Fallen (Will Trent #5) – Karin Slaughter

Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Pages: 387
Publisher: Arrow
Release Date: June 21, 2011

There’s no police training stronger than a cop’s instinct. Faith Mitchell’s mother isn’t answering her phone. Her front door is open. There’s a bloodstain above the knob. Her infant daughter is hidden in a shed behind the house. All that the Georgia Bureau of Investigations taught Faith Mitchell goes out the window when she charges into her mother’s house, gun drawn. She sees a man dead in the laundry room. She sees a hostage situation in the bedroom. What she doesn’t see is her mother. . . .

“You know what we’re here for. Hand it over, and we’ll let her go.””

When the hostage situation turns deadly, Faith is left with too many questions, not enough answers. To find her mother, she’ll need the help of her partner, Will Trent, and they’ll both need the help of trauma doctor Sara Linton. But Faith isn’t just a cop anymore–she’s a witness. She’s also a suspect.

The thin blue line hides police corruption, bribery, even murder. Faith will have to go up against the people she respects the most in order to find her mother and bring the truth to light–or bury it forever.

It pains me to rate a Karin Slaughter novel three stars, but I didn’t enjoy the mystery in Fallen at all. What I enjoyed most about Fallen was the character interactions and their progression.

Fallen’s mystery involves Faith’s mother, Evelyn, as she’s kidnapped while Will and Amanda connect the dots to Evelyn’s past and Will’s past investigation of her. Mysteries that involve gangs, money, and drugs are not mysteries that I find compelling or interesting. I prefer Slaughter’s depiction of serial killers or deranged individuals. I love it when she goes dark, but Fallen’s style mystery doesn’t allow for as dark a storyline that I prefer.

The reason I rated the novel three stars instead of two is because of Will, Sara, and Angie. I love these characters. The relationships between the characters are rich and dynamic making them a pleasure to read. Will and Angie’s relationship is toxic at best. They’re both fucked up because of their pasts and cling to each other as an unhealthy coping mechanism. Whenever they’re on page together, it’s explosive. On the other hand, Will and Sara’s relationship has been a delicious slow burn, but it all comes to a head in Fallen and it is everything. Fallen is worth reading for these scenes alone.

Overall, Fallen is not my favorite novel in the series, but it does feature some of my favorite character moments to date. If you’re a fan of these novels for the characters, Fallen will more than satisfy your wants and desires for these characters.

Have you read Fallen? What did you think?