Anyone who knows me knows I’ve GREATLY enjoyed Karin Slaughter’s work in the past, especially the Will Trent series. So, yeah, I was BEYOND excited to receive an ARC of her new book, "We Are All Guilty Here." Unfortunately, this one fell a little flat for me.

While the book certainly had its moments and was a decent read overall, it was nowhere near her best work.

The main issue for me was the sheer number of plot twists. Rather than building suspense, the constant barrage of "shocking" turns made the story feel forced and overdone. Instead of being drawn deeper into the narrative, I found myself distracted by how much was happening at once. It lacked the tight pacing and character focus that make the Will Trent books so compelling.

That said, Slaughter’s writing is always engaging, and there are flashes in this book of everything that makes her a favorite among thriller fans. If you’re a die-hard fan, you'll still enjoy this book, but for me, it didn’t live up to the high bar set by her previous series. Decent, but not her best by far.

The best book I have read in years. We Are All Guilty Here is completely unpredictable. I had no idea what was happening and I mean that in the best way possible. I was thrilled to find out that this is the first book in a new series from Karin Slaughter. I cannot wait for the next book.

I'm a HUGE fan of Karin Slaughter's writing - I'm almost finished with the Will Trent series, have read all of her standalones but 1-2, and have started the Grant County series, so when I saw she was starting a new series, I knew I needed to read it ASAP...and I was right.

Like most of her books, We Are All Guilty Here is a longer book, but it was so worth it. As I was reading the book, I was making predictions about things happening in the story, think they were confirmed, and then bam! Suddenly what I thought was an obvious "duh" was not, and my theories were turned upside down. I am so excited for the new North Falls series, and can't wait for the next book!

This is my first book by Karin Slaughter, and WOW just WOW! I usually don’t read this genre, but I’m so glad I gave it a chance. Now, I’m hooked and can’t wait to read all of her other books!

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The story begins with the mysterious disappearance of two teenagers in the close knit small town of North Falls. Through the eyes of police officer Emmy Clifton, we witness the search and police procedure that unfolds.

Fast forward twelve years later, another teenager goes missing, leaving behind evidence that makes Emmy doubt whether the right suspect was put behind bars.

Criminal psychologist Jude Archer returns to her hometown of North Falls to assist in the disappearance of the latest teenager. Alongside Emmy, they uncover long buried secrets about the townspeople.

We Are All Guilty Here is Karin Slaughter’s 25th novel. It is full with unexpected twists and turns, that had me hooked from the first chapter.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!
I have read all have Karin Slaughter’s books and was so excited to get the chance to read a new one! This was so good! As always, there were so many twists and unexpected moments that I was hooked! It was fast paced and so much I hadn’t guessed until it was being exposed. I loved it! High recommend!

Emmy Clifton lives in a town of Cliftons. Nearly every aspect of life is controlled or managed by one of her relatives. Her father has been sheriff for many years and she's joined him on the force. She loves learning from his patient and fair example. At a big town festival, two girls disappear under mysterious circumstances. One of the girls, Madison, is the daughter of Emmy's best friend, Hannah. Emmy is in a bad marriage and so while fuming over the latest failing of her husband, she ignores Madison's request to talk. Then she's gone. When evidence is found suggesting the girls have been abducted, Emmy's fear turns into terrible regret that she didn't give Madison her attention when it was needed. After both girls are found dead, Emmy and her father work to catch the killer and send him to death row.

Twelve years later, after a popular podcast exposes cracks in the case, the man convicted of killing the girls is released from prison. A few days later, another teenage girl is abducted in very similar circumstances. While Emmy is reeling from several personal tragedies, a newly retired FBI agent (who is an expert on serial sexual killers) comes to town to consult on the case. She turns out to have a connection to Emmy and the town that shocks everyone. Can Emmy overcome her own problems and find the latest girl before it's too late?

I really enjoyed the suspenseful story. As with other books by this author, the description of the violence against the victims is very explicit. There is also the recurring theme of an outwardly strong woman who is controlled and manipulated in her personal relationships. A big twist comes near the end of the book, but that is followed by an extremely dull conversation between Emmy and Jude (the FBI agent) about serial killers and their motivations that comes across like a classroom lecture. Then there is the weird thing where several sections appear in different chapters with almost the exact same wording -- almost as if they had been copied and pasted several times into the narrative. These dealt with statistics about how a victim's rate of survival diminishes as the amount of time since the abduction increases, as well as ways the serial killers might get rid of victims. It was strange and repetitive. This book is listed as the first "North Falls" book, so I'm sure we'll see more of Emmy in the future.

Please note that this ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this book was really well done. I’ll be honest: at first, I was particularly impressed with Emmy. She came off as a bit reckless and she made some frustrating mistakes in the case of Cheyenne and Madison. That said, her character really evolved in the second part of the book. I LOVED how the book took 2 different cases and almost told them as 2 different stories, but then weaved them together into a masterpiece. There were some awesome twists in this that I genuinely didn’t see coming.

I see this is the beginning of a series and I am thrilled about it!

5/5

I absolutely loved this story! It kept me sucked in the whole time. Karin Slaughter is an amazing writer and I just love the characters she creates

Thank you NetGalley for this advance reader copy in exchange for my free and honest review. First and foremost, I am so excited that Karin Slaughter has started a new series and I could not love this character, family, town and sassiness more than I do. Karin Slaughter just has a way of telling stories that grip the reader, jerk them around a corner and the. Back again with an ending you absolutely don’t see coming. No spoilers here, highly recommend you go read this one for yourself. You won’t regret it!

First I want to thank the author and NetGalley for this ARC. I believe it's the first book I've read from this author and Wow. I was satisfied with it. It has everything I was looking for in a book. Just when I thought I had it solved 🫨🫨 it definitely took a turn of events. I will definetly be checking out more books by her. This is definetly worth checking out. 👌🏽👌🏽

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5-Star Review: Karin Slaughter Delivers Another Dark, Addictive Thriller with We Are All Guilty Here

Karin Slaughter never misses—and We Are All Guilty Here is yet another reminder of why she’s one of the best in the game. This book is a total page-turner: packed with secrets, messy emotions, and the kind of tension that keeps you up way too late saying “just one more chapter.”

Set in the small town of North Falls—where everyone thinks they know each other—everything blows up the night two teenage girls disappear. Officer Emmy Clifton is at the center of it all, and her personal connection to the case makes every twist hit that much harder. She’s flawed, determined, and incredibly real, and watching her unravel this mystery is just... intense.

Slaughter does what she does best here: peels back the layers of a town full of secrets and shows just how far people will go to protect them. It’s a crime thriller, yes, but also a deep dive into guilt, loyalty, and the lies we live with.

If you’re into gripping thrillers with complicated characters and jaw-dropping reveals, this one’s for you. Fans of Gillian Flynn and Tana French will eat this up. And if you’re already a Karin Slaughter fan? You’re in for a treat.

Bottom line: dark, emotional, and completely addictive. One of Slaughter’s best.

All I can say is WOW, I love a good thriller!!!! While I had some parts figured out, the ones that I didn’t were almost jaw dropping.

I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to read a good thriller. So grateful I was chosen to do an ARC read/review for this title.

Karin slaughter did it again!! I'm so happy to be an architect reader. I can't wait for more. The mystery and thrill had me wanting to read just one more chapter after each chapter.

Every parent's nightmare in a book. You can't go wrong with any thriller that is written by Karin Slaughter. I would recommend this book for any and all thriller readers for late end of summer reading or even for fall!

This was a masterpiece. Every detail so perfectly crafted and woven together. I could not put it down. It has been a long time since I have read a book this quickly because I could not wait to find out what would happen next. I gasped multiple times throughout the book. Until the very last page, I was completely captivated. Karin Slaughter is an absolute mastermind and this book did not disappoint, I cannot wait to see how the North Falls series continues.

Thank you so much to William Morton and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy of this book. As a Karin Slaughter fan, this was such a privilege to read before it publishes and I will shout from the rooftops that everyone should read it until it’s pub date.

We Are All Guilty Here is a slow burn, police procedural about two girls that go missing in a close-knit community. I would classify this book as a drama/mystery more than a thriller. This book was emotional and touched on generations of family trauma. The ending was satisfying and I never could predict what would happen next. It could have been a little bit shorter.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing me with an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Small town drama, murder, kidnapping, family secrets and more - this book has it all. I’m a pretty hard rater for thrillers but this one was great. It reminded me of a true detective season. This book is broken up into two times lines, the before and the after. It doesn’t time hop throughout which I really liked.

Tons of twists, everything is explained and has an answer. If this book 1 of a series, I cannot wait to read the next installment. Would highly recommend! *I did not guess all the twists for sure

Thank you to #netgalley and #Karinslaughter for providing this book in exchange for my review.

We Are All Guilty Here launches the new North Falls series with a gripping start, delivering exactly what fans have been waiting for. The story follows Officer Emmy Clifton, who becomes entangled in a disturbing investigation after two teenage girls go missing during a fireworks display. Emmy’s emotional ties to the case and her raw, relatable imperfections make her one of Slaughter’s most captivating characters yet.

I felt engaged most of the way through this book and it had twists and turns I wasn’t expecting. I really enjoyed this book overall!

This small town thriller mystery novel was one that I absolutely loved! It was extremely emotional, dark and tense. I found the plot to be well executed, it came with a clear thesis and I really enjoyed the dual timelines! It is deep, well written and full of twists that really shocked me! The world building of this small town really caught my attention and drew me in. It kept me guessing the entire time I was reading it! I really liked all of the characters in the story, especially Emmy! I really loved how Emmy became so involved and really had a personal connection with these two girls. It came with strong characters, that change and grew in the story. This is a medium to fast paced read, where the flaws of the characters are the main focus. This is a small town community that is full of betrayals and past traumas! I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end! I definitely recommend this one! I cannot wait till the second book in this series comes out!

“We Are All Guilty Here” centers around officer Emmy. She investigates two girls that went missing in a small town. Emmy deals with a past trauma as she is searching for these two girls. This book really shows you how far people will go to keep secrets and how they will protect the ones they love! I give this book a rating of 4.75 out of 5 stars!

Any fan of the author Karin Slaughter and fans of thrillers that are full of secrets and twists would really enjoy this one! Content warnings include violence, child abuse, murder, death and grief.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Karin Slaughter and William Morrow for this electronic ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

This book is expected to be published on August 12, 2025!

I love a good female cop story taking down the patriarchy. This one was a little slow the first quarter and then I was HOOKED. The story was very enjoyable overall.