Karin Slaughter (born January 6, 1971) is an American

crime writer True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events. The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...

. She has written 21 novels, which have sold more than 40 million copies and have been published in 120 countries. Her first novel, ''Blindsighted'' (2001), was published in 27 languages and made the

Crime Writers' Association The Crime Writers' Association (CWA) is a specialist authors’ organisation in the United Kingdom, most notable for its Dagger awards for the best crime writing of the year, and the Diamond Dagger awarded to an author for lifetime achievement. T ...

's Dagger Award shortlist for "Best Thriller Debut" of 2001. Slaughter also won the 2015

CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger The CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger is an annual award given by the British Crime Writers' Association for best thriller of the year. The award is sponsored by the estate of Ian Fleming. It is given to a title that fits the broadest definition of th ...

award for her novel ''Cop Town''. Her 2018 novel, ''

Pieces of Her ''Pieces of Her'' is a thriller novel by American author Karin Slaughter, published on August 21, 2018 by William Morrow and Company and HarperCollins Publishers.television series of the same name, released in March 2022 on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

Philanthropy

Slaughter is a library advocate and founded Save the Libraries, a non-profit organization that campaigns to support US public

libraries A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

. The Save the Libraries fund has provided more than $300,000 to the

DeKalb County Public Library The DeKalb County Public Library (DCPL) is the public library system of DeKalb County, Georgia in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The library system headquarters are at the Darro C. Willey Administrative Offices in Decatur, Georgia, Decatur. Its ...

in Atlanta, Georgia.

Publishing history

Characters from Slaughter's two main series,

Grant County Grant County may refer to: Places ;Australia * County of Grant, Victoria ;United States *Grant County, Arkansas *Grant County, Indiana * Grant County, Kansas *Grant County, Kentucky *Grant County, Minnesota *Grant County, Nebraska *Grant C ...

and

Will Trent ''Will Trent'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series based on Karin Slaughter's Karin Slaughter#Will Trent (Atlanta) series, Will Trent series of novels. The series premiered on January 3, 2023, on American Broadcasting C ...

(Atlanta), were brought together in her novels '' Undone'' (2009), titled ''Genesis'' internationally, and ''Broken'' (2010). In these novels, Will Trent and

Sara Linton Karin Slaughter (born January 6, 1971) is an American crime writer. She has written 21 novels, which have sold more than 40 million copies and have been published in 120 countries. Her first novel, ''Blindsighted'' (2001), was published in 27 la ...

work cases set in Atlanta and Grant County, respectively.

Grant County series (2001 to 2007)

Slaughter is best known for her

series: * ''Blindsighted'', 2001 * '' Kisscut'', 2002 * ''

A Faint Cold Fear ''A Faint Cold Fear'' is the third novel in the Grant County series by author Karin Slaughter. It was originally published in hardback in 2003. Previous books in the series are ''Blindsighted'', and '' Kisscut''. It features the characters Jeffr ...

'', 2003 * ''

Indelible ''Indelible'' is the fourth book in the Grant County series by author Karin Slaughter. It was originally released in hardback in 2004. Previous books in the series are '' Blindsighted'', ''Kisscut'', and ''A Faint Cold Fear''. These books star Sa ...

'', 2004 * ''

Faithless Faithless are an English band that formed in 1995, with its core members being Rollo, Sister Bliss and Maxi Jazz. Their first album, '' Reverence'', was released in 1996 and their most recent, ''All Blessed'', in 2020. They have sold millions ...

'', 2005 * ''

Beyond Reach ''Beyond Reach'' is the sixth novel in the Grant County series by Karin Slaughter, originally published in 2007. The previous books in the series are '' Blindsighted, Kisscut, A Faint Cold Fear, Indelible'', and '' Faithless''. ''Beyond Reach'' ...

/Skin Privilege'', 2007 Set in the fictional town of Heartsdale, Georgia, (in the fictional Grant County) the narrative takes place from the perspective of three main characters:

, the town's

pediatrician Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

and part-time

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into Manner of death, the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

;

Jeffrey Tolliver Karin Slaughter (born January 6, 1971) is an American crime writer. She has written 21 novels, which have sold more than 40 million copies and have been published in 120 countries. Her first novel, ''Blindsighted'' (2001), was published in 27 la ...

, Linton's husband and the chief of police; and his subordinate, detective

Lena Adams Karin Slaughter (born January 6, 1971) is an American crime writer. She has written 21 novels, which have sold more than 40 million copies and have been published in 120 countries. Her first novel, ''Blindsighted'' (2001), was published in 27 la ...

Will Trent (Atlanta) series

The Will Trent series, which takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, features

Georgia Bureau of Investigation The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is the state bureau of investigation of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is an independent, statewide agency that provides assistance to Georgia's criminal justice system in the areas of criminal investiga ...

special agent Will Trent and his partner

Faith Mitchell Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

. So far, Trent has appeared in ''

Triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek language, Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) t ...

'', '' Fractured'', '' Undone'', '' Broken'', ''

Fallen Fallen may refer to: People * Carl Fredrik Fallén (1764–1830), Swedish botanist and entomologist * Gabriel Toledo (born 1991), known as FalleN, Brazilian ''Counter-Strike'' player Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Fallen ( ...

'', ''Criminal'', ''Unseen,'' ''The Kept Woman'', ''The Last Widow'' and ''The Silent Wife,'' as well as the novellas ''Snatched'' and ''Busted.''

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

has ordered a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

starring Ramón Rodríguez as Trent and

Erika Christensen Erika Jane Christensen (born August 19, 1982) is an American actress and singer whose filmography includes roles in ''Traffic'' (2000), '' Swimfan'' (2002), ''The Banger Sisters'' (2002), ''The Perfect Score'' (2004), ''Flightplan'' (2005), '' ...

as Angie, his girlfriend.

The series ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

has started playing as of Jan 3, 2023.

Other works

''Like a Charm'' is a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

anthology featuring several thriller authors, including

Lee Child James Dover Grant (born 29 October 1954), primarily known by his pen name Lee Child, is a British author who writes thriller novels, and is best known for his ''Jack Reacher'' novel series. The books follow the adventures of a former American ...

Peter Robinson (novelist) Peter Robinson (17 March 1950 – 4 October 2022) was a British-born Canadian crime writer who was best known for his crime novels set in Yorkshire featuring Inspector Alan Banks. He also published a number of other novels and short stories, as ...

John Connolly (author) John Connolly (born 31 May 1968) is an Irish writer who is best known for his series of novels starring private detective Charlie Parker. Biography Education and early career Connolly was educated at Synge Street CBS and graduated with a BA ...

, and

Laura Lippman Laura Lippman (born January 31, 1959) is an American journalist and author of over 20 detective fiction novels. Life and career Lippman was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Columbia, Maryland. She is the daughter of Theo Lippman, Jr., a w ...

. Each story is linked by a

charm bracelet A charm bracelet is a type of bracelet which carries personal jewelled ornaments or "charms", such as decorative pendants or wikt:trinket, trinkets. The decorative ''charms'' usually carry personal or sentimental attachment by the owner. Histor ...

that brings bad luck to its owners. The setting and time periods of each story vary greatly, ranging from 19th-century Georgia to wartime

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. Karin Slaughter wrote the first and last stories. ''Martin Misunderstood'' is an original audio novella narrated by

Wayne Knight Wayne Elliot Knight (born August 7, 1955) is an American actor. In television, he played Newman on '' Seinfeld'' (1992–1998) and Officer Don Orville on '' 3rd Rock from the Sun'' (1996–2001). He also voiced Igor on ''Toonsylvania'' (199 ...

. Both the story and the narration were nominated for an

Audie Award The Audie Awards (, rhymes with "gaudy"; abbreviated from ''audiobook''), or simply the Audies, are awards for achievement in spoken word, particularly audiobook narration and audiodrama performance, published in the United States of America. They ...

in 2009. ''

The Unremarkable Heart The Unremarkable Heart and Other Stories () is a short story (''book'') written by Karin Slaughter and published by Mulholland Books (an imprint of Little, Brown and Company owned by Hachette Book Group Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a publishing ...

'' won the

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

for Best Short Story in 2013. Her book ''

Pieces of Her ''Pieces of Her'' is a thriller novel by American author Karin Slaughter, published on August 21, 2018 by William Morrow and Company and HarperCollins Publishers.HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Cor ...

and follows a young woman who learns about a hidden side of her mother, Laura. It is in the vein of a psychological thriller and was given a positive review by ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' and ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

''. Her other standalone novels—''Cop'' ''Town'', ''Pretty'' ''Girls'', ''The'' ''Good'' ''Daughter'', and ''False'' ''Witness''—have all been ''New York Times'' bestsellers. In February 2019, it was announced that

will be developing an 8-episode

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

starring

Toni Collette Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...

, based on the ''Pieces of Her'' novel.

Personal life

Slaughter was a contestant on an installment of

's ''

Holey Moley ''Holey Moley'' is an American sports entertainment, sports reality competition television series created for American Broadcasting Company, ABC by Chris Culvenor. The series is produced by Eureka Productions and Unanimous Media, with Culvenor, ...

'' which originally aired on June 4, 2020.

Bibliography

The Grant County series *''Blindsighted'' (2001) *''Kisscut'' (2002) *''A Faint Cold Fear'' (2003) *''Indelible'' (2004) *''Faithless'', (2005) *''Beyond Reach'' (2007), ''Skin Privilege'' (UK title) The Will Trent series *''Triptych'' (2006) *''Fractured'' (2008) *''Undone'' (2009), ''Genesis'' (UK/Australia title) *''Broken'' (2010) *''Fallen'' (2011) *''Snatched'' (2012, ebook novella) *''Criminal'' (2012) *''Busted'' (2013, ebook novella) *''Unseen'' (2013) *''The Kept Woman'' (2016) *''The Last Widow'' (2019) *''The Silent Wife'' (2020) *''After That Night'' (August 2023) Other books *''Like A Charm'' (2004; editor) *''Martin Misunderstood'' (2008) *''Thorn in My Side'' (2011; ebook novella) *''Cop Town'' (2014) * ''Blonde Hair, Blue Eyes'' (2015) (novella) (prequel to Pretty Girls) * ''Pretty Girls'' (2015) * ''Last Breath'' (2017) (novella) (prequel to The Good Daughter) * ''The Good Daughter'' (2017) * ''

Pieces of Her ''Pieces of Her'' is a thriller novel by American author Karin Slaughter, published on August 21, 2018 by William Morrow and Company and HarperCollins Publishers.Karin Slaughter website

Interview with Karin Slaughter at www.LiteraryWeek.com

Karin Slaughter at Bookreporter.com

Interview with Karin Slaughter at www.TheCrimeHouse.com

Save the Libraries

Roger Nichols of Modern Signed Books interviews Karin Slaughter about her novel, ''The Kept Woman''

BlogTalkRadio interview about her novel, ''The Good Daughter''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slaughter, Karin 21st-century American novelists American women novelists American thriller writers Living people Writers from Atlanta American LGBT novelists 21st-century American women writers Women mystery writers LGBT people from Georgia (U.S. state) Women thriller writers Novelists from Georgia (U.S. state) 1971 births