Left to Die

Written by Lisa Jackson

Narrated by Natalie Ross

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Jackson comes the chilling, riveting novel that first introduced Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli, hunting for a serial killer who is both savior and executioner…

In the lonely woods around Grizzly Falls, Montana, the first body is discovered, stripped naked and tied to a tree. Alvarez and Pescoli have been hoping for a career-making case, but this is a nightmare. The killer stages car accidents on icy, isolated roads and “rescues” his victims. He toys with them, heals them, earns their trust . . . before subjecting them to a slow, agonizing death.

When Jillian Rivers opens her eyes, she’s trapped in a mangled car. Then a stranger, claiming to be a trail guide, pries her free. Though she’s grateful, something about him sets Jillian on edge. And if she knew what was lying in wait for her, she’d be truly terrified . . .

Even with the FBI involved, Selena and Regan have nothing to go on but a series of cryptic notes, and the unsettling knowledge that there is much worse to come. Piece by piece, the killer’s brutal plan is taking shape. But his final move will be the most shocking—and personal—of all . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Aug 4, 2020
• ISBN: 9781713507000

Lisa Jackson

Lisa Jackson is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than eighty-five novels, including Afraid to Die, Tell Me, You Don’t Want to Know, Running Scared, Without Mercy, Malice, and Shiver. She is also the coauthor of the Colony series, with her sister, Nancy Bush. There are over 20 million copies of Lisa Jackson’s books in print in twenty languages. She is a recipient of the RT Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Award and has also been honored with their Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense. Born in Oregon, she continues to make her home among family, friends, and dogs in the Pacific Northwest. Visit her at LisaJackson.com.

Reviews for Left to Die

[gifford_macshane · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First book in the series is suspenseful and well-written (though longer than your usual suspense book). I liked getting to know the characters, but was a little put off by how bratty the kids of one of the investigators were.Ends with a cliffhanger. (Though the author terms this a sub-plot in the next book, as it was the basis and subject of most of this book, I considered it the main plot.)

[jhullie-3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great book! I haven't read any Lisa Jackson before but I certainly will read more. I need to get 'Chosen To Die' ASAP to find out what happens next. Loved it!

[carol420 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One by one, the victims of the Montana serial killer are found dead--far out in the sparsely populated area of the Bitterroot Mountains. Lashed to trees, naked in the bitter cold, they endure a slow, excruciating death. None of these women have a single thing in common, except for the fact that they didn't have any known enemies. With a star carved into the tree over each of their heads and letters added to a cryptic note as each victim appears, this "Star-Crossed Killer" baffles the investigators of Pinewood County. "Left to Die" is the first of a series. The end of the novel leaves you wondering, and it doesn't exactly conclude the plot. There is a story within the story that comes to an end, yet leaves things unresolved and questionable to the reader. But other than that, I found it to be an exciting book!

[bsiemens_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Other reviewers have mentioned that part of the mystery is left unsolved, and the serial killer has not been caught. When I finished this book almost two weeks ago, I thought that I would eventually read the sequel to find out what happened. I currently think that I didn't enjoy this work enough to definitely read the sequel. I may. I may not. There are so many other good authors and their books to discover.

[groundedforlife · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Good story with a slight twist that wasn't too hard to figure out before it was explained in the story. As others have said, no you don't find out who the "star crossed" killer is...it's to be continued but I'm ok with that. A few errors in the story that I won't explain here so it won't ruin the story for you if you are planning on reading it. I'll just say keep in mind "note" and "kiss" and see if you can catch them as well.

[sullwyn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I think I'm going to like this series!! I like the characters.. Pescoli and Alvarez are a nice change of pace from Jackson's last series about the male detectives Bentz and Montoya..

I like the setting again.. In the mountains.. In the cold.. And this killer seems nasty.. I liked that there were 2 plot lines going.. And the twists were surprising! Major cliffhanger at the end!!! I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series Chosen to Die.. Have to find out what's going to happen!!!

[jbemrose_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is book one is about a serial killer that ties his victims naked to a tree ather he cause an accidents by shooting thier tires out in a snow storm. The book contunes with Choosen to Die. Selena Alvarez & Regan Pescoli are tuff cops. Can't wiat to read book three.

[donagiles · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

a fast read, fills time.

[edwardsgt · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A serial killer strikes in Montana leaving women, naked, tied to trees where they die of exposure in the snow. Jillian becomes another victim on her way to investigate photos of her supposedly dead former husband. The author plants several plot red herrings as local police struggle to find the motive and identity of the serial killer, but I found the ending didn't really work for me, leaving as it did a major plot thread incomplete. not sure if that was because a sequel picks it up.

[darlenesbooknook · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The back cover of the audiobook piqued my interest, and I thought I would give it a try. It is about a serial killer who sets up car accidents for his victims who are driving down secluded roads. He then "rescues" them and nurses them back to health, only to tie them naked to trees in the wilderness, leaving them to die...hence, the name of the book.I was trying to decide which book would be my next one to listen to as I had picked up more than one from the library, so I visited Amazon to read the reviews. It appears that readers were divided into two camps. Many were put off by the fact that this book "has no ending". The book, the first in a series featuring a pair of female detectives named Det. Selena Alvarez and Det. Regan Pescoli, was published in August 2008. The second book, which picks up right where the first one leaves off, was not due to be released until August 2009. Smart marketing ploy? I guess it depends on whether or not the reader is already a fan of the author. Lisa Jackson's die-hard fans were not off-put by the "non-ending", but even her fans commented that her earlier books are better. Some of the reviewers were so angry that the book finished with loose ends that they swore never to pick up another Lisa Jackson book.Knowing all of this, I was still intrigued with how the book would play out. I decided to give the book a shot. The narrator, Alan Nebelthau, just about put me to sleep! After just finishing the wonderfully narrated The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, I was so disappointed in the lack of enthusiasm in the narrator's voice! Still, I stuck it out. I was determined to get through it!Despite the terrible narration and the author's overuse of the word "damn" and knowing that the book has no ending, I ended up getting sucked in! The storyline did grab me. There is a twist about half-way to three-quarters of the way through that I did not see coming, so I was definitely hooked after that!What I didn't like about the audiobook was the lack-lustre narration and having only one person narrate all characters. The Guernsey book had distinctive voices for each character. When the same person narrates in the same tone of voice (monotonous for the most part in this case), it is difficult to differentiate who is who.Now I am bound and determined to find an audiobook version of the second in the series, which is called Chosen to Die. Unfortunately, the library has an epub version for e-readers and a regular book version, but no audiobook. I filled in a Book Suggestion form for them :) Failing that, I suggested to my husband that he may have to read and record the book for me. I know that he could do the voices!I visited the author's website, and I see that there is a third book to be released for this series in August 2011.I will be looking for other audiobooks by this author!MY RATING: 4 stars!

[ajpohren · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

There is a terrifying menace, deep in the woods of Grizzly Falls, Montana, preying on young woman. He claims to be on a mission, his prey, the chosen ones. This man of evil, his body chiseled to perfection, his mind honed sharply, plots and collects prizes from each of his unsuspecting targets. With a bullet shot to the vehicle car tire, sending the woman careening out of control and near death when the vehicle finally comes to a rest, this mystery man "discovers", saves and nurses his victim to near health. Once this happens, the woman finds herself tied to a tree in the middle of nowhere, naked and exposed to the frigid winter elements. This is how the victims encounter the end of their lives. With nothing but a de-segmented group of letters (the letters of each victim's initials) left behind as a clue, the police have very little to go on.One cold and wintry evening, Jillian Rivers sets out to try to piece together clues that may lead to the discovery of her once thought dead husband. Instead of answers, however, she finds herself trapped within her car after losing control of her car and nearly losing her life. Suddenly a stranger appears to save her. Can she trust this stranger or will she end up being the next victim in this horrific string of murders? Will Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli be able to track the killer before he claims another victim? Grizzly Falls, Montana, a once peaceful place, will never be the same again, unless Alvarez and Pescoli can put an end to the menace within those woods.Lisa Jackson once again displays her enormous talent for penning suspenseful and hard to put down stories. Left To Die is a chilling page turner that is sure to leave its reader flying through its pages, long into the night, unable to put the book down for fear of missing out. I found this to be an excellent book and eagerly await the next in this in this new series, Chosen To Die, due out August 2009.

[thetometraveller · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Amidst an unusually bad Montana winter, a serial killer is at work near the town of Grizzly Falls. The killer "rescues" his female victims when their cars careen off of a mountain road. Most of them don't realize that their accident was caused by the killer shooting their tires out. He then carries them off to a remote cabin in the mountains and wins their trust by tending to their wounds and lulling them into trusting him. Weeks later he will leave each victim tied, naked, to a tree, to die from exposure. Nice guy.Under intense pressure to catch the killer as the body count rises, Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli work the case for months. But each has her own personal issues to deal with as well. Regan is divorced with two typically parent-hating teens and a difficult ex-husband. Not to mention a tendency to escape into a superficial relationship based on sex and alcohol. Selena is the opposite, a lonely and solitary woman with no life outside of her job. Despite help from the FBI, they are no closer to catching the killer in December than they were in September when the first body was found. When Seattle resident Jillian Rivers starts to get anonymous tips that her deceased husband, Aaron, is alive, she thinks it must be some kind of prank. He's been dead for ten years. Okay, so the body was never found and it turned out that he had bilked investors out of a half a million dollars. But still, he must be dead, right? She eventually heads to Montana to follow up on some photos she has received that look alot like Aaron. But she never makes it, her tires are shot out and her car plummets to the bottom of a steep ravine.Jillian is rescued by Zane MacGregor and taken to his cabin where he gives her medical care. But they are trapped together by an intense blizzard, unable to contact the outside world or make their way to a populated area. She is lucky to be alive but she has read about the serial killer, doesn't her situation fit the known pattern? Should she trust her rescuer? It seems she has no choice. This creepy thriller is fast paced with engaging characters and a plot that will keep you guessing. Though part of the story is neatly wrapped up at the end of the book, the remainder will be continued in the author's next book, Chosen to Die, due out August 2009! I'm a little irked that I will have to wait so long to find out what happens!