Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve
This, the latest of Karin Slaughter’s crime novels which are now published in over 120 countries, is further evidence of her mastery of the genre. It is difficult to deny that she is a talented author and writes with an assurance that continues to produce books that are irrefutably among the very best in the field.
The Secrets We Hide is the second of her North Falls series and is destined to be hailed as equally good as We Are All Guilty Here.
It is a brilliant plot, with challenges, puzzling dilemmas, unexpected twists and turns. The characters are vivid, especially Detective Emmy Clifton and her ‘sister’ Jude Archer. Heavily involved in the law, for decades in Jude’s case, they present facets of a strong woman who is not only attempting to solve a violent crime but carries deeply personal trauma.
Emmy is on the verge of breaking point with the factors that make her life almost cruelly unsupportable. Recently bereaved of both parents, her brilliant mother sinking into dementia in her final years, is just the foundation of her suffering. Abandonment by her older ‘sister’ Jude, has committed their relationship firmly onto spiky terms. There is an abusive relationship in her past marriage and there are three men in North Falls known to her to be violent and possible suspects to the horror that has shattered the usually quiet town.
Allison Vickery, also a police officer working in North Falls, is found murdered in her kitchen and her teenage daughter, Mandy, dramatically emerges on the scene, bloodied and near death.
Theories erupt in the small community as to the identity of the guilty party. The three men mentioned appear to have a solid basis for committing the crime but happen to possess shaky alibis. Strong emotions cloud some judgments and reputations are shady, which complicates the investigation further.
Dangling over the procedure is always a sense of menace. Both Emmy and Jude, with all her FBI experience, are aware of the precarious nature of their progress.
A sense of normality creeps in with Emmy’s son, Cole, a keen rookie policeman needing the guidance and support/training of his superior, Emmy. She is continually distracted and sometimes overwhelmed by her predicament. Nevertheless, he progresses and in fact is a key figure at a later stage.
The drama of the lengthy and involved investigation would be choked by the details unfolding of some of the grisly events, but there are occasional wry touches of humour that make the experience bearable, even enjoyable.
Jude is reminded to change her metaphor when she repeatedly advises her ‘sister’ to choose a lean horse if she is to make the long ride successfully – a suggestion to avoid being swamped by unnecessary detail.
About halfway, we learn that Jude is in fact Emmy’s mother. This is a shattering revelation which adds a further complication to the already riveting plot. Tension highlights the remaining chapters, awaiting the impact of this development. The timing is never right for Jude to burden Emmy with this, so we wait for the third novel in this brilliant series to discover the reaction and consequences of this change which will perhaps fracture their already tenuous relationship.
It is exciting to consider that we can look forward to another of Karin Slaughter’s novels. She has the ability to present insight, sensitivity, and credible reality into the world of crime and its varied participants. Her career is marked by the regular procession of highly praised crime novels currently numbering more than 20. She achieves this with a consistent aplomb that is praised by her peers and eagerly shared by her millions of devotees.
The Secrets We Hide
[2026]
by Karin Slaughter
Harper Collins
ISBN: 978 1 4607 6811 2
$34.99; 403pp