Absolutely awesome book which I could not put down. Left to die is a psychological suspense thriller that keeps you guessing throughout the whole story. At first your thinking he did it, then oh, well maybe he did it and then, hmm!

Back cover: One by one, the victims are carefully captured, toyed with, then subjected to a slow and agonizing death. Piece by piece, his exquisite plan takes shape. The police can't yet see the beauty in his work, but soon, very soon, they will... In the lonely woods around Grizzly Falls, Montana, four bodies have been discovered. Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli have been hoping for a career-making case, but this is a nightmare. Even with the FBI involved, Selana and Regan have nothing to go on but a killer's cryptic notes, and the unsettling knowledge that there is much worse to come... When Jillian Rivers opens her eyes, she's trapped in a mangled car. Then a stranger, claiming to be a trail guide named Zane MacGregor, pries her free. Though she's grateful, something about him sets Jillian on edge. And if she knew what lay out there in the woods of Montanta, she'd be truly terrified. Because someone is waiting...watching...poised to strike and make Jillian the next victim...

This is a first time I have ever read anything by Lisa Jackson and thoroughly enjoyed the story and her writing style. The characters are three dimensional and you get pulled not only into the story, but their lives as well. Left to Die is written in third person perspective for everyone except the killer. His portions are written in first person and makes it quite chilling as he discusses what he is going to do and who he is going after next. Well done without being too terribly graphic.

The killer somehow lures them to the mountains of Montana, shoots out their car tires causing them to crash. He rescues them and nurses them back to health only to kill them by leading them naked through the snow, tying them to a tree and leaving them to die from exposure to the elements. He leaves a cryptic calling card on the tree, carving out the woman's initials and a star positioned differently each time. The two female detectives work endlessly to try and find the killer before he strikes again.

Excellent story, but ends in a cliffhanger. You can imagine how surprising it is to be so involved in a story and then discover it's to be continued later. The rest of the story will be told in 'Chosen to Die' which won't be released until August 2009.

Highly recommended and will probably end up reading it again prior to starting the sequel.

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. ( )

Paperback: 484 pages
Publisher: Zebra August 1, 2008
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1420102761
ISBN-13: 978-1420102765
To purchase, click here.
Book Synopsis:

One by one, the victims are carefully captured, toyed with, then subjected to a slow and agonizing death. Piece by piec, his exquisite plan takes shape. The police can't yet see the beauty in his work - but soon, very soon, they will...

In the lonely woods around Grizzly Falls, Montana, four bodies have been discovered. 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 knowlege that there is much worse to come...

When Jillian Rivers opens her eyes, she's trapped in a mangled car. Then a stranger, claiming to be a trail guide named Zane MacGregor, pries her free. Though she's grateful, something about him sets Jillian on edge. And, if she knew what lay out there in the woods of Montana, she'd be truly terrified. Because someone is waiting...watching...poised to strike and make Jillian the next victim...

I reviewed Lost Souls a few months back and that was the first Lisa Jackson book that I had read. I knew after reading it that it wasn't going to be my last as I just loved her style and content. I also was shocked when I walked into Wal-Mart and saw the hardcover right in front of me. It was then I told my hubby, see, that's one of the books I just reviewed for Pump Up Your Book Promotion - it was really pretty cool! So, needless to say, when I was asked whether I would be willing to review Left to Die I jumped at the chance. I wasn't sure if it was going to be as good as Lost Souls but let me tell you, it was even better.

Let me first start by saying I was thrilled to see that the two lead characters are female detectives. Selena Alverez and Regan Pescoli couldn't be more different in both their personal lives and the way they approach the cases they are handed are also very different. But they fit together like two puzzle pieces and their drive and work ethic is what is sorely needed in their department to catch the sadistic serial killer that is on the loose. They were hoping to make a name for themselves but this case is quickly turning into a nightmare, with a killer that is calculating and flawless in all of his actions.

The serial killer in this book is chilling...no pun intended. He sets up his victims by shooting out their tires as they are driving through a ravine. They loose control of their vehicles and crash, causing them to be totally helpless. So, when a nice stranger rescues them and nurses them back to health, who would think that he would then lead them to an icy death, tied to a tree, naked, left to brave the elements, and essentially succumb to them.

This book had me on the edge of my seat, literally. I am so thrilled to have been given the opportunity to review two of Lisa's books and can't wait for the sequel - Chosen to Die. This is a must read for anyone who is interested in suspense and truly not being able to guess the ending.
To view and awesome book trailer see below:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-V6XKjbRqF4]
About the author:

Lisa Jackson can’t keep away from murderers, especially serial killers. She’s been killing people everywhere from Savannah and New Orleans to San Francisco and the Pacific Northwest—and it’s been worth it. Her readers come back again and again, and her novels are fixtures on national bestseller lists. In fact, her book Fatal Burn was a number one New York Times paperback bestseller, and the first two of her novels to be published in hardcover, Shiver and Absolute Fear, were in the top five on the New York Times Best Sellers list. Next, readers will be looking for LOST SOULS, being published in hardcover by Kensington Books to go on sale March 25th.

Having made serial killing her business—sort of—she has put her characters through the wringer. They have been up to their necks in danger and stared death, usually a pretty gory one, right in the face. She continues to be fascinated by the minds and motives of both her killers and their pursuers—the personal, the professional and downright twisted. As she builds the puzzle of relationships, actions, clues, lies and personal histories that haunt her protagonists, she must also confront the fear and terror faced by her victims, and the harsh and enduring truth that, in the real world, terror and madness touch far too many lives and families.

Lisa began writing at the urging of her sister, novelist Nancy Bush. Inspired by the success of authors she admired and the burgeoning market for romance fiction at the time, Nancy was convinced they could work together and succeed. They sat down, determined to write and to be published.

They did and they were.

Initially they wrote together. Later, they moved in different directions. Lisa brought more and more suspense to her work and began writing much darker stories. Nancy’s writing expanded to include not just her own novels, including her highly praised Jane Kelly Mysteries, such as the recently published Ultraviolet. She also spent several years writing for one of television’s leading soap operas, even transplanting herself for a time from the sister’s Pacific Northwest roots to Manhattan. This year, they plan to work together again on a thriller set for publication in 2009.

Meanwhile, for Lisa the killing continues as this mother, daughter, workaholic and amazing writer continues her habit of making the hair stand up on the back of readers’ necks, and landing her books on The New York Times, the USA Today, and the Publishers Weekly national bestseller lists.

Lisa Jackson’s novels include the upcoming LOST SOULS and the best sellers Absolute Fear, which will be published in paperback for the first time in March, Hot Blooded, Cold Blooded, The Night Before, The Morning After, Deep Freeze, Fatal Burn, and Almost Dead. Last year, Most Likely to Die was written by Lisa, Beverly Barton and Wendy Corsi Staub was published and became a number three New York Times paperback bestseller. She is a member of the Mystery Writers of America, the International Thriller Writers and the Romance Writers of America.

For more information, please visit www.lisajackson.com ( )

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! ( )