Move over Columbo, Magnum, P.I. and Bosch. Make room for a new addition to the pantheon of beloved TV detectives: Will Trent.
The stoic GBI agent who grew up in foster care and struggles with dyslexia is the creation of Georgia native Karin Slaughter, the international bestselling author of a bazillion books across the globe. Counting her latest, “This Is Why We Lied” (William Morrow, $39.50), coming out Aug. 20, she’s written 12 thrillers around the observant, taciturn investigator.
And now he’s a TV hero, having debuted in his eponymous show on ABC in 2023. The third season begins filming soon in Atlanta.
Credit: Disney
Credit: Disney
Initially, Will Trent’s ascension to such lofty heights seemed doubtful. When it was announced that the role of the 6-foot-4-inch, blond-haired Georgia native would be played by the less-than-6-foot-tall Puerto Rican actor Ramón Rodríguez, fans clamored to express their despair on social media before the show even debuted.
“I understand,” said Slaughter, speaking from her home in Atlanta. “They love Will and they have a certain idea of what he looks like in their heads, and Ramón doesn’t look like the Will in the books.
“But the books are the books, and the show is the show,” she said. As far as she is concerned, Rodríguez “has captured the heart of Will.”
Now that the show is a hit, it’s clear that millions of viewers agree.
So, what is it about Will Trent that evokes such strong feelings? Is it his good looks, his upstanding character, his zeal for justice?
Maybe, but Slaughter attributes it to his respectful treatment of women.
“He listens to and cares about the women in his life,” said Slaughter. “Seeing that on television is great, seeing that in real life is great. But I know from a lot of my readers that that is something they might feel is missing in their lives, that they feel like they’re not getting respect from certain people.
Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
“I think that Will loving [romantic partner] Sara and listening to his boss [Amanda], even though he’s a little afraid of her, and being able to say to Faith, his partner, ‘Oh, you’re right and I’m wrong,’ I think that’s a nice thing for a man to be able to do.”
Here, here.
As for Season 3, Slaughter won’t give away any spoilers except to say that it will be a longer season, so viewers can expect more shows and more stories.
Meanwhile, fans can expect to see even more of Slaughter’s crime drama on TV when the adaptation of her book “The Good Daughter” starring Jessica Biel airs on Peacock in 2025. For the first time, Slaughter has adapted the scripts herself for the limited series.
“It’s very different,” she said of the screenwriting process. “Part of the reason I did it was I wanted to understand the choices that people make in the scripts and why they vary from the books. It’s a very different way of telling a story because I can be very internal and take pages to set up a scene and describe feelings and emotions, and all of that has to be condensed into dialogue in a script.”
Despite the time it took her to write the scripts — plus the time she will spend on set for filming (beginning “early next year in Georgia if things work out”) — Slaughter said her usual one-book-a-year output is right on schedule.
“I’ve been working on the book for next year. What I haven’t done this year is, usually I go to three or four different countries and support my publications there, so instead of traveling to Europe I stayed home and wrote.”
Credit: William Morrow
Credit: William Morrow
For now, though, she has her newest book to promote, and it’s a juicy one. “This Is Why We Lied” is a pretty big departure from past Will Trent books. For starters, he’s now a married man. Will and medical examiner Sara Linton have finally gotten hitched, and they’re on their honeymoon at a remote, off-the-grid mountain retreat, McAlpine Lodge.
For another thing, Will Trent books are typically rooted in urban settings, but this one takes place solely in the wilderness. That’s because, big departure here: It’s a locked room mystery a la Agatha Christie.
Slaughter has assembled a fascinating and disturbing assortment of characters — guests, workers, interlopers, the extended McAlpine family — and trapped them in a remote lodge where a storm has knocked out access and communication. Naturally, there’s a murder. Then another. It’s up to Will and Sara to determine who among them is the killer.
“Every book I try to do something new and different,” said Slaughter. “I grew up reading lots of Agatha Christie, so I’m very familiar with the format. And I thought, let me anticipate the tropes. Like there’s a bad storm and all the roads are washed out, but, of course, you can have ATVs. Or the phones are out; well we still have satellite phones. So just figuring out those tropes and putting a new spin on them was interesting.”
As expected, there is no shortage of suspects at McAlpine Lodge because the place is rife with bad guys — most notably the McAlpine family.
“They are not the family you would choose for yourself,” said Slaughter. “They’re actually pretty bad people.”
FoxTale Book Shoppe presents Karin Slaughter in conversation with Mary Kay Andrews, author of “Summers at the Saint,” Aug. 18 at the Woodstock Arts Theater. To purchase tickets and for more information, go to foxtalebookshoppe.com/Slaughter.
Suzanne Van Atten is a book critic and contributing editor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She may be reached at Suzanne.VanAtten@ajc.com.
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