Karin Slaughter shocked fans at the end of 2008's
Beyond Reach, book six in her Grant County series. Slaughter's risk was tantamount to killing the series off (something no bestselling author is supposed to do). However, as promised, she has raised it from the ashes and given it new life in
Undone, a wickedly thrilling story that intertwines the lives of her Grant County characters with those of her Will Trent books.
Thriller writers that spend as much time developing characters as they do plot lines are rare. Slaughter is unique in this aspect because, not only does she write well-rounded, fully realized characters that draw the reader into the story and their lives, she dares to take them places in her plot that few other writers will go. Mixing her much loved Sarah Linton character with her characters from Fractured and Triptych adds depth to the story and creates new possibilities for all the characters.
Undone picks up three years after the last Grant County book, and finds Dr. Sarah Linton attempting to put her life back together in Atlanta, far from reminders of the trauma she suffered in Grant County. Working in a fast-paced ER, Sarah finds herself thrown back into a homicide investigation that brings her into Will Trent and his partner Faith Mitchell's world. Slaughter is judicious in how far she takes the mingling of these characters, keeping it believable and grounded in the story arcs of the previous books in both series. Interaction between the characters takes a natural path; it never feels forced or contrived, and ultimately adds to the storyline.