Southern Gothic

I've been hearing a lot of buzz about the new Karin Slaughter novel, Faithless, in the book blogging world. This was my first time to read/listen to Slaughter's work, and I found the abridged audiobook version entertaining enough to keep me awake on the commute but not remarkable.

Faithless stars Slaughter's recurring characters medical examiner Sara Linton, her ex-husband/current boyfriend police Chief Jeffrey Tolliver, and Detective Lena Adams, who’s struggling with her own inner demons. They stumble upon a murder victim who was buried alive in a wooden box in the forest near their small Georgia town.

The victim, they soon discover, was a member of a strict religious family that owns a cooperative farm. Their investigation leads them to several suspects around town, particularly at the farm, which hires down-on-their-luck folks, many with criminal backgrounds.

Because these are recurring characters, Slaughter seems to be investing in a long-term character arc. Which, for this single book, means that nothing much happens to the characters personally. Sure, they run around interviewing people and poking at dead bodies, but I didn't feel I got to know them.

in Faithless, Slaughter avoids the kind of twist ending I hate, the kind that’s so twisty it comes out of left field. But she also creates little suspense. When the killer – or is it killers? – was revealed, I had no “a-ha” moment. I had an “oh – right” moment. No emotion, no excitement.

I just didn’t care what happened at the end, and none of the characters intrigued me much. It’s fair to say I cared less about the outcome of this story than about the average episode of Law & Order: SVU.