Rating: 
Summary: I think it was great!
Review: From other reviewers you can get the general jist of the story. I have read Karen Slaughter's other 2 books and this is definitely the best of the 3 (so far). I can definitely feel her growth as a writer in this one.
I know I like to read reviews here when I'm looking for a book to read so I'll put in my two cents worth and respond to some other points made here in these reviews.
I didn't find the characters annoying, I find what you don't know about them intriguing...but should we get to the "end" of the series someday and we know nothing...ok...that would be annoying, but I don't find that in her books. In each book she gives you a little more background on each character. Getting to know "all" about them requires watching them and hearing their thoughts as they go through their experiences. They are confronted with things they never expected to be confronted with in their lifetimes, and don't always respond as you "think" they will or as THEY thought they would.
Slaughters writing (to me) is satisfying but it's not tidy. You get the crime solved but not always totally. The characters stay sometimes in turmoil, or something you think was resolved resurfaces. I believe this all makes her writing and her characters more real...and her writing more interesting.
I don't find the violence excessive. Maybe I just know how she writes, she's detailed and yes, in detailing, it's graphic. You will leave a page with a definite picture of the crime scene. You won't have to use your imagination.
About the only thing about these books that kind of makes me chuckle and seems a bit of a stretch of my imagination, is that this series takes place in a small southern town where everyone knows each other. It's a bit of a stretch to believe that these horrific crimes happen over and over again and noone's got a clue. But hey, I'll get over it. I'm just glad I don't live there. <smile>.
Just my two cents for what is worth.
Rating:
Summary: Suicide or Murder, That is the Question
Review: Grant County Medical Examiner Sara Litton and her pregnant sister Tessa are eating ice cream at the local Dairy Queen, when a phone call from Jeffrey Tolliver, who is not only the police chief, but Sara's ex-husband and current lover as well, sends them to the scene of an apparant suicide.At first look it appears a young college student has hurled himself off a bridge. He's found face down in the mud, dead. Sara and Jeffery barely have time to study the crime scene, when Tessa wanders from the car and is brutally attacked in the woods nearby. Tessa's stabbing jars Sara, her family and Jeffrey. The family is very close and Jeffrey, who is again dating Sara, still regards Tessa as he would a kid sister. Now Jeffrey and Sara must deal with their professional demands while worrying about Tessa. And the student who was found under the bridge, was it suicide or murder? What is Tessa's involvement and why would anyone want to attack her? When a couple more victims turn up, Sara and Jeffrey believe it's murder. The three suspicious suicides may or may not be related, but sex and drugs are definitely involved. This psychological thriller may have a little too much gore for some readers, but if you've read Ms. Slaughter before, you'll be used to it. This is a fast-paced read, with enough red herrings thrown in to keep you guessing and the story is so good that you'll be thinking about it long after you finish it.
Rating:
Summary: Terse medical examiner thriller
Review: 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
Rating:
Summary: Unbelievably Fantastic!!
Review: Hurry, Hurry go out and buy this book!!!!! I did and was not disappointed! What a great book. Karin Slaughter is truly a fantastic writer who can have you really feel like part of the characters and what is going on. Loved this book. She is a great story teller and a true thriller writer to stay in touch with.
Rating: 
Summary: A Faint Cold Fear
Review: I bought this book as it was recommened and was compared to novels by Patricia Cornwell. I read at least one book a week and I found this book not worth the read. The main character, Sara's sister has been brutally attacked and yet, Sara and her ex-husband spend more time in inane banter about their relationship than on the murders and Tessa's attack. I am sorry but the characters are weak and to compare this novel to Patricia Cornwell is a slap to Cornwell. Only buy this in paperback and used, if ever.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Patricia Cornwell
Review: I bought this book w/ the anticipation that I had finally found someone to keep me preoccupied until PC comes out with her next book. This was terrible. The characters were ridiculous and although it was a guess until the end, the story line was bland. Lena is a horrible character - her past and the way is she is treated and treats others is really down right disgusting. I would not recommend this to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing
Review: I just recently finished Karin Slaughter's "A Faint Cold Fear" on the way back from Little Rock. Slaughter's career, I guess one could say, is still in it's childhood, if not infancy, but with this book she's had quite a growth spurt. In this, there are a rash of "suicides" on Grant Tech's campus. Dr. Sara Linton and her ex-husband Chief of Police Jeffrey Tolliver investigate. Meanwhile, ex-Detective Lena Adams, now campus security guard, becomes involved with a sexy, if not completely dangerous, ex-skinhead. Their relationship seems to thrive on violence and blood. Lena is rather self-destructive in this edition to Slaughter's Grant County series. It's as though she's having a regress of her healing after being brutally raped and nearly killed. Slaughter's plotting is brilliant and will take your head off like a shotgun blast. It is her plotting, more than her actual of style of writing, that is so acute and breathtaking. I love Karin Slaughter's books and will continue with "Indelible" and "Faithless".
Rating:
Summary: Lack of research
Review: I read all the reviews and not one mentioned a very glaring error. The terms "gauge," "skeet," "caliber," and "rifle" are not synonymous. Yet, Karin Slaughter uses them together, switches back and forth between them to a confusing degree. I don't pretend to be an expert in firearms, but I do know that sportsmen shoot skeet with a shotgun, not a rifle. And the ammunition for a shotgun is measured by gauge, not caliber. A rifle is an entirely different weapon using ammo measured in calibers. And her coroner and a police chief don't know the difference? Come on now. I'm closing the book forever on page 143 and deliver me from careless authors.
Rating:
Summary: Lack of research
Review: I read all the reviews and not one mentioned a very glaring error. The terms "gauge," "skeet," "caliber," and "rifle" are not synonymous. Yet, Karin Slaughter uses them together, switches back and forth between them to a confusing degree. I don't pretend to be an expert in firearms, but I do know that sportsmen shoot skeet with a shotgun, not a rifle. And the ammunition for a shotgun is measured by gauge, not caliber. A rifle is an entirely different weapon using ammo measured in calibers. And her coroner and a police chief don't know the difference? Come on now. I'm closing the book forever on page 143 and deliver me from careless authors.
Rating: 
Summary: An excellent writer!
Review: I won't bore you with a summation of the plot...it's up here already. I'll simply give my thoughts. It's too bad that the editors keep comparing her to Patricia Cornwell as Ms. Slaughter is by far better. Perhaps early Cornwell, but certainly not of late. Slaughter has interesting characters with tight plots. Each book takes us further into the depth of the characters and the pasts they have to live with. Each of her books is very well written and always make it so you can't wait to find out who done it. Definitely an author I plan on following.
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