Atlanta Author Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent Series Ignites TV and Publishing

Move over Columbo, Magnum, P.I., and Bosch. A new addition to the pantheon of beloved TV detectives has arrived: Will Trent.

The stoic GBI agent, raised in foster care and struggling with dyslexia, is the brainchild of Georgia native Karin Slaughter. An international bestselling author, she has written numerous books. Counting her latest, “This Is Why We Lied” (William Morrow, $39.50), coming out August 20, she has penned 12 thrillers featuring the observant, taciturn investigator.

Now, Trent is also a TV hero, having made his debut in his eponymous show on ABC in 2023. Filming for its third season is set to commence in Atlanta soon.

Initially, there were doubts about Trent’s on-screen presence. When it was revealed that the 6-foot-4-inch, blond-haired Georgia native would be portrayed by the less-than-6-foot-tall Puerto Rican actor Ramón Rodríguez, fans expressed their concerns on social media even before the show premiered.

“I understand,” said Slaughter from her home in Atlanta. “They love Will and have a certain image of him 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 noted. According to Slaughter, Rodríguez “has captured the heart of Will.”

Now a hit show, it’s apparent that millions of viewers agree with her assessment.

What exactly is it about Will Trent that stirs such strong emotions? Is it his good looks, his upstanding character, or his zeal for justice?

Maybe so, but Slaughter attributes his appeal to his respectful treatment of women.

“He listens to and cares about the women in his life,” she explained. “Seeing that on television is great, and seeing that in real life is great. Many of my readers might feel that’s missing in their lives, that they’re not getting respect from certain people.”

“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,’ is a nice thing for a man to do.”

As for Season 3, Slaughter remains tight-lipped about any spoilers but hints that it will be a longer season, offering more episodes and stories.

Meanwhile, Slaughter’s crime drama will get an extra boost on TV when “The Good Daughter” is adapted into a limited series starring Jessica Biel on Peacock in 2025. For the first time, Slaughter has taken on the task of adapting the scripts herself.

“It’s very different,” she said about the screenwriting process. “Part of the reason I did it was to understand the choices people make in the scripts and why they differ from the books. It’s a very different way of storytelling because I can dwell on internal thoughts and take pages to set up a scene in a book, but all that has to be condensed into dialogue in a script.”

Despite the time spent writing scripts and preparing for on-set filming—expected to start “early next year in Georgia if things work out”—Slaughter remains on schedule with her usual one-book-a-year output.

“I’ve been working on the book for next year. What I haven’t done this year is my usual travel to three or four different countries to support my publications. Instead of traveling to Europe, I stayed home and wrote.”

For now, she is focused on promoting her latest book, “This Is Why We Lied.” It presents a significant shift from previous Will Trent books. For one, Will is now a married man. He and medical examiner Sara Linton are honeymooning at a remote, off-the-grid mountain retreat, McAlpine Lodge.

Additionally, rather than the familiar urban settings, this book unfolds in the wilderness as a locked-room mystery in the style of Agatha Christie.

Slaughter has assembled an intriguing and disturbing cast of characters—guests, workers, interlopers, and the extended McAlpine family—and marooned them in a remote lodge where a storm has severed access and communication. Naturally, a murder occurs, followed by another. It’s up to Will and Sara to identify the killer among them.

“Every book I try to do something new and different,” said Slaughter. “I grew up reading lots of Agatha Christie, so I’m familiar with the format. I thought, let me anticipate the tropes. There’s a bad storm, and all the roads are washed out, but you can have ATVs. Or the phones are out, but we still have satellite phones. Putting a new spin on those tropes was interesting.”

Predictably, McAlpine Lodge is filled with suspects, particularly the dubious McAlpine family.

“They are not the family you would choose for yourself,” Slaughter commented. “They’re actually quite bad people.”

Source: Disney, AJC, William Morrow