Cop Town by Karin Slaughter

Title: Cop Town: A Novel
Classification: Adult Fiction
Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Historical Fiction
Hardcover: 416 pages
Publisher: Delacorte Press (June 24, 2014)
ISBN-10: 0345547497
ISBN-13: 978-0345547491
Author's website: http://www.karinslaughter.com/
Notes: I borrowed this one from the library

The year was 1974. "Congress had effectively defunded the war (Vietnam). Nixon was finally gone. President Ford had offered amnesty to draft dodgers. Charges had been dropped against the Ohio State National Guardsmen.William Calley was free after serving less than four years for his part in the My Lai massacre.(..) Men had finally returned home. POWs were being released." Racial segregation may have been abolished, but the line between blacks and whites had still not been blurred. Most woman stayed home to raise a family and that is exactly where most men feel a women's place should be.

In Atlanta Georgia, a cop killer was on the loose and "the 1970s were proving to be a bad decade for police officers. Atalanta had suffered more losses than most. In the past two years, they'd caught five cop killers, though only one of them had seen a the inside of a courtroom." Edward Spivey had walked away a free man despite the damning evidence which declared him anything but innocent. So tensions were already high when officer Don Wesley became the latest victim of the man dubbed the Atlanta Shooter. Amidst all the unrest, two women (one who comes from a long line of cops and another recently widowed) are trying to make a place and career for themselves on the Atlanta police force. Despite the glass ceiling being fully in tact and the good ole boys club being in full swing, the two will attempt to do what 20 male detectives could not--find the missing link that connects all the killings to the Shooter.

What neither of them is aware of is that one of them has caught the eye of the Shooter. His plans for her don't include a quick death. He has other more sinister plans in mind for her. He's just waiting for the right opportunity to present itself.

This was a fast paced, well written book that reminded me an awful lot of the TV series Cagney and Lacey. Two female policewomen trying to make their way in a predominately male world. The environment Kate and Maggie dwell in, however, seems much more harsh and brutal than the one I recall for Cagney and Lacey. What makes it interesting is that it takes place during a time when the world is in the midst of change and I can't help but think of that famous slogan, "You've come a long way, baby." Sometimes it's hard to believe just how different the world was just a short while ago. No one would have believed that a mere 35 years later the first black American President would be sworn in to the White House. It's pretty incredible when you think about it.

This book brought back so many memories. I felt like I stepped back into the 70's for a few hours as I read through the pages.  I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and I can still recall when they first were going to bus kids into our school from the inner city. At the end of the school year of the year prior to the intermingling occurring I recall they had some students come to check out the school and asked for volunteers to show them around the school. I, sadly, wasn't picked although it was probably for the best as we ended up moving away before the end of the summer. My dad had gotten a new job.

One thing I was surprised to find out about was the discrimination against Jewish individuals. I hadn't realized they were shunned for their religion in the US. Granted, the first Jewish individual I ever met was a girl my Sophomore year of high school, so perhaps the Midwest just didn't have a large Jewish community? I do recall her looking a little nervous when the teacher loudly exclaimed, "Your Jewish?" after she let him know she'd be missing a day of school for a religious holiday. Maybe there was more to that nervousness then I previously realized?

Overall, I enjoyed the story and gave it 4 out of 5 roses. I love strong female protagonists who can prove they can do more than bake cookies and warm beds. I enjoyed watching Kate grow as an individual and come into her own. She started out clueless but quickly caught on. Both she and Maggie gained confidence in their abilities and skills as the book progressed and proved they could play hard ball with the big boys. I read this was to be a stand alone book and that makes me kind of sad. It reads like the beginning of a wonderful series. I would have loved to have seen these two climb up the ranks and become detectives. I admit, however, I absolutely hated Kate's association with Philip and felt it was a stupid move on her part. For someone who was so smart, that was an extremely dumb thing to do in my eyes.