And then the first big thing happens and then almost immediately a second. Me? I felt my heart sink. Because anyone who's seen a 90s thriller, Lifetime movie or not, should be able to rattle off the next few major plot points in easy succession.

holy exposition batman. I feel like I've just have this flood of information streaming into my head for the last few percents. It almost feels like this book will never end. I don't mean that in a bad way but there's just so much going on. 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. I can’t just walk away from this. I have to know. There isn’t anything left in my life except finding out the truth.” <--- my sentiments exactly! *keeps reading*

Library folk? Take off the mystery label you might place on the spine of this book. Put on a horror label instead. People deserve at least SOME sort of warning. The queen of police thrillers takes a more psychological approach with her 15th novel…the book has all the twists and suspense that readers expect from Slaughter, but from a more poignant perspective.” — Atlanta Magazine The two sisters join forces to continue searching for the truth about Julia’s disappearance, and must face the consequences of Claire learning some very disturbing secrets about her husband. Overall, I thought that it was a fantastic story. It was suspenseful and kept me in a hyper-vigilant state until every question had been answered. I had chills while listening to this story. This has got to be one of the most screwed up, disturbing stories that I've "read". I’ve read two of Slaughter’s books and I’m pretty sure I’m scared of her. Actually, when I looked up the meaning of the word graphic, her picture popped up. One thing is for sure, Slaughter knows how to grab a reader’s attention. This is quite detailed to the point of discomfort, but it still didn’t deter me from finishing this book to the end.

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.”You couldn’t turn on the TV without hearing about the missing teenage girl. Sixteen years old. White. Middle class. Very pretty. No one ever seemed quite as outraged when an ugly woman went missing.” I just want to start by saying I don't want to list any spoilers here; I think this book was so powerful that I would hate to discourage someone from reading it because I took away from their experience before even beginning the book. 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. Delivery with Standard Australia Post usually happens within 2-10 business days from time of dispatch. Please be aware that the delivery time frame may vary according to the area of delivery and due to various reasons, the delivery may take longer than the original estimated timeframe.

Anyway, I loved the idea so much that I scrapped the book I had planned for this year (2015*) and started working on the storyline for what became PRETTY GIRLS. I was on fire, I tell ya! The characters were so firmly cemented in my mind by the time I sat down to write the first scene that it was almost like I was taking dictation. In 1991 Julia Carroll disappeared. Her body was never found. In the following years the family coped in very different ways. The mother while forever quietly grieving, moved on and made a new life for herself. The father spent years looking for any clue as to what happened. Sisters Claire and Lydia grieved in very different ways and were estranged having not spoken in many years. Now over twenty years later, there has been another disappearance of a teenage girl and a murder of a middle-aged man that seem to be connected. This causes the sisters to reunite. Twenty years ago, Claire and Lydia Scott's older sister vanished without a trace. Her disappearance had a devastating effect on their family. After reading The Good Daughter as well, I can say with confidence that Karin Slaughter is extremely talented at writing complex family dynamics. I loved learning about Claire and Lydia’s history, uncovering the reason behind their falling out, and watching them piece their relationship together in the direst of situations.Pretty Girls hammers the point home that men is the worst thing that’s ever happened to humanity. . . Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival. A stunning family tragedy and a hold-your-breath pedal-to-the-metal thriller...certain to be a book of the year." Then throw in about a thousand times on how very beautiful our main character is...she is pretty and smart. *insert gag here* While it’s listed as a short story, Karin Slaughter’s Blonde Hair, Blue Eyes is more of a prologue to her latest novel, Pretty Girls. It’s just sold separately for some reason (coughmoneycough!).