The Last Widow

Mild Spoilers about the series in general, but no BIG SPOILERS ——
4.5 stars for another great chapter in the Will Trent series!!

I am more than little sad that this series is almost over, at least as far as what has been published. If K. Slaughter is in the process of writing another book, that would be great news!

I have really enjoyed the development of all the characters in this series. The story of Will Trent is of course the center of it all, and what initially drew me in, because he really is such a character! Having worked with system impacted youth for many years, his character is particularly intriguing to me, and I may have actually had a few tears in my eyes at the end of this one, but I won't say why.....but in addition to Will's story, there is so much great historical context on feminism and racism in America and so much more, when we start learning about things like how Amanda became the badass, cold-but caring (even if it seems unlikely) GBI Chief Detective. Amanda's connections to Faith, and her even more twisty and intriguing connection to Will...and the one liners Faith uses to describe this connection in almost every one of the later books...I laugh and chuckle a bit more loudly each time, and find myself liking Faith so much more now than when we first met her! She has grown a lot, and now, I just want to text her and ask if she wants to go get a drink and hang out for a few. Throughout the series there is history and child welfare policy written into this series that I have enjoyed reading about, and if it ends after #10, I will be more than a little sad, as I think I already mentioned.

I found this “installment” in the series no less intriguing and interesting and well researched. The background information around the antagonists and their histories are just as almost as well developed as those of the main characters, even though we've only just met them, but yet- we see them, we know them and by the end we can clearly identify the childhood traumas, psychosis, mental illness, or triggers that led to their criminal behaviors and the “ride” has been oh so thrilling and intriguing. By the end I was just so angry with the antagonist and so sad for some of them, and so hopeful for our Will. “Our Will.” Yup. That's what I said. I'm attached and I can't go back, and it's too late to tell me he's just a character in a book, he's “ours” and I am a little worried about him, because just when things are looking up...