This was a really good, suspenseful read. Jillian Rivers is lured from Seattle to Montana by information that her long dead first husband might still be alive. Once in Montana, her tire is shot out and she is rescued and cared for through a blizzard by hunky Zane MacGregor. Her ordeal is hauntingly similar to a rash of serial killings that have taken place in the area. Can she trust Zane? Is he her savior or her killer? Keeps you guessing until the end!

Share/Like this Review?

Lisa Jackson's latest novel has a chilling premise: a predator is on the loose. He targets single women traveling through Montana in the winter, causes their cars to crash, "rescues" them, and nurses them back to health, only to later leave them in the woods to die of hypothermia and starvation. Sound good? That is what I thought too. Unfortunately, this book is about 300 pages too long, and even after 496 does not answer the question of whodunnit.

The story is told in sections that focus on four different characters. Two are detectives working on the case, one is a potential victim, and there are occasional first person chapters written from the perspective of the killer. The captor's sections are the most interesting, and the only parts that I did not skim. This book is the first in a planned series, and Jackson spends far too much time trying to develop the characters of the female detectives by focusing on the boring minutia of their lives. I don't care what Regan's daughter is eating for breakfast! I don't want to know that Selena is good with computers unless it furthers the plot (which it doesn't)! The fact that Regan's son is grounded does not endear her to me!

In addition, the dialogue in this book is atrocious! The phrase "D*** it all to hell!" appears frequently. Does anyone talk like that anymore?! Jackson seems to be trying to show us how hardened these cops are through their excessive usage of PG-movie swear words. This book could have easily been saved by a good editor.

Instead of the satisfaction of a mystery solved, what awaits us at the end of the book is a "letter to the reader" by the author in which she tells us that we should buy the sequel to Left to Die in August 2009 to find out what happens next. She also plugs three other of her upcoming 2009 releases and hopes that we will "give (them) a look." I don't think so. This was the first Lisa Jackson book I read, and if the rest are like this I will save my money in the future.

Share/Like this Review?

This is the first book I have read by lisa Jaxckson. I am now in pursuit of all her others. Read this book, you won't be sorry. Excellent read.

Share/Like this Review?

This is the first in a series. Good book.

Share/Like this Review?

Nothing is more terrifying than being left alone to die. One by one women are captured, toyed with, and then left to die. Grizzly Falls, Montana is in the grips of a serial killer. Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli have been hoping for a career-making case but this is more than they had in mind. Bring in a copy-cat killer and things go from bad to worse.

Another great thriller from Lisa Jackson. I give it 5 stars.

Share/Like this Review?

The woman's body is found lashed to a tree, naked, and frozen to death. The calling card for this scene is the same, yet different as the others. The letters carved into the tree above the victim are the same as the others but with the addition of this victims initials added. The star is still carved into the cold bark, but at a slightly different location. Her wrecked car has also been discovered, the tire shot out and all identifying items removed from the vehicle. The killer has struck again.

Talking with Ivor, who discovered the body, is disappointing. He really doesn't know anything to add to the scene, but that is expected. Ivan claims he was captured by aliens years ago, and isn't playing with a full deck.

Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli have been hoping for a career-making case, but this is a nightmare. Even with the FBI involved, Selena and Regan have nothing to go on but a killer's cryptic notes, and the unsettling knowledge that there is much worse to come. The knowledge that the victims had injuries beginning to heal before they were killed leads them to the idea the killer is the one who "rescues" them and tries to gain their trust before he brutally kills them. The knowledge of the tires being shot out of the vehicles to make them wreck, held from the public, leads them to the conclusion that the killer has a thorough calculated plan, and they try to link the women in some way.

As the detectives are combing the latest crime scene, Jillian Rivers receives photographs of her late husband, a husband declared dead. Needing to find out if he is truly alive, she leaves for Montana. Her car tire is shot out and she plummets over a ravine before she makes her destination. Rescued by Zane MacGregor, she is stuck at his cabin while a blizzard rages on while she begins to recover from her assorted injuries. Detectives Alvarez and Pescoli soon find car in the ravine and fear that Jillian in the next victim. Can they save her in time? Is Zane MacGregor Jillians savior or murderer?

I am a huge Lisa Jackson fan, her work is unprecedented. Book one of a new series, Left to Die, is an edge-of-your-seat thriller that does not disappoint. Peppered with interesting characters, an icy cold backdrop, and two detectives that have their own secrets makes for one very page-turning book. The hunt and clues will lead you to a very surprising cliffhanger. Highly recommend!

Share/Like this Review?

You absolutely HAVE to read this book before you read her sequel, :"Chosen To Die". If you read "Chosen To Die" first, this book becomes almost superfluous.

Share/Like this Review?

This book caught my eye in the damaged book thread. I had never heard of the series but gave it a try. Overall it was a good book but it didn't captivate me like many others have. I felt myself putting it down and not coming back for it for long periods of time. For such a long book, I felt like there was a lot of "clutter" to fill the pages.

There are two twists to this book and though I loved the creativity of it, it was a bit confusing. I was also annoyed at some of the writing, on the part of the author. One of the characters is Zane MacGregor. The whole time he is just called MacGregor, even in an intimate setting. I found that a little out of place.

Share/Like this Review?

Very good book. It kept you guessing and several twists and turns.

Share/Like this Review?