My first Karin Slaughter and a really compelling read. It begins with a gruesome attack on a family home, 28 years ago - an attack that will change the lives of sisters Charlotte and Samantha Quinn (and their notorious defense attorney father) forever.

It then fast-forwards to the present and a school shooting that isn't all it appears to be. Charlotte/Charlie has stayed in the town where she grew up. She's changed but the folk there haven't. They still resent her for every case her father's ever defended (for he makes a good job of defending the indefensible).

The school shooting is nothing like the violent crime that undid her own family, but as a witness Charlie is immediately dragged into the whole mess around it, the 'shooter', her father's feelings on the case, and a sense that somehow all of this is connected to her own past.

I enjoyed this book, which was not only a good suspense read (I like crime/suspense but have been reading a lot of them lately!) but also a fine legal thriller too. The characters all felt like really people and I particularly enjoyed delving into the differences between the sisters and how they'd both got to that point in their lives. Recommended (if you like this genre).

This was a brilliant and thought provoking story, a bit blood thirsty in parts also sad . So pleased I read this book and was given the opportunity to read it. Two clever sisters, a brilliant mother and a quirky father. Could not put this book down, difficult to give a review as I have so many options so decided just to say, Brilliant.

This book is basically about family tragedy. Two young girls are involved in a horrific crime and their mother is murdered in front of them. Years later, one of the sisters has to deal with another tragedy - a school shooting - whilst also facing problems with her husband and life in general. Her and her father are both lawyers and they become involved in the case, but there are unresolved issues of the past that will be forced to the surface by the events of the present.

I've never read a Karin Slaughter book before. I've always heard good things about her, but for some reason I thought she was a bit of a 'trash' novelist. I couldn't have been more wrong. The writing in this book was fantastic. It was gritty, but the thoughts and feelings of these very tender and sensitive human beings were flawlessly intertwined with the brutality of the crimes and gore within the pages. I was immediately hooked and I never felt like there was a good time to put this book down.

The characters were very interesting because they were all suffering and damaged. Although you get to know what they are thinking and how they are acting, you don't really get to know them because they won't allow anyone to get close to them, because of the hurt they are feeling. It's seriously cleverly done. I didn't feel like I 100% liked the main protagonist, but then again I didn't feel I was supposed to, or that she wanted me to like her. And that's good writing, because I was still rooting for her.

The plot was very clever, there were quite a few unexpected twists. The pace was quite fast at times, but slower at other times, as felt appropriate to the mood of that particular scene. I can't really fault this book at all, and I would definitely recommend it to thriller and crime fans. I am now finally a Karin Slaughter fan!

3.5*

I've previously read and enjoyed Slaughters Will Trent series so I can say that existing fans of this authors work will not be disappointed, and general fans of the criminal procedure genre will certainly get their fix from 'The Good Daughter.'
I would also recommend it to those who enjoy any kind of character-driven drama even if you don't normally like crime fiction. Slaughter excels at combining all of these elements to make for an over all great read and a story that you won't forget.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this title.

Another gripping thriller by Karin Slaughter..... an entertaining read.

Thanks for the chance to review it!

Wow, I think I have found a new crime author.
This book starts with a lot of action and is gritty throughout. Like all the best crime it is shocking and doesn't sugar coat details.
By far the best part is the characters. They are so complex and well drawn that I was fully invested on what was going to happen to them.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Samantha and Charlotte are sisters starting their teenage years in a delapidated house as their old house was burnt down thanks to the hatred for their father a defence lawyer. One evening two men break in and murder their mother and the girls are in a dangerous situation.

Fast forward twenty years and charlotte is the remaining daughter helping their father when a teenage girl shoots two people in a school. How is this related to what happened to Charlotte in her history? Karin’s books are always amazing but this was a step above anything she has done before. Absolutely addictive!

The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter is an excellent stand alone psychological thriller . 28 years ago the Quinn family were torn apart, the two sisters were marched at gunpoint into the woods, after seeing their mother murdered. One ran for her life, the other remained. 28 years later it all seems to be happening again as Charlie Quinn finds herself in the centre of a school shooting. As the residents of Pikeville reel from this devastating incident at their local middle school, so Charlie Quinn's life starts to unravel and the events of that night, so long ago, suddenly begin to reassert themselves. Particularly as her father, a defense attorney, takes on the case for the girl accused of the killings.
Karin Slaughter is an eminent story teller and all her characters tug on your heart strings and rile up your anger in equal measure. The Good Daughter is no different. This thriller has all the elements you expect, someone to love, someone to hate, someone to pity and a hidden truth that catches you unawares, even when you were sure you knew exactly where the story was going and how it would end.
Yet again an incredible read from Karin Slaughter.

4.5*

I'm very late to the party on this book, which is a shame (for me!) because it's such a great read. I read this in two sittings aboard a long-haul flight.

This book reminds me of one of those "spot the difference" pictures. You get different perspectives on the same events so you have to be paying close attention in those sections. I like a book that makes you concentrate. Having said that, it inevitably leaves room for repetition and I'm still trying to make up my mind as to whether that's an issue or if I enjoyed it more for that.

The twists (two major twists) I did not see coming and were all the better for that. The characters were believable and even loveable, in spite of their flaws and I was surprised how much I enjoyed the writing. I love John Grisham's writing and this felt like Slaughter and Grisham co-wrote a mystery/crime thriller.

Slaughter's great skill is in the plotting. This is a great page-turner because you just have to canter through to find out what's going to happen next....

Many thanks to NetGalley, HarperCollins UK and Karin Slaughter for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Enjoyed this book different to what I normally read but very well written the characters were all quite complex and it was very gruesome and gravic in parts but kept you wanting to read more to see how it played out a chilling read

I have read books by this author before so I kne I would enjoy this book.
Two daughters are witness to an horrific murder, their own mother, Gamma. The killers hadn't meant this to happen but now there are two witnesses who know the voices the Culpepper brothers, so they march the girls out side to a shallow grave Sam told Charlie to run get away, get help Charlie does eventually after what feels like an eternity run but not fast enough....
All this is happening because their father Rusty an attorney who takes on cases no one else will touch and has amassed quite a few enemies..
Sam the eldest sister moves away as soon as she is able and only returns because her father is ill,possibly dying and Rusty needs Sam to take a case for him, a young girl Alice is in big trouble and it looks like straight forward murder but is it ?
Sam and Charlie are brought back together and only find out the truth about the day Gamma died

Karin Slaughter has been writing quality thrillers for some time new and this book keeps up the good work. Based around a small town law firm and a tormented family with a traumatic past the book succeeds in providing nicely-drawn characters with a murder mystery that challenges our views on ethics and morality. It's not a high octane thriller but it held this reader to the end. Made me feel for the characters (the good ones, anyway). I'd recommend this....

I was hooked from page one and could not put this book down. I enjoy karin Slaughter as an author anyway but this was a really good read that just seemed to end way to quickly.
This does not follow the standard pattern of Slaughter's other series and is I'd say written in a different style, also not what i would really call a stereotypical thriller. The plot twist I think is quite easy to foresee but i enjoyed the book nonetheless

Was hooked from the first page and each chapter had me racing to reach the next. I loved the relationship between the sisters and their father, the way the author maintained their personalities, characteristics and ailments throughout the story. Enjoyed the little glimpses of humour in between the horror of the situation. However, I was not convinced that two such intelligent females would not recognise the man involved in their mother’s murder and the ensuing horrors they both experienced which disappointed me a little. Despite this I would have no hesitation in r3commending this book to others.

Another cracker of a book from karin Slaughter! I couldn't put this down and finished it within a couple of days. The dynamics between all the characters have been very well thought out and linked perfectly to really make you think throughout the book. I loved the little twists and the separate sub-chapters relating to the past. Highly recommend!

Charlie, a lawyer is caught up in a school shooting which brings back bad memories. When she was younger, her sister Sam and she were victims of a terrifying home attack due to her father, a lawyer too and a bit of a maverick.
In this attack, her mother was killed and both sisters hurt. The sisters then become estranged, secrets buried. This is the catalyst for the story.
An intense and thought provoking read, story set in a small American town is at times horrific and in depth. Gripping.
You will not be disappointed.

There's a reason why Karin Slaughter's books are so popular and that's because they're addictive.  Once I started reading (and my kindle said it would take me 6 hours, which is about twice as long as any other book), I barely looked up until the final, twisty pages.

Sam and Charlie are teenagers living with their parents in Pikeville, Georgia in the late 80s.  After unimaginable violence visits their family (and this is in the first chapter, so I'm not giving too much away), their lives are torn apart.  This episode is revisited several times throughout the book from different points of view.  What actually happened that day, and what are the repercussions nearly 30 years later?

The book is also asking, of course, which was the good daughter?  Charlie or Sam?  Charlie has stayed in Pikeville all these years whilst Sam couldn't wait to get away, and to which parent were they being a good daughter, Rusty or Gamma?  Family love and loyalty are tested in this novel, not only with Charlie and Sam, but also with the Culpeppers, the Huckabees, the Wilsons and the Pinkmans.

Karin Slaughter weaves a strong storyline over the course of the book and means that the reader is kept waiting right until the end to find out how all the strands come together.  The device of using a small town where everyone knows each other's business is useful as it keeps the cast relatively small, and ensures that what happened 28 years ago is still being played out in the present day.

Intense action from the outset. The Quinn family lose their house in an arson attack, possibly by someone angry at Rusty the father and defence lawyer. Not two weeks later they are subjected to another violent, life changing attack. 28 years later, these events come ripping to the surface after a school shooting throws the Quinn family back together.
The family relationships and conflicts intertwined with the mystery solving and town attitude towards the Quinn family makes for a gripping story.

This was my first introduction to Karen and it did not disappoint. Intelligent and gripping with grey characterisation. I can’t wait to read more of her works.

I read this some time back and enjoyed it hugely. Karen Slaughter sure knows how to write a thriller ! The sad tale of the Sisters is really heartbreaking and yet there is no flinching away from the sometimes very, graphic descriptions of what occurred in the Farmhouse that day and why. Sam and Charlie are both damaged, one physically and mentally and the other more mentally by the shocking events.

Father, Rusty, appears to care more about his job and his belief in the right to be represented than the welfare of his family, to his great cost.

The portrayal of small town Southern US is familiar and yet revealing. I have seen this book described as a legal thriller, I'm not sure I would agree. This is the story of a family who are literally ripped apart as a consequence of what happened that day.