I am becoming a reluctant audiobook user. I can't bring myself to call myself an audiobook "reader", because a part of me still feels like it's cheating. But I have found over the years that on long drives, music is no longer enough to keep my brain occupied. It started with my favorite red-headed comedian, Kathy Griffin. I listened to her memoir on a long drive to Michigan, and found that it made the drive much more enjoyable. I was convinced that it was only because she's freakin' hysterical, but when the time came for my next long drive through the boring, flat landscape of the midwest, I found the longest audiobook iTunes had to offer, World Without End by Ken Follett. So when I was approached by the publishers of Karin Slaughter's new audiobook, Fallen, I decided that I would give it a shot. I am a fan of Slaughter's Will Trent/Faith Mitchell series, and the fact that they were sending me some give-away copies was icing on the cake.
Fallen picks up the story of GBI Agent Faith Mitchell after the birth of her daughter, Emma. She is on her way to her mother's house to pick Emma up after a Saturday morning in-service at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. When she arrives at her mother's house, she finds Emma locked in the shed, her mother's house in bloody disarray, and two armed men struggling in the bedroom. Faith tries to question the men about where her mother is, but is forced to kill both men before they tell her anything. Will Trent and her mother's best friend, Amanda Wagner, Assistant Director of the GBI, swoop in and take control of the scene. With Faith a person of interest, and Will and Amanda not technically on the case, they have to work under the radar, and outside of standard operating procedure to find and save Faith's mother, Evelyn. They once again call on the help of Sarah Linton, a local doctor who was drawn into a previous case and who has developed a rather strained friendship with Will.I've decided over the course of the last few years that the reason that I like so many mystery/thriller series is because they are character driven first, and mystery-centered second. I feel like a close personal friend of Alex Delaware, Myron Bollitar, Kay Scarpetta (more on her here), Temperance Brennan, and Pete Decker and Rina Lazarus. But none of these characters are as interesting and well-developed as Will Trent. An incredibly smart man with significant dyslexia, an orphan who was "raised" by the Georgia Children's Home, Will is complicated and intense and damaged and loyal and strong, and so emotionally stunted that he has no idea how to get out of his very dysfunctional marriage and into a healthy relationship with Sarah. The cast of characters that surround him are also memorable and complex-Faith, former cop and former teen mom; Amanda Wagner, ball-busting middle aged woman who came up through the ranks the hard way, Evelyn Mitchell, Faith's mom and former cop who may or may not have been on the take; and Angie Trent, Will's completely sociopathic wife. In this particular book, the characters and their lives were inextricably linked to the mystery to be solved.
The story itself is compelling and well-paced. There is enough action to be engaging, but enough character development and exposition so that things don't feel disconnected. There were times when I would arrive at my destination and have to sit in the car waiting for a good place to stop, but really, there were no good places to stop. Slaughter has given us another great mystery/thriller, one that will grip you and hold tight until the very end.
Thanks to AudioGo for providing me with 5 (yes, FIVE) audiobooks to give away to me readers. If you are interested in a copy, please comment below with your email or blog address. I will use the ol' "pull names out of a hat" trick to decide who the lucky recipients are. No, you don't have to become a follower, or find me on Twitter, or send me a pint of blood or your first born child. Just say hi!
If I'm not too late, I would love to win
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