False Witness: A Novel

Karin Slaughter

Jul 2021 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

"There's deception, sabotage, violence, family secrets . . . all the stuff you could want from a fictional page-turner."— theSkimm 

Recommended by Washington Post • theSkimm • GMA.com • Popsugar • Bustle • Atlanta Journal-Constitution • Augusta Chronicle • Sun-Sentinel • Mystery and Suspense Magazine • and more!

He saw what you did. He knows who you are…

From the New York Times bestselling author of Pieces of Her and The Silent Wife, an electrifying standalone thriller.

AN ORDINARY LIFE…

Leigh Collier has worked hard to build what looks like a normal life. She’s an up-and-coming defense attorney at a prestigious law firm in Atlanta, would do anything for her sixteen-year-old daughter Maddy, and is managing to successfully coparent through a pandemic after an amicable separation from her husband Walter.

HIDES A DEVASTATING PAST...

But Leigh’s ordinary life masks a childhood no one should have to endure … a childhood tarnished by secrets, broken by betrayal, and ultimately destroyed by a brutal act of violence.

BUT NOW THE PAST IS CATCHING UP…

On a Sunday night at her daughter’s school play, she gets a call from one of the firm's partners who wants Leigh to come on board to defend a wealthy man accused of multiple counts of rape. Though wary of the case, it becomes apparent she doesn't have much choice if she wants to keep her job. They're scheduled to go to trial in one week. When she meets the accused face-to-face, she realizes that it’s no coincidence that he’s specifically asked for her to represent him. She knows him. And he knows her. More to the point, he may know what happened over twenty years ago, and why Leigh has spent two decades avoiding her past.  

AND TIME IS RUNNING OUT.

Suddenly she has a lot more to lose than this case. The only person who can help is her younger, estranged sister Callie—the last person Leigh would ever want to drag into this after all they’ve been through. But with the life-shattering truth in danger of being revealed, she has no choice...

“A high-stakes thriller . . . Her heroines are believable, flawed and courageous.” –OYINKAN BRAITHWAITE

Ratings and reviews

A new Karin Slaughter thriller will predictably be swiftly devoured by her many ardent fans. False Witness is her latest release, and it is neither the best nor the worst novel in her expanding repertoire. Slaughter’s main protagonist this time is Leigh Coulton, a successful defense attorney who has risen from an impoverished and troubling childhood. She and her younger sister, Callie, both suffered through outrageous abuse and deprivation. Callie, unfortunately did not fare as well as her sibling. She is plagued with drug dependence, medical issues and instability. Due to their diverging paths, they have become increasingly estranged. When Leigh is specifically requested to represent a wealthy client, she is puzzled about the client’s identity and motive. She soon learns that they are connected by a past that Leigh has buried for 20 years. The client threatens her future and her family, so she has no option but to stretch some moral and ethical lines as his attorney. Leigh and Callie reunite to protect their secrets and face some escaped consequences from long ago. This broad description, however, fails to capture how deftly Slaughter is able to refresh a well-worn plot. The author is great at creating sympathetic and fully rounded characters without skimping on the gory details. In False Witness, the flashbacks and slow unspooling of details feels a bit rushed and confusing- the actual plot being just a vehicle to explore the many interconnected relationships in the book. Despite this novel not being Slaughter’s best effort, it is still obviously the work of a highly skilled author—thereby making it miles above other rehashed thrillers.

life happened so it took me almost a 6 months to read this book but each time I picked it up it was like no time had passed. this is the second of her books I've read and I cannot get enough. absolutely amazing author, amazing book 🖤

I'm shocked at the rating this book currently has! If I could leave more stars I would! I don't leave reviews very often but really wanted to this time! This was so incredibly well written! Definitely recommend to those that enjoy a good psychotic murder book!

About the author

Karin Slaughter is one of the world’s most popular storytellers. She is the author of more than twenty instant New York Times bestselling novels, including the Edgar-nominated Cop Town and standalone novels The Good Daughter and Pretty Girls. An international bestseller, Slaughter is published in 120 countries with more than 40 million copies sold across the globe. Pieces of Her is a #1 Netflix original series, Will Trent is a television series starring Ramón Rodríguez on ABC, and further projects are in development for television. Karin Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, she lives in Atlanta.