Girl, Haunted

Ella Dark #22

by Blake Pierce

FBI Agent Ella Dark has studied serial killers from the time she could read, devastated by the murder of her own father, and has gained an encyclopedic knowledge of murderers.

The line between the living and the dead blurs as FBI Agent Ella Dark chases a ghost from the past—a killer staging murder scenes in America's haunted houses. Agent Dark must navigate through a labyrinth of horror to capture a murderer who's turning childhood nightmares into gruesome reality.

“A masterpiece of thriller and mystery.”
—Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

GIRL, HAUNTED (An Ella Dark FBI Suspense Thriller) is book #22 in a long-anticipated new series by #1 bestseller and USA Today bestselling author Blake Pierce, whose bestseller Once Gone (a free download) has received over 20,000 five star reviews and ratings.

FBI Agent Ella Dark, 29, is given her big chance to achieve her life’s to join the Behavioral Crimes Unit. Ella’s hidden obsession of gaining an encyclopedic knowledge of serial killers has led to her being singled out for her brilliant mind, and invited to join the big leagues.

But this time Ella finds herself in a cat and mouse chase with no way out, and she must wonder if she is hunting—or the one who is hunted….

A page-turning and harrowing crime thriller featuring a brilliant and tortured FBI agent, the ELLA DARK series is a riveting mystery, packed with suspense, twists and turns, revelations, and driven by a breakneck pace that will keep you flipping pages late into the night.

Future books in the series will soon be available.

“An edge of your seat thriller in a new series that keeps you turning pages! ...So many twists, turns and red herrings… I can't wait to see what happens next.”
—Reader review (Her Last Wish)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“A strong, complex story about two FBI agents trying to stop a serial killer. If you want an author to capture your attention and have you guessing, yet trying to put the pieces together, Pierce is your author!”
—Reader review (Her Last Wish)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“A typical Blake Pierce twisting, turning, roller coaster ride suspense thriller. Will have you turning the pages to the last sentence of the last chapter!!!”
—Reader review (City of Prey)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Right from the start we have an unusual protagonist that I haven't seen done in this genre before. The action is nonstop… A very atmospheric novel that will keep you turning pages well into the wee hours.”
—Reader review (City of Prey)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Everything that I look for in a book… a great plot, interesting characters, and grabs your interest right away. The book moves along at a breakneck pace and stays that way until the end. Now on go I to book two!”
—Reader review (Girl, Alone)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Exciting, heart pounding, edge of your seat book… a must read for mystery and suspense readers!”
—Reader review (Girl, Alone)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Genres: Thriller, Audiobook

238 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 24, 2024

About the author

Blake Pierce is author of the bestselling RILEY PAGE mystery series, which includes seven books (and counting). Blake Pierce is also the author of the MACKENZIE WHITE mystery series, comprising four books (and counting); of the AVERY BLACK mystery series, comprising four books (and counting); and of the new KERI LOCKE mystery series.

An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch.

Reviews

[Kara Carmean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this just to hear the narrator crash out but I think they removed it lol

[Jennifer Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seems these recent installments have all been written by AI and then not edited. Same old formula, new characters and motives. Once again it was replete with similes, metaphors and outdated colloquialisms. The most overused word this time was “punters” but some of the previous redundancies were revisited. Sadly all these grammatical issues really distracted this reader, taking away from the overall story.

The audiobook narrator did a decent job, however I don’t buy her as a 30-something bad-ass FBI agent. Her voice for Ella wavers between sounding like Ella’s mom and sounding like a child.

I see that there are several more releases planned for this series, and as a completist I don’t feel like I can just stop reading them mid stream. But I certainly hope something is done to return the series to its original quality for the remaining books. The theory that Blake Pierce is really a group of writers working together to quickly complete each new book has been replaced for me by the likelihood that they are all written by AI.

[Hijinx Abound]

I have never read so many metaphors, similes, and colloquialisms in my life. There is no way these two are catching a cold much less a serial killer.
“Ella busted through the door, Glock first, questions later”.
I CANNOT read anymore. That is fucking terrible.

[Darcy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was just ok. Part of it was Mia was there, missed her and how she interacts with Ella. They really had a good partnership, despite how the last couple books were. Also, spooky house/haunted houses really aren't my thing, so that part really turned me off and didn't interest me much. I was a bit surprised at how the Sheriff was in this one. I expected him to be a redneck moron, who hated Ella and Luca horning in on the case, instead, he was quite helpful and was glad they were around.

The ending had me wanting to read the next one, to see what is going to happen next with Ella.

[Dani Cushman, First of her name, Mother of Westies · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, this was probably the worst book I have read this year, maybe this decade. I almost DNF but I’m not quitter. LOL. Actually that’s a lie, I’ve DNF’d a book before. I was hopeful this would get better…it didn’t. I listened to this book so I could get some things done around the house and take on my hikes but it was awful. The narrator sounds like a child, not a bad ass FBI agent. She would do great with children’s books, definitely not believable as an adult or someone of authority. As a voice over actor I was really taken aback at this one. A bit of second hand embarrassment. I hate to bash her, I’m sure she is great with other genres or content. This was not it. She is just not believable for these characters. I heard the book has a lot of grammatical errors as well, so not sure what is going on. Low budget maybe? Someone else questioned whether this was AI with the reuse of certain words (unsub, punter, etc) and poor grammar. Anyway, time spent that I will never get back. Note to self: it’s ok to DNF a book.

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m not sure which series came out first, and while there are differences, this was too close to the Maya Gray series. This fell flat for me and had me wishing the book was over because I can’t bring myself to DNF. It was drawn out and not exciting enough for me, personally.

[Venessa Johnstone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just here to see what happens , narrator was a lil better..

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

was really hard to shift to a new narrator. I really like the other one and this one I'm struggling to enjoy.

also kind of the same old same old stories

[Eileen Heape · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have rated higher but too much bad language….

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good descriptive writing! Just not as fast paced as I hoped!

[Jillian Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect October/Halloween book!

[Jub Harshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly smooth & quick read. Very apropos for the Halloween season.
Wish there'd been a bit more tension in scenes. Enjoyable.

[Candace Garrity · Rating 2 out of 5]

2. this was disappointing. Not worth the wait
Almost a DNF.