbing (a skill the author is clearly proud of). What's more, she ensures that each new book is subtly different from its predecessor, as her latest, Broken, demonstrates, with its innovative, edgy mix of tried and trusted elements. We are introduced once again to former Grant County medical examiner Sara Linton, proving that the Jacobean taste for bloodshed and mystery is alive and well in contemporary USA.

A woman's corpse is discovered in the waters of Lake Grant, and a note is found which seems to point to suicide – but Sara Linton has never been a woman to settle for obvious solutions. The principal suspect in the case has requested – desperately -- to be able to speak to Sara -- but when she turns up at his cell in the local police station, the suspect, Tommy Braham (whom she had known as a boy), is unable to speak to her. Tommy is dead; he has been savagely beaten, and his wrists have been cut. Scrawled in blood on the cell wall is a poignant message: ‘Not me’. Sara, personally involved now, is distrustful of Lena Adams the detective in charge, so she gets in touch with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and asks (as she has done before) for the help of Special Agent Will Trent (Karin Slaughter readers will be well aware of the intriguing relationship between these two). The duo begins to suspect that a murderer enjoys the covert protection of the close-mouthed inhabitants of Grant County, who have fashioned a skein of non-communication. But, as the Bard observed, murder will out...

With so many writers tackling uncompromising material such as this (and Slaughter is nothing if not uncompromising), there is clearly a danger of over-familiarity for readers. But it’s a measure of the author’s skill that such notions are firmly banished, and Slaughter’s customary position at the top of the bestseller charts is well earned. --Barry Forshaw --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

"Addictive . . . Slaughter is a terrific writer, and she keeps the emotional tension high throughout."--"The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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"This chilling mystery is just begging to be read in one sitting."--"Cosmopolitan"

"Move over, Catherine Coulter--Slaughter may be today's top female suspense writer."--"Library Journal" (starred review) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

The compelling new thriller from the double #1 bestseller. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

When the body of a young woman is discovered deep beneath the icy waters of Lake Grant, a note left under a rock by the shore points to suicide. But within minutes, it becomes clear that this is no suicide. It's a brutal, cold-blooded murder.

All too soon former Grant County medical examiner Sara Linton - home for Thanksgiving after a long absence - finds herself unwittingly drawn into the case. The chief suspect is desperate to see her but when she arrives at the local police station she is met with a horrifying sight - he lies dead in his cell, the words 'Not me' scrawled across the walls.

Something about his confession doesn't add up and deeply suspicious of Lena Adams, the detective in charge, Sara immediately calls in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Shortly afterwards, Special Agent Will Trent is brought in from his vacation to investigate. But he is immediately confronted with a wall of silence. Grant County is a close-knit community with loyalties and ties that run deep. And the only person who can tell the truth about what really happened is dead...

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

When the body of a young woman is discovered deep beneath the icy waters of Lake Grant, a note left under a rock by the shore points to suicide. But within minutes, it becomes clear that this is no suicide. It's a brutal, cold-blooded murder.

All too soon former Grant County medical examiner Sara Linton - home for Thanksgiving after a long absence - finds herself unwittingly drawn into the case. The chief suspect is desperate to see her but when she arrives at the local police station she is met with a horrifying sight - he lies dead in his cell, the words 'Not me' scrawled across the walls.

Something about his confession doesn't add up and deeply suspicious of Lena Adams, the detective in charge, Sara immediately calls in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Shortly afterwards, Special Agent Will Trent is brought in from his vacation to investigate. But he is immediately confronted with a wall of silence. Grant County is a close-knit community with loyalties and ties that run deep. And the only person who can tell the truth about what really happened is dead...

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Praise for Karin Slaughter

'Confirms her at the summit of the school of writers specialising in forensic medicine and terror' The Times

'Brilliantly chilling' heat

'Without doubt an accomplished, compelling and complex tale, with page-turning power aplenty' Daily Express

'Criminally spectacular' OK!

'Slaughter's plotting is relentless, piling on surprises and twists ... A good read that should come with a psychological health warning' Guardian

'It's beautifully paced, appropriately grisly, and terrifyingly plausible. Who says there's anything peaceful and quiet about small-town America' Time Out

'A fast-paced and unsettling story ... A compelling and fluid read' Daily Telegraph

'A great read ... crime fiction at its finest' Michael Connelly

'The writing is lean and mean, and the climax will blow you away' Independent

Fiction

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--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Karin Slaughter grew up in a small south Georgia town and has been writing since she was a child. She is the author of the international bestsellers Blindsighted, Kisscut, A Faint Cold Fear, Indelible, Faithless, Skin Privilege, Triptych, Fractured and Genesis. She is also the author of the darkly comic novella, Martin Misunderstood and the editor of and contributor to Like a Charm, a collaboration of British and American crime fiction writers. She lives in Atlanta. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.