One Left Alive: A Heart-Stopping and Gripping Crime Thriller

Detective Morgan Brookes, Book 1

By: Helen Phifer

Narrated by: Alison Campbell

Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

She knelt down by the side of the first girl. She had to force herself to breathe as she lifted the soft white cloth covering the girl’s beautiful face....

When the body of a woman is found hanging from a tree in her front garden, rookie Detective Morgan Brookes is first on the scene. But Olivia Potter is past saving. And when her husband and daughters cannot be traced, Morgan knows there is more to this tragedy. And then she finds them. Lying huddled together in the dark basement, each of their faces covered with a small cotton cloth, their bodies cold to the touch. 

But as Morgan kneels beside the family, she realizes that one of the girls is still breathing. As she holds Bronte’s fragile hand in hers, begging her to hold on, she vows to find out who has done this. 

Every day Morgan wakes at 4.25 a.m., her old insomnia now mixed with a new fixation on the case. But every clue about the murdered family leads to a dead end. Until, trawling through old files, she discovers a link to a cold case from years ago. Another family was murdered in this house, and the killer was never caught. 

When Morgan returns to the scene of the crime to discover more about this forgotten case, she finds another body. With Bronte still unconscious in hospital, Morgan must act fast to solve this case and lay two families to rest, before the killer returns for the girl left alive....

©2020 Helen Phifer (P)2020 Bookouture

Barbie solves her first murder case

This should be a YA book. Characters and story were very derivative so the ending was no surprise.

Great characters

Really enjoyed the banter and development of the characters! Excited for the second book. Not very procedural but somewhat.

I am hooked

Not sure I'd like a $5 listen. I loved it. I thought it was a good and clever police procedural. I like the cast of characters and am looking forward to the next one in the series.
Thanks Audible for introducing me to a new series.

Good start to the series

On her first day alone on patrol, PC Morgan Brookes is first on the scene of an apparent suicide by hanging. While the experienced DI is ready to sign off on the victim, Morgan isn’t so sure. There’s more to the story of a wealthy woman taking her own life. When Morgan returns to the scene the following day and locates the rest of the family in the basement, the murders are eerily similar to a decades old case...at the same house. Except, in this case, one of the daughters is alive, barely but alive. Good story with this rookie being thrust into the Criminal Division to make up numbers but her investigative acumen is astounding. Enjoyable sub-story of Morgan’s relationships with her father and the DI. Looking forward to the next book.

awful

Am I supposed to believe this is anywhere near being reality. Kept talking Morgan up like she was some modern day Sherlock when it was what anyone with half a brain would of done.
Typical officers who fall for each other, putting aside age difference. And of course she is young and beautiful, he's a slob. It's just not an interesting story and moves incredibly slow. I won't be reading anymore, if there are more.

Almost very good

I really wanted to love this book. I do like this type of novel generally-talented young detective, just starting out and ready to prove themselves and become a series of books.
This story started out with an absolute bang! The mystery was compelling and not overly easy to figure out too soon. I’ll give the plot four stars.
There were holes for sure, it ended abruptly, the lead made embarrassingly bad decisions that I don’t really think could be attributed to her rookie status but what I found most disappointing were the number of loose ends and unresolved subplots. I understand they call this book one which means I need to commit to find out what her bully is up to and just who is the lady in the cabin, what happened with the girl, etc. etc. Nope.
Regarding the performance, the woman does an excellent job with voice characterizations, inflections, appropriate pacing and tone. Very good job. I hate to mention this at all and it feels really mean but someone should have mentioned this to her before- there were times when the sound of excessive saliva in the front of her mouth was so bad that it became all I could focus on! Sorry.

too easy

I did like the stories the bad part is I figured out who the murderer was at least 10 chapters before I got to the end I was kind of disappointed that I figured it all out would have been better to be surprised

Dull!

Definitely NOT a heart stopping gripping crime thriller!!!! If you have never read a thriller and you want to ease yourself into a detective story then this is the book for you. Basically the story is about a young police woman who wants to be a detective. She gets her chance and of course she is a star and solves the cases alone. Aside from the weak plot, the writing lacks creativity and all the adjectives are the same. Definitely a return.

Not my favorite

While I appreciate the effort it takes to write a full length novel, and therefore try not to be overly negative, I was disappointed in this story. The author does a lot of ‘tell’ - telling the reader how the characters think and feel - and not a lot of ‘show’ - using descriptive words / scenes to let the reader figure these things out. As a result I felt like the author spoon fed the story to the reader.

Also, there were unrealistic timelines, overly convenient circumstances or changes of heart, and the main character was gullible yet praised for her intellect. Additionally, I had difficulty buying into the romantic development. I could go on.

I will say that the performance perfectly matched the story. The reader also used her voice to further spoon feed the listener. I found it frustrating but many may like that style.

This book wasn’t for me, but clearly there are lots of readers who loved it.

Don't do it!

I wish I could get a refund! it was awful. im surprised at the good reviews here.. this was trash.. Why did 2 characters never entertain a love life?
also, the narration os good as female, but not much else. does not do other accents well either. terrible male voice .

Utter rubbish

This is the only book in the 6 titles I buy on average a month from audible. Completely awful story line whining female (Morgan) and equally useless DS.... save your money if you are an avid crime/thriller reader. Got to chapter 19 and gave up!

Sunday afternoon mystery for Hallmark channel

Probably good for teenagers, as 'light' and with a little romance on the side. Cannot be considered for serious mystery or crime readers! I managed to finish it but I was determined.

WOWZERS

Oh my what an absolutely brilliant book .. I love Helen’s books and with Alison Campbell on Narration it’s a winner all the way
I love the characters of Megan , Ben and Amy and what a twist .
Best thing about this book aswell is the title where it says book1 .. I am very excited to get to listen to book 2 and many many many more books after that I’m this new Detective series
Well done to all involved

Excelent

Really enjoyed this 1st book bit miffed have to wait for December 10th, but that is Kindle I do hope it goes straight to Audible too. Recommend this book well written and the narrator is just right for this book.

Rather weak

Plot was good but immature relationships between investigation team. Some parts repetitive and a bit doubtful.

It’s okay

That said, I’m on the third one. The narration is a bit odd especially when she’s “smiling”. I listened because I like the characters except Morgan! She’s been a detective for 2 1/2 minutes and sways between mock insecurities and the font of all knowledge. The crimes are also entirely obvious so she’s clearly not as good as she thinks!

Absolutely enthralling

What a book! Detective Morgan is great. Wonderful characters and such a good story. I can’t wait to read more

I enjoyed

Nice easy listen… characters are relatable enjoyed the story and look forward to more in the series

Childish and absurd

The worst book I’ve listened to in a long time. The narrator was awful a really irritating voice

Cringy Romance not a crime thriller

So so painful, it’s more a cringy romance than a crime thriller! 95% of the story is of painfully sickly sweet flirting and 5% is related to the crime.