• 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
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (874 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
One Left Alive: A Heart-Stopping and Gripping Crime Thriller  By  cover art

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

By: Helen Phifer
Narrated by: Alison Campbell
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $19.95

Buy for $19.95

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

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

What listeners say about One Left Alive: A Heart-Stopping and Gripping Crime Thriller

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    604
  • 4 Stars
    182
  • 3 Stars
    59
  • 2 Stars
    21
  • 1 Stars
    8
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    606
  • 4 Stars
    143
  • 3 Stars
    42
  • 2 Stars
    13
  • 1 Stars
    7
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    545
  • 4 Stars
    173
  • 3 Stars
    61
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    8

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Barbie solves her first murder case

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

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great characters

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

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

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

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

I was engrossed!

Not many books can catch my full attention- I found this one to be interesting and well written. The characters were well rounded and believable. Well done, and thanks for the fun 👍

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful