It's great to be in a position to recommend much more diverse books to our young people at school. Building the senior school library as a place where students actually come and find books that they want to read as opposed to books that teachers think they ought to read is an important responsibility and one we take really seriously.
Books like this are such a positive move as they will appeal to a broader set of readers than we are usually attracting. Dealing with modern issues in a clear and captivating way with a strong narrative voice and characters that the students can relate to is critical as we move forwards. This book is both an intelligent and compelling read that will hold even the most reluctant reader's attention and keep them turning the pages long into the night. It keeps the reader on their toes and ensures that you give it your full attention too. I found myself thinking about its characters and events even when I wasn't reading it and looking forward to snatching kore time with it and I hope that my students feel the same. An accessible, gripping and engrossing read that I can't recommend highly enough. Will absolutely be buying a copy for the library and heartily recommending it to both staff and students.

This was my third rendezvous with Ms Slaughter. I'm a bit late to the Will Trent party and jumped in at #10 then read this, #9. Wrong way round but no less enjoyable.

I enjoyed this as much Pieces of Her and The Silent Wife. Slaughter knows how to nudge you to the edge of your seat and keep you there from the first word to the last. This certainly has suspense and intensity: Investigator Will Trent and medical-examiner-girlfriend Sara have to battle with unscrupulous extremists who are prepared to cause massive loss of life to get their message across. Things get even more serious when Sara is abducted by the same fanatics and Will has to put his own life in danger to save her.

Slaughter's attention to detail and meticulous research results in longish books, but the fast pace and drama mean you barely notice and just enjoy the ride.

I'm afraid I'm very fastidious about the editorial quality of books and did notice grammatical errors in the other two books of hers I've read. But there are many in this. The editor failed to net obvious ones, e.g.: lay/lie blunders (common in a lot of American books), a chord/cord misspell, a less/fewer mistake, a 'between you and I' (ugh! 'me' not I!), no understanding of adjective/adverb usage and many more. I got the feeling the editor only gave the manuscript one pass: any editor worth his/her salt would have caught those very basic errors on a second or third pass.

What does this mean for me and Ms S going forward? Hm. Not sure. Her books are certainly enjoyable and recommendable, errors notwithstanding. Having read three on the trot, perhaps I'll have a little break and come back to her in a while

Another great book. I read this before Pieces of Her and found it to be really good. I loved the plot and the characters had both ones I loved and hated.

When you hate characters you know the writers a great one!

Fabulous read!

Another excellent novel by Karin Slaughter. Full of crime and suspense as is her usual style .

5 * from me.

What a book! Incredible! Talk about so much going on in a book.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

I really like Karin Slaughter books but this one felt a little different from usual and didn't have the same level of intensity. However, still a very enjoyable read.

I've never read any books by Karin Slaughter before though she was always one of my mum's favourite authors and came highly recommended. I also don't really like to start reading in the middle of a series and The Last Widow is the ninth book in the Will Trent series. However, the blurb for this book sounded so compelling that I simply could not resist. It definitely did not disappoint and now I am eager to get my hands on all the earlier books.

At the beginning of this book we meet Michelle Spivey who is out shopping with her eleven year old daughter. When a van stops beside her daughter, Ashley is aware and runs away from any trouble however it is Michelle they are after and she is abducted, and nobody has a clue who by or where to. She simply vanishes. Honestly, the first chapter alone had me hook, line and sinker and I devoured the first 100-150 pages of this book on a near two hour train journey that flew by as I was so engrossed.

Slaughter's style of writing, her pacing, descriptions and characterisation build up the story brilliantly and had me engrossed as the events were made easy to picture and I was truly gripped. I had a bit of a niggle with a chunk of this book as, as we met different characters, there was a bit of repetition as we see scenes from both sides and therefore things like whole conversations were repeated. This meant, as the chapters alternated between different characters there was a lot of toing and froing back and forth which wasn't particular easy to keep up with although I can't say it stopped me in anyway from being fascinated by the events and eager to discover more. Later in the book I could also see why this had been done and thought that it added to a more-rounded storytelling which probably was vital with such in-depth, highly researched plotting.

A month after the abduction of Spivey, Will Trent and Sara Linton find themselves caught in the middle of it all and this leads to Sara also being abducted and held prisoner and Will heading undercover in the midst of what was a shocking yet scarily believable story that was truly riveting. I enjoyed getting to know Will and Sara as they were new to me and I found them quite fascinating for different reasons. With every chapter of The Last Widow, the tension soared and the short timeframe that the book is set over not only added to the urgency of the events in the book but also the urgency I had as I desperately turned the pages of this heart-pounding, dark political thriller which is one of the most disturbing books I have read in a long time.

The Last Widow is action-packed and pulsating and my perfect introduction to Karin Slaughter as now I want every single one of her other books. This was a truly intense read that never let up. I've never read a 450 page hardback so quickly before but I was so drawn into the story and the characters that I never wanted to stop reading despite some of the heart-stopping truths that were revealed. Now I can see why Karin Slaughter is so highly revered - The Last Widow is mindblowingly good.

This is the second in this series that I have read so they work well as standalone novels but even better as part of a series and I want to read them all now. Will and Sarah have such a beautiful relationship and the first part of the book had me chuckling at their banter too. I did find it difficult to believe Will and Michelle could function with the injuries he had though.

Not what I expected at all! A twisted tale of white supremacy and the extremist behaviour of a psychopath who has one goal and one goal only. The sacrifices made along the way in the name of this goal are stomach churning.

I’m a huge fan of the Grant County series and I really enjoy the Will Trent books and this did not disappoint! Slaughter delivers a great thriller in The Last Widow, touching upon some themes that are particularly relevant to the current political climate with a Far-Right movement being a major component of the plot - something she has written before in the Grant County series but without the attempt at a redemption arc this time!
Slaughter’s books are not for the faint of heart and this book does include scenes and descriptions of violence and serious crimes that may not be suitable for all readers.

This was another winner from one of my favourite authors Karin Slaughter. Action packed, complicated but ultimately relatable characters and a need to keep on reading when it is well past bedtime!

This book was, to put it simply, amazing!. The storyline was perfection and grasped hold of my attention from the first page, and well and truly kept hold of it until the very last page.
The characters, Sara and Will were so likeable, and you really do find yourself rooting for them both as the story begins to unfold.
And then there is the epilogue, which I have to say was right up there with my favourite parts of this incredible story.
This book certainly took me through a range of emotions, from worry, to sadness, to being well and truly frustrated, and of course intrigued. It really made me feel as though I was a part of the story as we uncover secrets as the characters do.
A perfectly paced thriller that has you on the edge of your seat. It is without a doubt an absolute must read!.

I love Karin Slaughter's books and this book was just as gripping as her others. I could not put this down. Such a great plot that just kept building and building. I look forward to the next instalment.

Not a big fan of this book. I struggled to engage with any of the characters and found the story to be quite repetitive as it was told from two perspectives.

Maybe I will try one of Karin Slaughter's other titles in the future.

Thank to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance copy of this title in exchange for an unbiased review.

As usual Karin Slaughter nails it. I love her books and think she has a real skill for creating characters and making you tense!!

All about gung ho, I love ‘Merica. Really not as good as her previous books. I’m re-thinking whether this author is worth the effort.

It's been far too long since I let myself spend some quality time with this series, and this was my favourite one yet!

I absolutely ADORE Will as a protagonist. He has such an interesting if traumatic past and to see how he has developed and become the man he is now is truly great to read. His relationship with Sarah just makes everything 10x better. He was literally ready to die for her in this one.

I don't want to say too much about the plot, because I prefer going into this kind of book blind, but know that it was enthralling from start to finish. We had twists and turns with every new discovery on the case which kept me on my toes and made it hard to put the book down. If I could have sat and read this in one go, I would have.

Massive thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copy!

This is the first book I have read by Karin Slaughter and, while I enjoyed it in part, I didn’t really gel with any of the characters the way I normally do when I read a book. I am not sure if this is to do with the book being part of a series and if I had read the earlier books perhaps I would have been more invested. Also I found the repetition of the first three chapters to be a chore and somewhat unnecessary- to the point I almost gave up.

A woman gets kidnapped by a man in a van whilst out shopping with her daughter. One month later and Will and Sara (the two main characters) are at Sara’s aunts house when there is an explosion which literally makes the earth move. They go to investigate and Sara ends up being taken hostage by a gang of men. Thereafter, the story is basically about Will trying to work out why Sara was taken and how he can get her back safe.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

i just love karin slaughter and for me shes up there with the best of them. This book is written from the different characters perspective. Although i am a huge fan i dont feel this is one of her better books but i enjoyed it all the same once i got used to it jumping between the characters.

This was the first Karin Slaughter book that I’ve read in years, so I was really looking forward to reading this book, as I liked both Sara Linton and Will Trent as characters and I’ve always enjoyed Karin’s plot lines. However, I really struggled to get into this book and it took me a lot longer than normal to finish this book, as the plot I thought was unrealistic and to be honest it didn’t really grab me despite the exciting start.

The writing was good and there were a few twists and turns, but I’ve read better books from her