Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of graphic violence, death, child death, rape, child sexual abuse, addiction, and physical abuse.

The very structure of Triptych allows Slaughter to deliver a sharp critique of the US justice system’s many flaws, as well as its tendency to condone and perpetuate injustices upon many of those whose lives are affected by its processes—both inmates and their loved ones in the outside world. Additionally, she examines the many ways in which corruption can spread unchecked on both an individual and an institutional level, as certain officers exploit their power for their own gain while the broader organization sometimes fails the very people it is meant to protect.

These complex and controversial topics manifest in the novel in a variety of ways, and each of the main characters becomes an avatar of a different angle on the theme. For example, Angie has adopted a deeply cynical attitude toward her work because she is far too accustomed to seeing the system fail. As a child, she was never adequately protected and was repeatedly exposed to dangerous people and situations. Now, as a detective, she witnesses the ramifications of trusting in an inadequate system that does not prioritize the safety of women and children, even when certain threats have been definitively identified.