A Faint Cold Fear (Grant County, #3)

Title: A Faint Cold Fear (Grant County, #3)

Author: Karin Slaughter

Published in: 2003

Date read: 1st May 2023

Score: 4/5

Genre: Crime, Detective, Thriller

Plot: (Warning, may contain spoilers):
"A Faint Cold Fear" by Karin Slaughter, the third book in the Grant County series, begins with medical examiner Sara Linton and her ex-husband, Police Chief Jeffrey Tolliver, investigating what appears to be a student suicide on a local college campus. However, the brutally mutilated body provides few answers, and the college authorities seem eager to quickly close the case, creating immediate suspicion for Sara and Jeffrey.

As they delve deeper, a disturbing pattern emerges with more apparent "suicides" and a brutal attack on a young woman. The violence hits chillingly close to home when Sara's very pregnant sister, Tessa, is stabbed and critically injured at one of the crime scenes. This personal attack intensifies Sara and Jeffrey's determination to uncover the truth, forcing them to confront the possibility that a sadistic killer is preying on the youth of Heartsdale.

Compounding the investigation's complexity is the involvement of Lena Adams, a former police detective driven from the force by the horrific events of the previous books. Now working as a campus security guard, Lena is spiralling, battling her own demons and making questionable choices, including getting involved with a suspicious student. Despite her fractured state, Lena may hold crucial information, but her instability and animosity towards Jeffrey make her an unreliable, yet potentially vital, source.

The book explores the psychological scars of trauma, the strained relationships between the characters, and the dark secrets hidden within the seemingly quiet college town. Sara and Jeffrey race against time to identify the killer before more lives are lost, all while navigating the emotional fallout of the crimes and the personal toll they take on their own lives and their complicated relationship.

Comments:
A fantastic follow on book, I really struggled to understand where I stood regarding the people here. I hated Lena throughout found the relationship between Jeff and Sara more complicated. These, however, were insignificant when compared with what happens to Tessa.

Books that we've read by Karin Slaughter (18):
Blindsighted (Grant County, #1) (2001), Kisscut (Grant County, #2) (2002), A Faint Cold Fear (Grant County, #3) (2003), Indelible (Grant County, #4) (2004), Faithless (Grant County, #5) (2005), Triptych (Will Trent, #1) (2006), Skin Privilege (Grant County, #6) (2007), Fractured (Will Trent, #2) (2008), Genesis (Will Trent, #3) (2009), Broken (Will Trent, #4) (2010), Fallen (Will Trent, #5) (2011), Criminal (Will Trent, #6) (2012), Unseen (Will Trent, #7) (2013), The Kept Woman (Will Trent, #8) (2016), The Last Widow (Will Trent, #9) (2019), The Silent Wife (Will Trent, #10) (2020), After That Night (Will Trent, #11) (2023), This Is Why We Lied (Will Trent, #12) (2024)