After That Night by Karin Slaughter

 

Fifteen years ago, Sarah Linton's life changed forever.  She was a resident at Atlanta's premier hospital and had just found out that she would be receiving a prestigious fellowship for pediatric cardiology surgery.  Then it happened.  She went into the bathroom and was surprised by a hospital janitor.  He tied her up, raped her and stabbed her.  Afterwards she went home, giving up the fellowship and becoming a pediatrician.  It took a long while to heal physically and her injuries meant that she could never have children.  It took much longer to heal mentally and emotionally.

Now, Sarah is back in Atlanta and in a relationship with Will Trent, Georgia Bureau of Investigation detective.  She is the medical examiner for GBI.  She is currently testifying in a civil trial against the son of the man who got the fellowship she had been slated for.  A young girl came into the ER one night while Sara was there.  She had been raped and cut and then wrecked her car driving to the ER.  Sara could not save her but she can testify against the young man the girl identified as her attacker.  In the bathroom, she runs into the man's mother.  She knew both parents and never cared for them.  The woman attacks Sara verbally and then hints that the two rapes, this girl's and Sara's, are related.

This sends Sara into a tailspin.  She knows if there are two victims fifteen years apart, there are more victims who haven't been identified.  She tells Will and with the help of Will's partner, Faith, the three set out to find out what happened and if there is a rapist who has been victimizing women for years.  

This is the eleventh novel in the Will Trent series.  Will and Sara are about to get married and if Sara can finally lay the ghosts of her rape to rest, it will make the rest of her life that much better.  The book is Sara's story but Will's aunt, who allowed him to enter the system when his mother was murdered knowing the abuse he would probably endure is also featured.  The book fills in more of the backstories of the two main characters while exposing a series of horrific crimes.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.