We Are All Guilty Here

North Falls, Georgia is a fictional small town in the southwestern part of Georgia where everyone knows everyone else, but everyone has secrets to hide. It is part of (also fictional) Clifton County, most of which is run by the Clifton family. Police officer Emmy Clifton, 30, the principal narrator, is daughter of the Sheriff, Gerald Clifton.

The story begins on July 4 at an Independence Day celebration. It was also the day when Madison Dalrymple turned 15. Madison was the daughter of Emmy’s best friend, Hannah, and was like a daughter to Emmy as well. Madison and her best friend Cheyenne intended to meet up at the fireworks, but instead, both went missing.

The race to find the girls is terrifying. Emmy knew the statistics about child show more abductions - especially the fact that within 24 hours, virtually all of the victims were dead. It was also true that fewer than one percent of abductions are committed by random strangers. She and Gerald thought they knew everyone in their town well - but did they really?

There are more twists and turns than usual for Slaughter in this novel that keeps surprising you until the end.

Discussion: Slaughter is determined to bring readers’ attention to awful things done to girls and women, but in the process, she perforce writes about awful things actually done to girls and women. Thus, while the characters are fictional, the crime data is real. It can be pretty hard to take. Slaughter makes the reading experience rewarding nevertheless; her compassion as well as her anger over abuse by men trying to assert power and control over females is clearly expressed and always a part of her stories.

Karin Slaughter simply never disappoints. Make no mistake, the crimes she depicts are gritty and appalling. And yet, the complexity and nuance she brings to her characters make you want to read more of her work. This is only the first book of a new series. show less

It's the Fourth of July in North Falls, a small rural Georgia town so deeply entrenched with one family's history that the entire county is named after the Cliftons. Deputy Emmy Clifton is at the fireworks celebration when her best friend Hannah's fifteen-year-old daughter Madison reaches out to her for help. Emmy dismisses it as teenage drama. Then two girls — Madison and her best friend Cheyenne — vanish into the night. Their bikes are found. Madison's phone. Blood. The first third of the novel races through this search with gut-wrenching urgency. Then the novel jumps twelve years forward. A man was convicted for the girls' abduction and has now had his conviction overturned, walking free. Emmy — now acting sheriff — is forced show more to confront whether she and her father got the original investigation completely wrong. When another teenager disappears in an eerily similar way, FBI consultant Jude Archer arrives in North Falls — a retired agent who spent her career hunting child predators, and who takes a very particular and unexpected interest in this case. The Clifton family dynamics are as complicated as the investigation: Emmy's father Gerald is the police chief, her son has become a police officer, and the family has deep roots and deep secrets in this town. First in a new series. #1 in multiple countries simultaneously. Less graphic than Slaughter's earlier work but no less intense.

[May contain spoilers]
The bombshell revelation that blindsides most readers: Jude Archer is Emmy's mother — a secret that reframes every interaction they've had throughout the novel. The original conviction was wrong — Virgil and Walton Huntsinger were the actual killers, with Walton having used another man's ID to move around the country undetected and frame someone else. The ending leaves several threads deliberately open for future books in the series — particularly around Jude's identity revelation and what it means for Emmy going forward.
What I think: This is Slaughter at her best — propulsive, dark, deeply character-driven, with a small town that functions as its own character and a twist that genuinely floors you. The father-daughter police dynamic and Emmy's complicated guilt give it real emotional weight beyond the procedural. The less graphic approach compared to her earlier work makes it more accessible without sacrificing any of the intensity. show less

Twenty-five years of writing the best thrillers means a new Karin Slaughter book is cause for excitement. Getting in on the ground floor of a new series is even better!
Emmy Clifton is a police deputy in the small town of North Falls, Georgia, when a pair of teenage girls go missing on the night of the Fourth of July. One of the girls is the daughter of Emmy's best friend since childhood. With blood found at the scene, a clock starts and the chances of the girls being found alive diminish with every minute that passes. With the help of her father, the Sheriff, as well as the FBI, some truly sketchy local characters are discovered. Evidence eventually leads to Adam Huntsinger.

Huntsinger is convicted of the crime, but a true crime podcast show more casts doubt on his guilt when it discovers he was responsible for a different crime on the night of the kidnapping. Shortly after his release, another young girl goes missing in nearly identical fashion. Now the race is on and a young life once more hangs in the balance.

Slaughter is unparalleled in her ability to make you identify with her characters and then put them through an absolute meat grinder, both physical and emotionally. I absolutely loved Emmy Clifton and her whole family. Slaughter's characters are complicated and imperfect. Small-town life holds many secrets, some of them quite dark. Small towns also have history, and people with long memories. Darkness can be found here, often in the places and people you would least expect it.

Karin Slaughter reaches into your chest, squeezes your heart, and lets it beat only when she wants it to. You may find yourself pausing between chapters just to catch your breath. There is an intensity to her work that is seldom found elsewhere. This book is intense, thrilling, and filled with shocking twists. This is an exciting series launch, and I have a feeling that future books will go to even greater heights.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher. show less

Tense, exciting, and suspenseful southern gothic crime thriller.

Two teenaged girls vanished during the North Falls Independence Day fireworks celebration. The small town in Georgia erupted and things eventually settled down when two men were convicted and put in prison. Twelve years later, another young girl disappears under similar circumstances just when the jailed man is released. Surely he’s not doing it again so that means that perhaps they put away the wrong man for the crimes. Deputy Sheriff Emmy Clifton is haunted by her missteps during the original investigation and now must work with a retired FBI consultant to unpack more than a decade of buried secrets and lies to solve the abduction and bring the latest missing girl show more home.

This was so good, I couldn’t bear to step away from it. Other than annoying repetition of some statistics here and there, the writing was excellent and the fast pace kept me glued to the pages. The characters were also quite interesting and well-developed with depth and vulnerablitilies. The small town atmosphere where everyone knows each other and where there is a lot of history with the families, past crimes, and unresolved guilt makes it all a bit haunting. The evil in the bad guys is palpable. The innocence of the victims tainted by their desire to grow up too soon is heart wrenching. The blaming. Oh and did I mention the twists and surprises? It really is a well plotted story and I understand this is the first in a new series. I definitely will look for the next installment.

There was a time when I swore I’d never read another one of this author’s books. I think many readers know why and which book. But, this one reminds me of why I liked the previous titles by Karin Slaughter. Fingers crossed she doesn’t cross my line again!

I was able to listen to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC provided by the publisher. The narrator, Kathleen Early, did an excellent job of voicing all the characters and giving this novel the appropriate dramatic flair. The pacing was good and I enjoyed the immersive experience of this production.

Don’t miss out on this new series. show less

We Are All Guilty Here by Karin Slaughter is an exceptional, very highly recommended investigative thriller/police procedural. This is one of the best procedurals I've read this year and I'm thrilled that it is the first book of a new series set in the small town of North Falls, Georgia. Slaughter always writes excellent novels and continues to be an automatic go-to author for me.

Officer Emmy Clifton, 30, and her father Sheriff Gerald Clifton, 74, are on duty during the Fourth of July fireworks celebration in North Falls when two 15-year-old girls, Cheyenne Baker and Madison Dalrymple, disappear. The crime scene immediately points to violence and abduction. The FBI is called in and the investigation begins in earnest as every passing show more minute means it is less likely the girls will be found alive. Everyone works tirelessly to uncover any clue or person with a tie to the girls as well as exposing some dark secrets. The investigation results in two men being sent to prison, one of them for the death of the girls.

Next the plot jumps twelve years into the future when the man imprisoned for the earlier crimes is released after a true crime podcaster reported on the case. He returns to North Falls and then 14-year-old Paisley Walker goes missing under similar circumstances. An angry crowd gathered, someone is shot, and the tension becomes explosive as again the FBI is called in and an investigation ensues. Adding to the intrigue a recently retired FBI special agent, psychologist Jude Archer, arrives on the scene to assist. Jude has secret ties to both the town and the Clifton family.

The writing is excellent and the plot is fast-paced with unwavering stress as each investigation unfolds. The relentless tension and dread remains red-level high throughout the whole detailed, gripping, gritty, suspenseful and unpredictable plot. There are many dark secrets, unexpected twists, and new clues. While natural instincts are in doubt and grief is an overbearing burden, the tenacity, intelligence, and resilience of Emmy is in full display. Clues are logical followed in the investigation. The novel is a procedural first, but is also a family drama.

All the characters are well-developed and fully realized. They are portrayed as believable, realistic individuals with both strengths and weaknesses. The characters all experience growth, but it always comes at great cost. Along with the individual characters, the dynamics between family members and the community also play a role in the plot.

We Are All Guilty Here is a perfect choice for anyone who enjoys complex, gritty procedurals and is one of the best books I've read this year. Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with an advance reader's copy. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

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The kidnapping of two fourteen year old girls leaves a small town unsettled, even after the arrests and even with a sheriff who is universally beloved. His daughter Emmy, also on the small police force, was a big part of solving that crime. Now, years later, the sheriff's health is failing and he's setting up things for Emmy to take his place. And then another girl is abducted, in ways that mirror the first crime, just after the man they put away was exonerated and released from prison. Emmy must try to find the missing girl before it's too late, while dealing with a town simmering on the edge of violence and questions about the investigation all those years ago.

I really enjoy Slaughter's stand alone novels. They're well-paced and she show more creates flawed, interesting characters and puts them in intolerable situations and lets things play out in surprising ways. Her series thrillers are less satisfying for me, with their emphasis on drama and angst. This book is part of a series, but I hoped that as the first one, it would have the qualities I appreciate in her stand-alone novels and the family drama aspect would be kept to a minimum. And it was a mixed bag. The central crimes were interesting as was how they were solved, but there was a lot of family drama which isn't something I'm interested in, so I'm giving it three stars and calling it a draw. show less

Karin Slaughter always writes unputdownable books. I can say that because I've read nearly all of them.

Previous to WE ARE ALL GUILTY HERE, Slaughter wrote two series and various standalone novels. WE ARE ALL GUILTY HERE begins a new series. It takes place in a small town in Georgia, so small they don't have their own police department but use the services of the county, instead. The county sheriff department has a small presence there, headed first by Gordon Clifton and later by his daughter Emmy Lou. This story is told from her point of view but also from the POV of Jude, a highly successful FBI agent. And what a surprise she turns out to be!

This book starts with the abduction of two 15-year-old girls during a fireworks display for the show more town. After the girls' bodies are found, the sheriff's department arrests a man, Adam. Twelve years later, Adam is exonerated and let out of jail and another girl goes missing. But is he guilty? That's when Jude comes on the scene.

I wonder if the characters in this series will, at some point, cross paths with Will and/or Sara from Slaughter's other series. After all, that's what happened with Will and Sara when Sara left her series to join Will in his. show less