I’m glad I recently watched the Netflix adaptation of Karin Slaughter’s prequel to this one, Pieces of Her, because it helped refresh my memory of Andy Oliver and her discovery about the lies her mother told and how they influenced her life.

In Girl, Forgotten we see the aftermath as a few years later Andy is completing her training to become a US Marshal. Her first job sees her assigned to judge security in her biological father’s home town and with a side mission to discover if her father was responsible for the murder of the judge’s teenage daughter in the early ‘80s.

I really enjoyed the glimpses back to the lead up to the original crime. They were a great way to get to know Emily, the murdered girl, and offer a heartbreaking insight into how painful it is for a teenager to be ostracised by her friends and family.

As ever Karin Slaughter doesn’t shy away from the darkness in people, even the unintentional darkness and hurt which comes from self-interestedness.

Great plot, well told, and nice to see these characters return and be joined by new ones. I particularly hope we get to see Andy’s Marshal partner Leonard ‘Catfish’ Bible return in any sequels. I loved him.

Also very excited to see in the author acknowledgements a teaser that a new Will and Sara book is in the future. I was worried those characters might have been retired, but thankfully it looks like we’ll welcome them back soon.

I'm a HUGE Karin Slaughter fan and I absolutely loved this book! I had met our main character, Andrea Oliver before in the novel Pieces of Her, but if i'd realised it was the second in the series, I'd definitely have re-read the first one so it was fresh in my mind!

In this dual timeline story, we are with Andrea as she graduates as a US Marshall and is assigned a case protecting a federal judge who has received death threats. At the same time, we are with Emily, the judge's pregnant teenage daughter who was found tragically murdered in 1982.

Andrea and her partner, Catfish, are quietly investigating Emily's unsolved murder at the same time as protecting the Judge. But can she solve this crime before the killer silences her too?

I love the way that Karin Slaughter writes. She is detailed, yet concise and you learn everything you need to in a well paced fashion. She introduces interesting and exceptional characters that you care about and want to see complete their stories. It's a great story and I thank net galley and the publishers for my copy of this book!

As much as I adore Slaughter novels I must admit I hadn't read the precursor to this; Pieces Of Her- though I did watch the Netflix adaptation and loved it. If you've not read or watched Pieces Of Her you can still pick up Girl, Forgotten but everything prior to this story is summarised so you would spoil the previous title.

Girl, Forgotten takes place almost 2 years after the events in Pieces Of Her when Andrea graduates into the US Marshall service. There are several threads to the story, some of which I will avoid to prevent spoilers.
The main focus being Andrea's first assignment; protecting a federal judge whilst quietly probing into the forty year unsolved murder of her daughter Emily.

Slaughter takes us through dual timelines in Emily's past and Andrea's present perspectives broken up by witness statements given in the original investigation.
As always the pacing is perfection, gripping the reader from start to finish with no lull in sight.

A welcome addition to this story was 'Catfish' Bible, Andrea's first Marshal partner. I don't usually put faces to characters but I couldn't stop myself picturing Woody Harrelson as this quirky, cheeky but caring, law enforcer. I have strong hopes Netflix will adapt this novel and cast my ideal!

Emily's naivety and broken dreams brought an innocence to the story that made her fate feel all the more brutal. The helplessness of a pregnant teenager born to political parents of the Reagan era in a small gossipy coastal town was heartbreaking material.

There was one of the several revelations that I felt fell a bit flat but I was also happily wrong about most of my theories so I still very much enjoyed the ride.

It appears Slaughter has left open a window of opportunity to create an ongoing series with this cast of characters and I really hope she does! I'll be first in line to read them.

Found this book moved about too much, no true story. It did not encourage me to read. There was nothing
that you wanted to know. On the whole quite boring.

I would like to thank Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for an advance copy of Girl Forgotten, the second novel to feature Andrea Oliver, set in Delaware.

Andrea has just graduated as a US Marshal and is sent to Longbill Beach to protect a judge receiving death threats. That’s her official job, her unofficial job is to investigate the unsolved murder of Emily Vaughn in 1982. Emily was beaten and left naked in a dumpster, because of a secret she was keeping.

I enjoyed Girl Forgotten which is two stories in one. There is the tale of Andrea’s investigation and the 1981-2 tale of Emily’s life in the months before her death. Both are fascinating in their own way, with two different women living their lives in different eras with different values, and, yet, there are similarities as well.

Emily’s story is heart wrenching given our current perspective on social values, but I can see how it happened as I amn’t much older than her and remember the attitudes well. Having said that, the right wing in America would have return to those horrible days and earlier so perhaps it’s also a warning. Andrea’s story is more that of an uncertain woman finding her feet and her strength in a new job. The novel shows the women gaining strength and a sense of self through their separate investigations.

The plot is clever the way it weaves the past and present together. Both women are investigating the same people 40 years apart. Have they changed? Their circumstances have, but their personalities are constant - not one of them is remotely close to pleasant. I don’t know, if I’d looked closer at what was said about them would I have guessed who killed Emily? Probably not as the author indulges in some smart misdirection and brings the chickens home to roost in an entirely different manner than this reader would have expected. I’m sorry that my review is a little vague but much of the novel hinges on Emily’s secret and I don’t want to issue spoilers.

Girl Forgotten is a good read that I can recommend.

Having just finished reading pieces of her, I was delighted to receive this advance copy from netgalley.. the story was excellent and allowed for the evolution of Andy's character to stand out. I would have liked more of Laura, but just as with its predecessor, Girl Forgotten does well to flip through a range of timelines as you unpack the mystery. Recommended.

Andrea Oliver has just completed her final training to become a US Marshall when she is surprisingly given an assignment as part of a protection detail for a high powered Judge , who has been in receipt of death threats .
However the Judge comes from the same town as her father, currently trying for early release parole ...........
The Judges daughter , Emily , was killed years before , her death never solved ...... is there a link to her father ?
What follows is an intertwined murder mystery ............ who was the father of Emily's unborn child , what is the connection to her father and his "clique" and what will someone do to keep the secrets in the past where they belong ?
This is another fast paced thriller by the Author with twists and turns around every corner - told both in the past and the present until the two collide

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

What can I say about Karin Slaughters books that I haven’t said a hundred times before. She is my favourite female author and never ever disappoints with her novels.
Girl Forgotten features Andrea Oliver, Andy from a previous book Pieces of Her. Much to her mother Laura’s dismay, Andrea has graduated the gruelling training to become a US Marshall. Her first assignment sees her sent to guard a high power judge who has been receiving death threats, and who hasn’t long left to live. The judges daughter, Emily was murdered in 1982 and the murder was never solved. Andrea wants to find her killer before Emily’s mother dies, and that is the real reason she is there.
The story is interspersed with flash backs from the days leading up to Emily’s murder as seen through Emily’s eyes, and Andrea trying to recount her steps and find out who had harmed her.
Emily had been raped at a party where she had taken drugs, leaving her with no recollection of what had happened. She decides to start her own investigation but the only suspects are her friends, her clique, and one of them wouldn’t do that would they? 40 years later it looks like they all could be guilty and weeding out the truth is harder than it seems.
It’s a page turning read, and I am sure there will be Andrea Oliver novels to come.

#GirlForgotten #NetGalley

I think i was in over my head with this book. I didn’t realize it’s a second one in a series. And i don’t think i remember enough about the first to read this

Firstly thank you Netgalley for this ARC

Brilliant author struggled a bit at the beginning but you just need to persevere. Brilliant page turner

3.5 rounded up to 4

The Girl, Forgotten is Emily Vaughn who is murdered in Longbill Beach in 1982. 40 years later her murderer still remains free, the murder unsolved as her former tightknit friendship group closes ranks. However, in the present day, Andrea Oliver, now a US Marshal and on her first case, a mission to protect a judge who is receiving death threats. The judge in question is in fact Emily‘s mother. Andrea is determined to use the opportunity to try to discover the truth about who killed Emily and she has a very personal reason for doing so.

I really like the 1982 start of the novel which shocks you in several ways though it does plateau a bit after that picking up pace later on.

Initially, part of the issues for me are that the author keeps diverting from the plot path and we meander along taking an unnecessary amount of time to get from A to B. Fortunately this does improve significantly and something clicks and I’m all in as it becomes gripping.

Andrea as a character really grows on you, she seems to become more confident as she is now standing on her own two feet becoming resourceful and determined . I really like her partner too, Deputy Leonard Bible known as Catfish. I especially like his rules, he’s funny and the injection of his humour into the dark plot is most welcome. The other characters by and large are pieces of work, really awful excuses for human beings but they do make for immersive reading.

As the novel progresses in the multiple layers from both 1982 and the present day start to connect, the tempo increases, there’s plenty of action as well as tension and several good twists and turns. The ending is good too, it’s plausible and nicely set up for book number three and I’d like to see how that plays out.

I think it’s a good idea to have read book one (or to have seen the Netflix adaptation) as it makes more sense. However it’s not crucial.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to HarperCollins UK for their much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

A girl with a secret…
Longbill Beach, 1982. Emily Vaughn gets ready for prom night, the highlight of any high school experience. But Emily has a secret. And by the end of the evening, she will be dead.
A murder that remains a mystery…
Forty years later, Emily’s murder remains unsolved. Her friends closed ranks, her family retreated inwards, the community moved on. But all that’s about to change.
One final chance to uncover a killer…
Andrea Oliver arrives in town with a simple assignment: to protect a judge receiving death threats. But her assignment is a cover. Because, in reality, Andrea is here to find justice for Emily – and to uncover the truth before the killer decides to silence her too…
Kept me up well past my bedtime, I could not put it down.
So many thrilling twists and turns… Just could not put it down… highly recommend
Phenomenal… I did not want to put it down. I was blown away by this book... brilliant.

The unrelenting sexism and misogyny were quite depressing to read but the author weaves another fantastic thriller with plenty of twists. Andrea wasn't my favourite main character but I grew to like her more by the end of the book. Karin Slaughter is my favourite crime author but I still prefer the Will Trent series.

It is almost 4 years to the day that I read and reviewed ‘Pieces of Her’ and now 4 years on I have just finished the follow up book ‘Girl, forgotten’ where we meet Andy, or rather Andrea as she likes to be called now.
Having moved on from the past as much as she can, she is now a US Marshal.

Her first assignment straight from the academy should be an easy and somewhat boring, but nothing is ever as simple as that!
Her first job as a US Marshal is to provide protection to a high power judge who has been receiving death threats, however at the same time she is tasked with finally uncovering the perpetrator of a murder that happened in the same time years before.

As she digs deeper into the murder, is it possible that this might hit to close to home for her?
Was it her now incarcerated father that murdered one of the clique?

As always with a Karin Slaughter novel you just know that you are in for a treat!

This book is a carry on from the book Pieces of Her, but by no means that doesn’t mean you can’t just jump straight into this one without having read the previous one, or watched the Netflix series. However I would recommend both reading and watching it, the book is better than the tv series but you find that a lot with adaptations, but having said that, I binge watched the entire show in one sitting!

Not as fast paced as some of her other books but this book drags you deep inside Andrea’s life and the investigations and holds you there from start to finish.

And that ending! Omg, I truly hope there will be a next one. It definitely leaves you wanting more!

Girl, Forgotten will be published on 23 June 2022 and is available to pre order now

It is almost 4 years to the day that I read and reviewed ‘Pieces of Her’ and now 4 years on I have just finished the follow up book ‘Girl, forgotten’ where we meet Andy, or rather Andrea as she likes to be called now.
Having moved on from the past as much as she can, she is now a US Marshal.

Her first assignment straight from the academy should be an easy and somewhat boring, but nothing is ever as simple as that!
Her first job as a US Marshal is to provide protection to a high power judge who has been receiving death threats, however at the same time she is tasked with finally uncovering the perpetrator of a murder that happened in the same time years before.

As she digs deeper into the murder, is it possible that this might hit to close to home for her?
Was it her now incarcerated father that murdered one of the clique?

As always with a Karin Slaughter novel you just know that you are in for a treat!

This book is a carry on from the book Pieces of Her, but by no means that doesn’t mean you can’t just jump straight into this one without having read the previous one, or watched the Netflix series. However I would recommend both reading and watching it, the book is better than the tv series but you find that a lot with adaptations, but having said that, I binge watched the entire show in one sitting!

Not as fast paced as some of her other books but this book drags you deep inside Andrea’s life and the investigations and holds you there from start to finish.

And that ending! Omg, I truly hope there will be a next one. It definitely leaves you wanting more!

Girl, Forgotten will be published on 23 June 2022 and is available to pre order now

It is almost 4 years to the day that I read and reviewed ‘Pieces of Her’ and now 4 years on I have just finished the follow up book ‘Girl, forgotten’ where we meet Andy, or rather Andrea as she likes to be called now.
Having moved on from the past as much as she can, she is now a US Marshal.

Her first assignment straight from the academy should be an easy and somewhat boring, but nothing is ever as simple as that!
Her first job as a US Marshal is to provide protection to a high power judge who has been receiving death threats, however at the same time she is tasked with finally uncovering the perpetrator of a murder that happened in the same time years before.

As she digs deeper into the murder, is it possible that this might hit to close to home for her?
Was it her now incarcerated father that murdered one of the clique?

As always with a Karin Slaughter novel you just know that you are in for a treat!

This book is a carry on from the book Pieces of Her, but by no means that doesn’t mean you can’t just jump straight into this one without having read the previous one, or watched the Netflix series. However I would recommend both reading and watching it, the book is better than the tv series but you find that a lot with adaptations, but having said that, I binge watched the entire show in one sitting!

Not as fast paced as some of her other books but this book drags you deep inside Andrea’s life and the investigations and holds you there from start to finish.

And that ending! Omg, I truly hope there will be a next one. It definitely leaves you wanting more!

Girl, Forgotten will be published on 23 June 2022 and is available to pre order now

It is almost 4 years to the day that I read and reviewed ‘Pieces of Her’ and now 4 years on I have just finished the follow up book ‘Girl, forgotten’ where we meet Andy, or rather Andrea as she likes to be called now.
Having moved on from the past as much as she can, she is now a US Marshal.

Her first assignment straight from the academy should be an easy and somewhat boring, but nothing is ever as simple as that!
Her first job as a US Marshal is to provide protection to a high power judge who has been receiving death threats, however at the same time she is tasked with finally uncovering the perpetrator of a murder that happened in the same time years before.

As she digs deeper into the murder, is it possible that this might hit to close to home for her?
Was it her now incarcerated father that murdered one of the clique?

As always with a Karin Slaughter novel you just know that you are in for a treat!

This book is a carry on from the book Pieces of Her, but by no means that doesn’t mean you can’t just jump straight into this one without having read the previous one, or watched the Netflix series. However I would recommend both reading and watching it, the book is better than the tv series but you find that a lot with adaptations, but having said that, I binge watched the entire show in one sitting!

Not as fast paced as some of her other books but this book drags you deep inside Andrea’s life and the investigations and holds you there from start to finish.

And that ending! Omg, I truly hope there will be a next one. It definitely leaves you wanting more!

Girl, Forgotten will be published on 23 June 2022 and is available to pre order now

This is a sequel to ‘Pieces of Her’, taking place a few years after the previous book. It concentrates on Andrea (Andy) Oliver who has just completed her training as a Deputy Marshall. She is given am assignment right after graduation protecting an eminent Judge who has received death threats, partnered with an experienced officer. At the same time she is to covertly investigate the murder of the Judge’s daughter 40 years earlier. Andrea’s criminal father who is coming up for parole could be the perpetrator.
What follows is a dual timeline, the story of Emily, the Judge’s daughter in a different Era and the current investigation. Very cleverly constructed with brilliant characterization the story is absorbing all the way through. It is told with empathy, especially for Emily and I was hooked to the last page. There are some horrible characters in small town America balanced out by Andrea and her partner Catfish Bible. A must for all Karin Slaughter fans and all crime lovers.

4* My first intro to this big-name author, without realising it. Pleasantly surprised.

This was so readable, I found myself up at 1.15, after finishing work at 11pm, desperate to pick up from where I'd left it in the day. As an intro to such an established author, reading an ARC without the author's name in bold on the cover - meaning that I didn't clock who it was - was perfect, as I had no expectations and was pleasantly surprised.

It reminds me a little of the Mercy Fitzpatrick series by Kendra EIliot, with police procedures, small-town USA bad guys, different LEO agencies kind of cooperating, secrets, cults, social class, but without the aspect of romance, which I kind of enjoyed. Yes, there was a guy from the female lead's past towards the end of the tale, but he appeared for the right reasons and they had a valid connection for him to be around, but there wasn't any element of anything romantic - it seemed more like he got on her nerves a bit - until the epilogue, which left me wondering if we'd see more of this female lead. I'd like to read more about her, but not really about any future romance.

I liked her interactions with her new USMC colleague Bible, but kept getting distracted by his name and how he pretty much opened up every conversation addressing her as 'well Partner' and how confusing it was not to know that he was married to their boss until that got revealed, as husband and wife would talk to each other as husband and wife one moment, then superior and subordinate the next. But, it was refreshing that the two didn't really cross, until, realistically, when he got hurt.

This was a bit woolly in places and didn't quite sort everything out in the wash, and one character who'd been bigged up turned out to be rather big-sigh anticlimactic, but maybe there's a reason for that, and a future tale for that. But, I'd certainly read more of this author and of the female lead and her partner.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for my reading pleasure.

GIRL, FORGOTTEN 23/06
I am a huge Karin Slaughter fan and have read all her books to date.
2 points of clarification regarding this book:-
Not a stand alone it’s a sequel to Pieces Of Her.
This continues on from the Pieces of Her book NOT the tv series.
Cleverly written. I had to re read the epilogue at the end of chapter one, as the closing sentence makes you want to re hash the details prior to carrying on with the story.
Book is a double edged timeline with the current day Andrea working to solve a 40 year old crime while also trying to discover the truth regarding her father.
I found myself rooting for the character of Emily in the 1980’s in her detective work. And Bible who worked along with Andrea is a great character too.
Note, the Dr’s interrogation of Emily is horrible, sad and so old fashioned.
Like all Slaughter novels this book keeps you in suspense until the end. It also leaves an opening for a third novel in the series which would greatly received