Series: Andrea Oliver #1
Author: Karin Slaughter
Publisher: William Morrow
Released: August 21, 2018
Received: Own (BOTM)
Warnings: Gun violence, graphic violence, suicide, drug abuse, AIDS, domestic abuse, strangulation

Pieces of Her is one of my latest BOTM choices, mostly because I regretted not grabbing it the previous month! I know this isn’t a new release, but I just had to try it. Before you ask, no, I haven’t seen the adaptation yet. I’m still unsure if I will – I tend to like my thrillers in novel format (maybe because it lets me control the pace a bit more?).

Like most women, Andrea had assumed she knew everything there was to know about her mother. Her assumption is about to be proven wrong as one event changes her life as she knows it.

A public and violent incident in a mall puts Andrea’s mother, Laura, in the spotlight. She should be hailed a hero, but people are looking too closely at her – and that’s putting everyone at risk. To save her daughter, she will try and throw some distance between them, only for it to backfire on them both.

“Love doesn’t keep you in a constant state of turmoil. It gives you peace.”

Yikes. Pieces of Her is one of those heavy-hitting novels that’s hard to look away from. Much like the title implies, I quickly found myself trying to piece together the mystery of Andrea. This proved to be far from a simple task.

This novel is told mainly through two perspectives, twenty-plus years apart. The first perspective is Laura’s, as she struggles to deal with all the violence that just rose up in her life – while getting to the bottom of her mother’s secrets.

The second perspective is Andrea herself, though it may take some time for that to become clear. Set in 1986, it slowly reveals her backstory, leading readers to the inevitably and surprising conclusion.

I’ll admit, there were twists that I didn’t see coming in Pieces of Her. Overall I want to say that’s a good thing, though there are some pieces (no pun intended) that I wouldn’t have minded a change in. Perhaps the adaptation does precisely that? Maybe I will cave and watch it. Time will only tell.

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