This Is Why We Lied

The protagonist of This Is Why We Lied and Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent series of novels, Will Trent is an agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI). His job informs every aspect of his life; even when off-duty, he thinks “about his four fellow guests, wondering what kind of criminals they would hypothetically be” (41). Will recently married Sara and is on his honeymoon, but this doesn’t stop him from investigating: His career has always come first in his life. However, by the end of the novel, Will has rearranged his priorities, indicating a shift in priorities and in subsequent novels in the series.

Will’s personal history is an integral part of the novel, illustrating the theme of How the Past Affects the Present. Throughout the series, Will struggles with the repercussions of a traumatic childhood: Dave’s presence raise memories of the children’s home, and Mercy reminds him of his mother. Amanda found Will in a trashcan, prompting Dave’s nickname for him, “Trashcan.” Over the years, however, Will learned to distance himself from emotional reactions, “develop[ing] a trick where he took his mind out of the situation, unplugging it from his body like the cord on a lamp” (392).