Faint Cold Fear

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Overview

How close do you let a killer come?

An apparent student suicide has brought medical examiner Sara Linton to the local college campus, along with her ex-husband, police chief Jeffrey Tolliver. But a horribly mutilated corpse yields up few answers. And a suspicious rash of subsequent "suicides" suggests that a different kind of terror is stalking the youth of Heartsdale, Georgia—a nightmare that is coming to prey on Sara Linton's loved ones. A small town is being transformed into a killing ground. And the key to a sadistic murderer's motive and identity may be held in the unsteady hands of a campus security guard—a former police detective driven from the force by the hellish memories that will never leave her. Lena Adams survived the unthinkable and has paid a devastating price. Now the survival of future victims may depend upon her . . . when she can barely protect herself.

Editorial Reviews

Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Few young writers show more promise than the thirty-year-old Slaughter. She writes…with skill, anger, sensitivity, and compassion.”
From The Critics
“Combines the best elements of a noir thriller and the Southern Gothic tradition complete with a brooding atmosphere.”

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780060534059
  • Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
  • Publication date: 7/27/2004
  • Format: Mass Market Paperback
  • Edition description: Reprint
  • Pages: 448
  • Sales rank: 105,923
  • Series: Grant County Series, #3
  • Product dimensions: 4.20 (w) x 6.72 (h) x 1.14 (d)

Meet the Author

Karin Slaughter
Karin Slaughter
Karin Slaughter is the New York Times bestselling author of eight novels, including Beyond Reach and A Faint Cold Fear, which was named an International Book of the Month Club selection; she contributed to and edited Like a Charm. She is a native of Georgia, where she currently lives and is working on her next novel, which Delacorte Press will publish in 2010.

Table of Contents

First Chapter

A Faint Cold Fear
A Novel

Chapter One

Sara Linton stared at the entrance to the Dairy Queen, watching her very pregnant sister walk out with a cup of chocolate-covered ice cream in each hand. As Tessa crossed the parking lot, the wind picked up, and her purple dress rose above her knees. She struggled to keep the jumper down without spilling the ice cream, and Sara could hear her cursing as she got closer to the car.

Sara tried not to laugh as she leaned over to open the door, asking, "Need help?"

"No," Tessa said, wedging her body into the car. She settled in, handing Sara her ice cream. "And you can shut up laughing at me."

Sara winced as her sister kicked off her sandals and propped her bare feet on the dashboard. The BMW 330i was less than two weeks old, and Tessa had already left a bag of Goobers to melt in the backseat and spilled an orange Fanta on the carpet in the front. Had Tessa not been nearly eight months pregnant, Sara would have strangled her.

Sara asked, "What took you so long?"

"I had to pee."

"Again?"

"No, I just like being in the bathroom at the damn Dairy Queen," Tessa snapped. She fanned her hand in front of her face. "Jesus, it's hot."

Sara kept her mouth shut as she turned up the air-conditioning. As a doctor, she knew that Tessa was merely a victim of her own hormones, but there were times when Sara thought that the best thing for all concerned would be to lock Tessa in a box and not open it until they heard a baby crying.

"That place was packed," Tessa managed around a mouthful of chocolate syrup. "Goddamn, shouldn't all those people be at church or something?"

"Hm," Sara said.

"The whole place was filthy. Look at this parking lot," Tessa said, swooping her spoon in the air. "People just dump their trash here and don't even care about who has to pick it up. Like they think the trash fairy's gonna do it or something."

Sara murmured some words of agreement, eating her ice cream as Tessa continued a litany of complaints about everyone in the Dairy Queen, from the man who was talking on his cell phone to the woman who waited in line for ten minutes and then couldn't decide what she wanted when she got to the counter. After a while Sara zoned out, staring at the parking lot, thinking about the busy week she had ahead of her.

Several years ago Sara had taken on the part-time job of county coroner to help buy out her retiring partner at the Heartsdale Children's Clinic, and lately Sara's work at the morgue was playing havoc with her schedule at the clinic. Normally the county job did not require much of Sara's time, but a court appearance had taken her out of the clinic for two days last week, and she was going to have to make up for it this week by putting in overtime.

Increasingly, Sara's work at the morgue was infringing on clinic time, and she knew that in a couple of years she would have to make a choice between the two. When the time came, the decision would be a hard one. The medical examiner's job was a challenge, one Sara had sorely needed thirteen years ago when she had left Atlanta and moved back to Grant County. Part of her thought her brain would atrophy without the constant obstacles presented by forensic medicine. Still, there was something restorative about treating children, and Sara, who could not have children of her own, knew that she would miss the contact. She vacillated daily on which job was better. Generally, a bad day at one made the other look ideal.

"Getting on up there!" Tessa screeched, loud enough to get Sara's attention. "I'm thirty-four, not fifty. What the hell kind of thing is that for a nurse to say to a pregnant woman?"

Sara stared at her sister. "What?"

"Have you heard a word I've said?"

She tried to sound convincing. "Yes. Of course I have."

Tessa frowned. "You're thinking about Jeffrey, aren't you?"

Sara was surprised by the question. For once her ex-husband had been the last thing on her mind. "No."

"Sara, don't lie to me," Tessa countered. "Everybody in town saw that sign girl up at the station Friday."

"She was lettering the new police car," Sara answered, feeling a warm flush come to her cheeks.

Tessa gave a disbelieving look. "Wasn't that his excuse the last time?"

Sara did not answer. She could still remember the day she'd come home early from work to find Jeffrey in bed with the owner of the local sign shop. The whole Linton family was both amazed and irritated that Sara was dating Jeffrey again, and while Sara for the most part shared their sentiments, she felt incapable of making a clean break. Logic eluded her where Jeffrey was concerned.

Tessa warned, "You just need to be careful with him. Don't let him get too comfortable."

"I'm not an idiot."

"Sometimes you are."

"Well, you are, too," Sara shot back, feeling foolish even before the words came out of her mouth.

But for the whir of the air-conditioning, the car was quiet. Finally Tessa offered, "You should've said, 'I know you are, but what am I?'"

Sara wanted to laugh it off, but she was too irritated. "Tessie, it's none of your business."

Tessa barked a loud laugh that rattled in Sara's ears. "Well, hell, honey, that's never stopped anybody before. I'm sure damn Marla Simms was on the phone before the little bitch even got out of her truck."

"Don't call her that."

Tessa waved her spoon in the air again ...

A Faint Cold Fear
A Novel
. Copyright © by Karin Slaughter. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

Reading Group Guide

Introduction

We were introduced to the primary characters of Slaughter's Grant County series -- Sara Linton, Jeffery Tolliver, and Lena Adams -- in Blindsighted and we learned more about their stories in Kisscut. A Faint Cold Fear continues the story line:

Sara Linton, medical examiner in the small town of Heartsdale, Georgia, is called to an apparent suicide on the local college campus. The mutilated body provides little in the way of clues -- and college authorities are eager to avoid a scandal -- but for Sara and police chief Jeffrey Tolliver, things don't add up.

Two more suspicious suicides follow, and a young woman is brutally attacked. For Sara, the violence strikes far too close to home. And as Jeffrey pursues the sadistic killer, he discovers that ex-police detective Lena Adams, now a security guard on campus, may be in possession of crucial information. But, bruised and angered by her expulsion from the force, Lena seems to be barely capable of protecting herself, let alone saving the next victim.

Author Karin Slaughter recently sat down with her editor at William Morrow to discuss her latest novel, and how she approaches her novels. You can read or listen to that interview on the HarperCollins Web site. The interview raised a number of topics to spark great discussion. Here are a few:

Questions for Discussion

  1. Karin Slaughter is an avid reader, and there are many writers who have inspired her work. Which authors have inspired your life, or your passion for reading? Do you find you concentrate on reading in certain genres based on specific authors? If so, who are those authors, andwhy?

  2. Sara Linton, one of the main characters in the Grant County series is both a pediatrician and medical examiner. What does that say about the character?

  3. Slaughter is able to bring realistic forensic discovery to the page in her novels. Today there are many television shows which deal with forensic analysis and detecting. Do you find yourself fascinated by this type of forensic analysis? Do you prefer reading about forensics, or seeing it on television?

  4. In her interview, Karin Slaughter talks about what she likes most and least about writing, and being an author. What are your notions about the writer's life? Understanding the highs and lows of a writer's life, is it something you would ever choose to pursue?

About the Author

Karin Slaughter grew up in a small south Georgia town and now lives in Atlanta. The author of the bestsellers Blindsighted and Kisscut, she is currently writing the fourth Grant County novel, Indelible.

Customer Reviews
Average Rating 4
( 126 )

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  • Posted October 26, 2008

    I Also Recommend:

    Amazing Read!

    This was the first book I read of Karin Slaughter's and I have to say that I fell completely and totally in love with it. The plot catches you from the beginning and doesn't leave you hanging at the end. The characters are so complex that you just want to believe that they are real because they seem that way in the book. If you are looking for a good read, pick thins book up and don't stop reading until you are finished!

    9 out of 9 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted June 5, 2005

    Bone Chilling Thriller!

    On the local campus in Heartsdale, Georgia a boys' body is found. Although it looks like a suicide, Sara Linton, the towns medical examiner suspects foul play. Then, one after another, bodies start showing up, looking like suicides, but could this be possible? An epidemic of college suicides? Lena Adams, who survived a brutal rape and attempt against her life, was once a respected police detective, but now struggles working for an egotistical scumbag boss, with the college campus security. Lena sets out to prove that she is still a good detective and wants to solve this mystery, but she runs in to all kinds of obsticles that just make her look suspicious to the local police. This book is riveting! You won't be able to put it down. The pace is fast and the leads keep you guessing until the very last page is read. Karin Slaughter has woven together one of the best plots I've read so far this year!! You will never figure out who is the mastermind behind all these deaths!

    5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 17, 2012

    GOOD READ

    I thought I had the good guys separated from the bad guys and was reading an entertaining criminal mystery book. The author outsmarted me by an ending that I never saw coming.

    3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted September 13, 2011

    I Also Recommend:

    Good read

    Very entertaining and intelligently written. Kept me guessing. Excellent weekend read.

    3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted December 9, 2008

    more from this reviewer

    Good but could have been better

    Heartsdale, Georgia medical examiner Sara Linton travels to the Grant Institute of Technology where a student Andy Rosen apparently jumped off a bridge. Sara¿s eight month pregnant sister Tessa, known for her eating habits of late, happened to have been in the car with Sara when she received the call. The two women go to the death scene where Sarah joins her boyfriend Police Chief Jeffrey Tolliver who has begun investigating. Tessa enters the nearby woods to do the other bodily function that she seems to need to do every few seconds only to be viciously attacked.

    Two more suicides occur and Tessa remains hospitalized. Meanwhile Jeffrey wonders if former police detective turned college security guard Lena Adams knows more than she is telling. Although Lena has her own problems stemming from an abduction and rape she still investigates sex and drug trafficking at the Grant Institute of Technology. Following the third death, Sara reconsiders whether homicide not suicide has occurred. Jeffrey tries to keep both women safe while seeking a killer.

    Though the story line contains too many moments of self-deprecating doubts due to previous ghosts, fans will enjoy this terse medical examiner thriller. The key cast members constantly display their soul so that the audience receives a two edged blade. The motives of the characters are understandable but so intense that it sometimes slows down the prime plot and spins off several cluttering subplots. Still A FAINT COLD FEAR is a solid crime tale that showcases Karen Slaughter¿s ability to live up to a surname that seems apropos for a mystery author.

    Harriet Klausner

    3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted June 21, 2011

    Missing lines

    Love Karin Slaughter, but only 85 pages in and 4 times i have had incomplete sentences which are always involving a hyphenated word. I have read 5 books on my nook and havent had this trouble. Has anyone else?

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 22, 2012

    Just ok

    This book was ok, but not sure I'll read more by this author. It was so far fetched that I actually found my self saying "Oh, come on!", while I was reading.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted January 18, 2012

    It's called RESEARCH, DO IT

    I am usually kind to authors and enjoy reading just about anything. This book helped me draw the line. While the plot had some interesting kinks, every thing else about the book was lacking. The characters were uniformly disagreeable, the author had clearly done little research (shotgun vs rifle for one example) and many of the plot "kinks" had insufficient foundation. I understand completely that a "mass market" book is unlikely to be the Great American Novel, but come on!

    1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 16, 2012

    Good book

    I got the sample and im going to get the full version great book so far cant wait to finish it

    1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 16, 2012

    Good story

    Excellent character development and interesting storyline. I will definitely read her other books.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 18, 2011

    Hunt

    I really enjoyed this book. It was a true page turner!

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted October 9, 2011

    Another great must read

    Fantasic, twisty read.
    Become a K. Slaughter fan/reader...you will NOT be disappointed. Read all at once. Could not put down.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted September 12, 2011

    Love Karin Slaughter

    I have read and thoroughly enjoyed every book Karin Slaughter has written. Great author who has created a fantastic group of characters. Buy it!

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted June 29, 2011

    Great Page Turner

    This was a great read. Read it in a few hours. Timing and layout were excellent. There are very few of the murder mysteries that I dont have to go back a chapter or two to figure out what was happening due to the storyline skipping around so much.

    1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted February 11, 2012

    Blackstar

    "Its okay...do you want to come and live with me?"

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  • Anonymous

    Posted February 11, 2012

    Leafkit

    *She looked at the strange cat with big scared eyes*where is my mommy???*she said shivering*

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 19, 2012

    Disappointed

    Can not believe a women would have a kidnapped rape victim insinuate she was turned on ny the rape. Then encourage another man to rape her. That is when I stopped reading. An insult to women. A male steriotype.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted August 12, 2006

    Don't sweat the small stuff...

    I picked up my first Slaughter book (Blindsighted) on a whim. I had read all of the books by Koontz and was looking for something to read. I'm glad I snagged it. I've been hooked on Karin Slaughter ever since. I'm no profession reviewer like a lot of people seem to be that post one, but I had to have my say. I enjoy a good story, and A Faint Cold Fear is a very good story, right along with all her other books. Yes she makes some mistakes, but rather than get offended, I tend to make the correction myself, in my head and not let it affect the story. Her characters are incredibly life-like and I find myself wanting to GO to Grant County and meet them even though I know there is no Grant County and the characters aren't real. She tells a story that will keep you hanging on the edge of your seat till the very end. I reccommend all of her books to date. Unless you sweat the small stuff, you will greatly enjoy them.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted June 15, 2005

    Not for the well read...

    A Faint Cold Fear was the first book I read by this author. I am incredulous that so many reviewers have praised this work of fiction. Although Ms. Slaughter has created a very good ¿story idea¿; her ability to translate that idea to the page is weak. This is not a book that pulls a reader into a ¿visible¿ world. Ms. Slaughter ¿tells¿ all of the story elements with such gross verbosity that the reader is left empty handed. Her powerful lack of ability to ¿show¿ the reader the story ruins the reading experience. Ms. Slaughter¿s lack of understanding of both the English language and grammar is also apparent and distracting (e.g. ¿the window whose...¿ a window is a ¿what¿ not a ¿who¿ - this kind of grammatical offense runs rampant throughout the novel). Where was the editor? This book is disappointing in many ways. The possibility for a great story is introduced; the author¿s inability to write the story well is regretful. If you are searching for a good ¿suspense story¿ that is spoon-fed to the reader, A Faint Cold Fear is the book for you.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 20, 2004

    Awesome

    I love the Grant county series. This was the first hard cover book I have ever bought(to impatient to wait for the paperback to come out). I have read all of the books in this series and I am looking forward for the fourth to come out. A must read for everyone.

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