Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter Narrator: Kathleen Early
Published by Blackstone Audiobooks on September 29, 2015
Genres: Suspense, Thriller
Length: 20 hours
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased
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Twenty years ago Claire Scott's eldest sister, Julia, went missing. No one knew where she went - no note, no body. It was a mystery that was never solved and it tore her family apart.
Now another girl has disappeared, with chilling echoes of the past. And it seems that she might not be the only one.
Claire is convinced Julia's disappearance is linked.
But when she begins to learn the truth about her sister, she is confronted with a shocking discovery, and nothing will ever be the same...
Trigger warnings: suicide, substance abuse, violence against women
Pretty Girls is another great story by Karin Slaughter. It is exactly what I would expect to get from her, dark, twisted and kept me on the edge of my seat. It is also not the book for anyone who is even a little bit squeamish. I don’t know that I would say this is her darkest story, I feel like they are always her darkest story. The stuff she writes is not for the faint of heart, for sure.
This story follows two estranged sisters who come back together after the baby sister’s husband is killed in a back alley. They become estranged when Claire’s (the baby sister) boyfriend sexually assaults her older sister (Lydia). Claire and even the mom, Helen, don’t believe her, because Paul (the boyfriend and future husband), is such a great guy. He goes on to become the perfect husband. Almost too perfect. It doesn’t help that not long before Paul was in Claire’s life, the oldest sister goes missing and is never found.
I don’t want to give too much away and ruin the suspense of the story, but there are several things I do want to mention in general about the story. First, the characters are all amazing. It is one of the things I love most about Karin Slaughter books, she always makes me fall in love with her characters. I really loved Claire and Lydia’s mom and dad. We get to meet them in different ways, but I loved meeting them both.
I also loved watching the sisters come back together. They do really learn how much they mean to each other. In the end, I think they end up closer than ever. I don’t have a sister. I do have an older brother. And while we aren’t extremely close (we talk every month or two and exchange cards at birthdays and holidays) , I know he would be there for me, no matter what. I would do the same for him.
This story really kept me on my toes. I never knew what was going to happen next. If you like dark thrillers with amazing characters and don’t have a problem with extremely graphic details, this is the book for you.
There is also a short story after this one, which tells the story of Julia right before she goes missing. She was a student at University of Georgia and wrote for the school paper. She also volunteers for a homeless shelter. When a homeless girl goes missing, she wants to write a story about missing girls. It was a great story too.
Narration:
Kathleen Early performs most, if not all, of Karin Slaughter’s stories. She always does such an amazing job. I really just fall into the story and the characters. She’s always great with the character voices and the emotion that each character is going through. I would never hesitate to pick up an audiobook with Early doing the narration.
Listen to a clip: HERE
About Kathleen Early
Kathleen Early has performed on Broadway, as well as performing off-Broadway and at a number of regional theaters. She has made forays into the film and television world, winning a Beverly Hills Film Festival Outstanding Female Performance Award for her part in Trip in a Summer Dress. She was most recently seen as Dr. Dasiy Pepman on Grey’s Anatomy, and will be Nurse Kathy on the upcoming series Miami Medical.
About Karin Slaughter
Karin Slaughter is one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed storytellers. Published in 120 countries with more than 35 million copies sold across the globe, her nineteen novels include the Grant County and Will Trent books, as well as the Edgar-nominated COP TOWN and the instant NEW YORK TIMES bestselling novels PRETTY GIRLS, THE GOOD DAUGHTER, and PIECES OF HER. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, Karin Slaughter lives in Atlanta. Her standalone novels PIECES OF HER, THE GOOD DAUGHTER, and COP TOWN are in development for film and television.
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I started listening to audiobooks when a new book in a series was coming out and I wanted to get a refresher, but didn’t have time to read all the books (I think it was Anita Blake). I fell in love. I stayed with strictly re-reading books that I’d already read for a long time. I eventually tried an audiobook for something that I hadn’t read first and was hooked there too. Now, I listen to audio for both re-reads and first time. I have some series that I’ve given up reading and only listen. I try to get any many books/audiobooks from the library to help save on my budget. Books on CD and the newer digital downloads from the library really allow me to listen more. I then purchase my favorites (because who can wait in line for your favorite book??) and less mainstream books from Audible or some other online retailer.
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I love Karin Slaughter so much! I’m currently in the middle of the Will Trent series and it’s so good <3
Thanks for the great reminder about this one, Melanie💜 I’ve had it forever!
I don’t mind dark suspense stories like this, I just can’t take a steady stream of them. I have to mix in a few lighter reads along the way.
I’ve been wanting to read a Karen Slaughter book. This audiobooks sounds wonderful.
That sounds like it would be a pretty good read.
This is another one that I’ve also read – I agree with your analysis of Slaughter’s books…..she definitely goes to the dark side – and sometimes that’s what I’m in the mood for. Especially because she writes such great characters. In case you’re interested in my review of the book, here it is: https://www.bookshelfjourneys.com/post/pretty-girls-book-review
It’s amazing that you can produce a review every day. That takes so much time and thought! Plus to read the books that quickly. Sheesh. Good on ‘ya.