Pretty Girls: A Novel

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This was one of the hardest books to read that I’ve ever read. It has trigger warnings for pretty much any awful thing you can imagine like: violent rape, sexual assault, suicide, graphic violence, murder, torture, and at times I honestly wasn’t sure if I could stomach any more of it. But I was captivated by this writing and I couldn’t stop reading this book, I had to figure out how it would end. The disappearance of a teenage girl and the murder of a middle-aged man, almost a quarter-century apart: what could connect them? Forming a wary truce, the surviving sisters look to the past to find the truth, unearthing the secrets that destroyed their family all those years ago ... and uncovering the possibility of redemption, and revenge, where they least expect it. It's up to Lydia and Claire to revisit their past, unearthing the secrets that destroyed their family all those years ago. A lot of people like that sort of thing, but I personally felt overwhelmed beginning around the 30% mark, and it didn't really let up until the end. I didn't have a problem with the violence until that point, but then it just got to be too much, especially because the nature of the brutality toward the rape and murder victims is extremely unsettling.

my only thing is how nicely wrapped up the ending is. i understand the importance of giving the reader closure and a sense of justice, especially when the story is as brutal as this one. but, realistically, with how chaotic everything in this book is, i would have expected a much messier and more emotionally complicated ending.

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HOLY HELL. So, I just spent the last 2 days reading this awesome book. It went waaaaaay the freaking hell outside of my "usual" reading preferences. The genre is more of a crime thriller (no romance) which I almost never read but this particular blurb really grabbed me. So I opened the book. By the end of the prologue, I had CHILLS running through me and tears in my eyes.... So, I had to read it!!! And honestly I loved it!! A hell-raising thriller…a genuinely exciting narrative driven by strong-willed female characters who can’t wait around until the boys shake the lead out of their shoes.” At its heart, THE LAST WIDOW is a book about a cult: The Invisible Patriot Army. What made you drawn to this subject matter? I don’t even have time to touch on the weird beauty stuff in this book. Claire’s beauty is mentioned constantly, as is Lydia’s chubbiness. In fact, the dude torturing her BY WATERBOARDING HER WITH HIS OWN URINE, manages to get a couple of digs in about how she’s gained so much weight, he doesn’t even want to rape her anymore. Apparently, that’s how we’re supposed to know that he’s a REALLY bad guy.

You will always be fond of me. I represent to you all the sins you never had the courage to commit.” Ms. Slaughter can give you precise, intricate details of a crime like no other. She makes you feel like you are watching your foot placement as you tread through the crime scene with bated breath. Your brain is filled with such terrible imaginings. Need another excuse to treat yourself to a new book this week? We've got you covered with the buzziest new releases of the day. Karin Slaughter is the author of more than twenty instant NEW YORK TIMES bestselling novels, including the Edgar–nominated COP TOWN and standalone novels THE GOOD DAUGHTER, PRETTY GIRLS, and GIRL, FORGOTTEN. She is published in 120 countries with more than 40 million copies sold across the globe. PIECES OF HER is a #1 Netflix original series starring Toni Collette. The Will Trent Series is on ABC (and streaming on Hulu in the U.S and Disney+ internationally). THE GOOD DAUGHTER and FALSE WITNESS are in development for film/tv. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, she lives in Atlanta.

83) Vianne

But Pretty Girls is a book about women being hurt. Nameless, terrified, hopeless women being brutalized in every way possible. And then they think of more ways to hurt them. Tied to meat hooks, disemboweled, whatever you can think of. It’s like if Criminal Minds went on a coke bender. And yes, the book is written by a woman and mostly told through the perspective of two women. I’m sure to some that mitigates the issue of the over-the-top violence against women. But I can’t get past the gratuitous, almost gleeful sexual sadism that permeates this novel. Wow! This was one dark and disturbing story. I love dark reads, but this was pretty gruesome for me at times. I was at the edge of my seat from start to finish with this one. I even had nightmares about this book. As I start to write this review, just thinking about it is giving me the chills. It was just that messed up. Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival. ok seriously. This is pretty gruesome. If you’re sensitive to graphic violence, this book is not for you. Please be warned.