TRIPTYCH by Karin Slaughter
Karin Slaughter is best known for her best selling series of mysteries that take place in the fictional locale of Grant County, Georgia. These stories center on Sara Linton, the local pediatrician/coroner. Now Slaughter departs from that series and offers us TRIPTYCH, a stand alone story about another mystery; this one takes place in the Atlanta area. Although many of her fans will bemoan the fact this is not a "Grant County mystery," they will soon fall under the spell of the new characters introduced therein.
In this new novel a serial rapist is on the loose in the Atlanta area. In some of those cases murder is involved with the act of rape while in others the victims are left alive. But in all cases the victims are mutilated. Michael Ormewood is the city policeman who is investigating the murders and Will Trent is a Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent who is sent in to help/observe.
While this is going on the story also focuses on John Shelley, a convicted rapist/murderer who has been released from prison after serving twenty years. John is trying to cope with his life as an ex-con and also a listed sex offender. The only person he meets who he thinks he can trust is a prostitute named Robin.
All four of these people are linked to and bound up in the murders and their outcome. Seeing how they meet, mingle and are drawn to each other makes for Slaughter's most engrossing novel yet. This is a book you absolutely can not put down once you start it. The characters are so involving and the plot is so compelling that you have no choice but to read, read, read.
The secret of Slaughter's success with this story is that she makes the characters come to life. The reader feels he/she knows these people completely and cares about what happens to each of them. This is not the casual involvement you get from some authors; this is a complete absorption in the thoughts and actions of the characters who inhabit these pages.
Slaughter has been criticized some times in the past for being too intense and too gory in her stories, but that is the nature of the beast. When one writes about rape, mutilation, and other forms of horrific behavior these crimes should not be expected to be covered in genteel terms. Slaughter writes in a way that brings to life all the horror and repugnancy.
Karin Slaughter books are always good but in TRIPTYCH she has exceeded her previous works. This is one of the most demanding and satisfying stories of the year. Do not let it pass under your reading radar. Get it, read it, and be amazed at the talent that is Karin Slaughter.
TRIPTYCH is published by Delacourte Press. It contains 394 pages and sells for $25.00.