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Olivia Knight FBI #1
New Girl in Town
WANTED - A picturesque new town, a fresh start, and a much-needed escape from the constant reminder that the world is still full of bad guys.
For FBI agent Olivia Knight that perfect place is Belle Grove, a charming small town in Northern Virginia, a place hidden by lush greenery and away from the hustle and bustle of the big city.
This quaint town checked all of Olivia’s boxes and it seemed to be the perfect place to give her the simple, quiet home life that she desperately craved.
A home life away from the Bureau, away from the sounds of sirens.
And most importantly, away from the grim nature of her job.
So, what sort of place does Olivia call home?
Well, in a cozy cabin, nestled in the woods.
FBI agent Olivia Knight sat on her comfy chair, reading her favorite novel.
Escaping into a world that no longer exists.
But in the dead of night, the darkness that she escaped from, found its way right to her doorstep…
When Olivia finds a young girl, that is malnourished and disheveled outside her home.
She is thrown into a disturbing and puzzling case.
In order to catch the culprit and find the missing children in her new hometown.
Olivia must dive deep into the twisted minds of a deranged serial kidnapper,
and crack an almost impossible case.
With no leads in sight, Olivia must rely on more than just her wit.
With the help of Brock, her new partner. A guy that’s although competent, is the exact opposite of her in every way.
She must act fast to catch the person terrorizing the once serene town.
In Belle Grove, the truth is elusive, and the mysteries here have a way of remaining hidden.
As more children go missing, and the stakes to find the culprit grow higher than ever.
Olivia Knight is about to find out what it really means to be the new girl in town.
For FBI agent Olivia Knight that perfect place is Belle Grove, a charming small town in Northern Virginia, a place hidden by lush greenery and away from the hustle and bustle of the big city.
This quaint town checked all of Olivia’s boxes and it seemed to be the perfect place to give her the simple, quiet home life that she desperately craved.
A home life away from the Bureau, away from the sounds of sirens.
And most importantly, away from the grim nature of her job.
So, what sort of place does Olivia call home?
Well, in a cozy cabin, nestled in the woods.
FBI agent Olivia Knight sat on her comfy chair, reading her favorite novel.
Escaping into a world that no longer exists.
But in the dead of night, the darkness that she escaped from, found its way right to her doorstep…
When Olivia finds a young girl, that is malnourished and disheveled outside her home.
She is thrown into a disturbing and puzzling case.
In order to catch the culprit and find the missing children in her new hometown.
Olivia must dive deep into the twisted minds of a deranged serial kidnapper,
and crack an almost impossible case.
With no leads in sight, Olivia must rely on more than just her wit.
With the help of Brock, her new partner. A guy that’s although competent, is the exact opposite of her in every way.
She must act fast to catch the person terrorizing the once serene town.
In Belle Grove, the truth is elusive, and the mysteries here have a way of remaining hidden.
As more children go missing, and the stakes to find the culprit grow higher than ever.
Olivia Knight is about to find out what it really means to be the new girl in town.
298 pages, Paperback
First published August 6, 2021
3423 people are currently reading
1863 people want to read
About the author
Elle Gray
129 books671 followersElle Gray lives in a small town with her 2 cats, and her handsome husky.
As a girl, she was obsessed with crime novels and thrillers.
Today, she loves writing and creating thrilling novels with courageous, strong heroes/heroines and dangerous psychopaths. She invites you to join her exciting world of detectives and FBI agents that take down killers and kick butt.
As a girl, she was obsessed with crime novels and thrillers.
Today, she loves writing and creating thrilling novels with courageous, strong heroes/heroines and dangerous psychopaths. She invites you to join her exciting world of detectives and FBI agents that take down killers and kick butt.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 332 reviews
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August 30, 2021This was not good. The writing was not professional. Significant spelling errors which made me question the author. The story line was not crisp and you felt like you missed a whole book outlining the "heroine's" back story. I did figure out "whodunit" but there were not many options and everyone but the heroine seemed to pull the story together, while the "heroine" thought about the result. Author kept saying the heroine was a cracker jack FBI agent but there was nothing backing it up. Really, not worth the read.
August 13, 2021
Annoying read
I found myself skipping pages over and over as the main character constantly whined about her inadequacy. At same time being praised for doing such a great job when I couldn’t figure out what she might have done to earn praise. Always tired, always interested in her partner and complaining about no leads. Finally gave up.
I found myself skipping pages over and over as the main character constantly whined about her inadequacy. At same time being praised for doing such a great job when I couldn’t figure out what she might have done to earn praise. Always tired, always interested in her partner and complaining about no leads. Finally gave up.
August 12, 2021
Disappointed
First, I love Elle Gray!! The Wilder series are my favorite, Arrington series was good also. I have no idea what this is/was. Her writing is seamless as her other books but it was as if all of her knowledge/research had been completely forgotten. It had almost no action and was like one drawn out poor therapy session. If this is your first book to read by Elle Gray, don't, start with Wilder. I am completely miffed by this book, as if it was written by someone else. I don't want to ruin the book but when she had a witness/possible suspect sitting there and doesn't check the background? Half the book wouldn't need to have been written. I had just finished catching up on Wilder and was excited for a new series till the 21st came around and very disappointed.
First, I love Elle Gray!! The Wilder series are my favorite, Arrington series was good also. I have no idea what this is/was. Her writing is seamless as her other books but it was as if all of her knowledge/research had been completely forgotten. It had almost no action and was like one drawn out poor therapy session. If this is your first book to read by Elle Gray, don't, start with Wilder. I am completely miffed by this book, as if it was written by someone else. I don't want to ruin the book but when she had a witness/possible suspect sitting there and doesn't check the background? Half the book wouldn't need to have been written. I had just finished catching up on Wilder and was excited for a new series till the 21st came around and very disappointed.
May 11, 2023
I'm pretty sure this book was NOT edited. There were dozens of inconsistencies, misspelled words, and grammatical errors. The perpetrator was easy to figure out, and the plot was amateurish. I will definitely avoid this author.
October 14, 2021
The storyline initially intrigued me but the constant whining and unprofessionalism of the main character killed my interest in the story. Also, the initial chapter felt very out of place. I know it was a flashback on the kidnapper’s young life but it felt random and would have worked better if the kidnapper’s life had been referenced periodically throughout the book (vs not mentioned again until the end).
I won’t be returning to this series or this author.
I won’t be returning to this series or this author.
September 5, 2025
I know this is supposed to be a continuation, or new series, but honestly it reads like the first book she ever wrote. There is no plot, at least not one that makes sense, so many errors. I have zero idea why Olivia is thought to be such a great agent, nor why her new partner keeps calling her the best agent he's ever worked with. All she did in the entire book was "happen" to be in the place where three kidnapped girls (who are set free) show up. That's it. She never had a clue as to why, she didn't bother looking to see why, she could have gotten dogs to trail them back to where they were held but that never occurred to her. A LOT never occurred to her apart from having an increasingly annoying crush on her new partner.
She moved out of Washington D. C. because she was unhappy living in the city. Has a troubled past, of course, she is Paxton Arrington's dead wife's sister, though they have no relationship. She has an absent father, a mother who disappeared inexplicably, about which she apparently has no curiosity. Her mother just disappeared leaving behind her phone, nothing suspicious about that, and she hasn't even considered anything nefarious though she is sure her sister was murdered. So, she's damaged, pushes away her friends because they are too caring or something. So she moves out of the city and apparently decides on her own that she is going to work remotely from now on. A big kidnapping case drops in her lap, she never goes back into the office to work it, has brief conversations with her boss who keeps telling her how great she is doing, though why I can't fathom since she never actually does anything but whine about how she doesn't sleep well.
Her new partner is so obsequious as to be unbelievable, he defers to her in everything, though she has no ideas, no clues and shows no progress. Everything that DOES happen just drops in her lap, it isn't through any sleuthing of her own. After the last two girls are released, she figures out they must have been held somewhere in the forest because they TELL her. Only then does she go looking. Even then, though, she insists on approaching the place where an adult woman is now being held at gunpoint, on her own, making her partner stay behind because she thinks she can talk the woman down. A woman who has apparently been kidnapping girls for years and now has her adult daughter, whom she lost custody of because the court found her an unfit mother, which as events unfold is the only thing that is crystal clear. She's a practicing alcoholic and has been for years, sure, she had a horrible childhood too, but the whole premise is just lost.
Most of the book is Olivia and Brock almost playing footsie. Her boss occasionally calling to give her useless information and praise her. She's not yet thirty and already acclaimed but there is nothing ever said about why. So the book ends with Brock also moving to this small town, with no field office, and the two of them apparently having unlimited vacation time because they never go back into their actual office, they just hang out. Blake Wilder is mentioned a couple times, Paxton too, neither are helpful, I've no idea why they make any appearance at all, they don't really even know her. So, her decision to work remotely, never go into her actual office is okay with her boss, he's apparently also okay with Brock making the same decision. I can't imagine why. There IS a story here but it's so covered under nonsense that getting into the flow of it is simply impossible. I've liked, mostly, Elle's previous works (have read the entire Wilder series and half the Arrington series) but this one is just a mess from beginning to end. I have the next two and hope she's improved this series immensely because as it is, had I not read the other series, I would have stopped with this one. It was that bad.
She moved out of Washington D. C. because she was unhappy living in the city. Has a troubled past, of course, she is Paxton Arrington's dead wife's sister, though they have no relationship. She has an absent father, a mother who disappeared inexplicably, about which she apparently has no curiosity. Her mother just disappeared leaving behind her phone, nothing suspicious about that, and she hasn't even considered anything nefarious though she is sure her sister was murdered. So, she's damaged, pushes away her friends because they are too caring or something. So she moves out of the city and apparently decides on her own that she is going to work remotely from now on. A big kidnapping case drops in her lap, she never goes back into the office to work it, has brief conversations with her boss who keeps telling her how great she is doing, though why I can't fathom since she never actually does anything but whine about how she doesn't sleep well.
Her new partner is so obsequious as to be unbelievable, he defers to her in everything, though she has no ideas, no clues and shows no progress. Everything that DOES happen just drops in her lap, it isn't through any sleuthing of her own. After the last two girls are released, she figures out they must have been held somewhere in the forest because they TELL her. Only then does she go looking. Even then, though, she insists on approaching the place where an adult woman is now being held at gunpoint, on her own, making her partner stay behind because she thinks she can talk the woman down. A woman who has apparently been kidnapping girls for years and now has her adult daughter, whom she lost custody of because the court found her an unfit mother, which as events unfold is the only thing that is crystal clear. She's a practicing alcoholic and has been for years, sure, she had a horrible childhood too, but the whole premise is just lost.
Most of the book is Olivia and Brock almost playing footsie. Her boss occasionally calling to give her useless information and praise her. She's not yet thirty and already acclaimed but there is nothing ever said about why. So the book ends with Brock also moving to this small town, with no field office, and the two of them apparently having unlimited vacation time because they never go back into their actual office, they just hang out. Blake Wilder is mentioned a couple times, Paxton too, neither are helpful, I've no idea why they make any appearance at all, they don't really even know her. So, her decision to work remotely, never go into her actual office is okay with her boss, he's apparently also okay with Brock making the same decision. I can't imagine why. There IS a story here but it's so covered under nonsense that getting into the flow of it is simply impossible. I've liked, mostly, Elle's previous works (have read the entire Wilder series and half the Arrington series) but this one is just a mess from beginning to end. I have the next two and hope she's improved this series immensely because as it is, had I not read the other series, I would have stopped with this one. It was that bad.
October 13, 2024
The book’s concept sounded interesting and since it had over a 4 star rating here on Goodreads, I had high hopes. Unfortunately those were dashed in the first chapter.
There is no depth to the main character and there are SO many flaws in the writing. Does no one proofread manuscripts anymore? I made it 7% in and had to give up. The characterization may have improved, but once I started counting glaring errors in the writing, I decided I was going to give it 3 more errors and then stop.
A couple of examples of errors:
“Now that she’d been cleaned up and tended to, her injuries were even more obvious now.”
“Paxton never believed the official story that she hit a patch of black ice while driving one night and careened into a ditch. He’d spent the last several years trying to prove that there was some foul play or conspiracy behind Veronica’s.”
I can overlook punctuation errors but not errors that make me reread the passage to ensure I didn’t miss something.
Waste of time.
There is no depth to the main character and there are SO many flaws in the writing. Does no one proofread manuscripts anymore? I made it 7% in and had to give up. The characterization may have improved, but once I started counting glaring errors in the writing, I decided I was going to give it 3 more errors and then stop.
A couple of examples of errors:
“Now that she’d been cleaned up and tended to, her injuries were even more obvious now.”
“Paxton never believed the official story that she hit a patch of black ice while driving one night and careened into a ditch. He’d spent the last several years trying to prove that there was some foul play or conspiracy behind Veronica’s.”
I can overlook punctuation errors but not errors that make me reread the passage to ensure I didn’t miss something.
Waste of time.
June 16, 2023
such a frustrating read
One of the more frustrating books I’ve come across. The premise and characters could have been good, but everything felt forced and much of the book are the incredibly repetitive musings of the FMC with much of the rest being taken up by utterly pointless descriptions of conversations and processes leading to zero further information or leads on the case. It’s a mystery that it got solved at all, that the FMC is apparently an experienced and able agent despite seeming to be utterly clueless and spending most of the time pondering her lack of self worth (probably justifiably). I was going to give up after half the book but ended up speed scanning through the rest hoping it would improve. It didn’t. I liked her male counterpart better except for the fact he clearly is deluded too in his opinion she is a wonderful agent.
One of the more frustrating books I’ve come across. The premise and characters could have been good, but everything felt forced and much of the book are the incredibly repetitive musings of the FMC with much of the rest being taken up by utterly pointless descriptions of conversations and processes leading to zero further information or leads on the case. It’s a mystery that it got solved at all, that the FMC is apparently an experienced and able agent despite seeming to be utterly clueless and spending most of the time pondering her lack of self worth (probably justifiably). I was going to give up after half the book but ended up speed scanning through the rest hoping it would improve. It didn’t. I liked her male counterpart better except for the fact he clearly is deluded too in his opinion she is a wonderful agent.
July 16, 2023
DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME!
This story had a compelling interesting beginning, but it got tedious and annoying very quickly. I thought this was going to be a nail-biting detective story, but it was anything but nail-biting. It's more like a sappy "almost" romance.
It was so disappointing. There was very little actual detective work. Mostly just a lot of fruitless wandering around. The solve was ridiculous! "You got the girls home." Seriously? What did she do? SPOILER ALERT They literally came to her doorstep, and then she did not act as an FBI agent would! Nor did her partner. He gave them $50 for a milkshake? After what they'd been through??? Truly, I don't know how this book could have been dumber or more annoying. What an incredible absolute waste of my time!!
This story had a compelling interesting beginning, but it got tedious and annoying very quickly. I thought this was going to be a nail-biting detective story, but it was anything but nail-biting. It's more like a sappy "almost" romance.
It was so disappointing. There was very little actual detective work. Mostly just a lot of fruitless wandering around. The solve was ridiculous! "You got the girls home." Seriously? What did she do? SPOILER ALERT They literally came to her doorstep, and then she did not act as an FBI agent would! Nor did her partner. He gave them $50 for a milkshake? After what they'd been through??? Truly, I don't know how this book could have been dumber or more annoying. What an incredible absolute waste of my time!!
September 2, 2021
Not great
I really love the Elle Gray books I've read, I actually binged the entire Blake Wilder series in rapid succession, so that being said I was disappointed with this one. Not sure what happened but felt like a completely different author. The story is somewhat interesting but pretty disjointed and leaves you missing that one thing that keeps it engaging. It was pretty much the "Olivia" story. We got to see what she was feeling and thinking every moment of every very long day, and it was honestly nothing gripping or even very interesting. Unfortunately I think Ill be passing on this series but do look forward to more Blake Wilder, not giving up!
I really love the Elle Gray books I've read, I actually binged the entire Blake Wilder series in rapid succession, so that being said I was disappointed with this one. Not sure what happened but felt like a completely different author. The story is somewhat interesting but pretty disjointed and leaves you missing that one thing that keeps it engaging. It was pretty much the "Olivia" story. We got to see what she was feeling and thinking every moment of every very long day, and it was honestly nothing gripping or even very interesting. Unfortunately I think Ill be passing on this series but do look forward to more Blake Wilder, not giving up!
October 17, 2024
This book wasn’t even close to the Blake Wilder series. No interesting characters, no action, and these FBI AGENTS were as boring as a white wall. Doubt I go much further with this one. Total letdown.
January 24, 2024
The premise sounded promising but I had to skim through because of how painful the main character is.
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January 10, 2025Cute little fbi mystery with a little romance! Can’t wait to read the second olivia knight book!
September 29, 2021
It was an ok story but I just couldn’t get invested in the characters or the plot.
December 21, 2025
New Girl in Town looked like my type of book. FBI Agent, Olivia Hawke, moves to a cabin in a small town about an hour outside of Washington DC. to get away from the stress of living in the city. One night she's awakened by a noise and finds a young blonde girl on her porch.
The girl is filty, looks like she's been starved, and shows signs of being held captive. When a second blonde girl is abducted, Olivia and her new partner, Brock Tanner, are given the case. Eventually a third young blonde girl is reported missing.
I found this book to be pretty awful. Olivia seems to suffer some sort of martyr complex because her sister died in a car crash and her mother vanished. Even though she had nothing to do with either event and wasn't even in the same area. Her constant anguish about solving the current disappearances went on and on. The first 80% of the book was her and how she thought she was letting everyone down. She didn't act like most FBI agents I've come across in novels.
The characters were bland, the plot was overused, the editing was horrible and I'm not sure why I finished it but I did. If anyone I knew had been kidnapped,I wouldn't want either of these idiots in charge of finding them. This author has several series available but they all look like they were published within a couple months of each other, which makes me think she's just using a template to grind them out. I doubt I'll read another but at least I didn't have to pay for this one.
The girl is filty, looks like she's been starved, and shows signs of being held captive. When a second blonde girl is abducted, Olivia and her new partner, Brock Tanner, are given the case. Eventually a third young blonde girl is reported missing.
I found this book to be pretty awful. Olivia seems to suffer some sort of martyr complex because her sister died in a car crash and her mother vanished. Even though she had nothing to do with either event and wasn't even in the same area. Her constant anguish about solving the current disappearances went on and on. The first 80% of the book was her and how she thought she was letting everyone down. She didn't act like most FBI agents I've come across in novels.
The characters were bland, the plot was overused, the editing was horrible and I'm not sure why I finished it but I did. If anyone I knew had been kidnapped,I wouldn't want either of these idiots in charge of finding them. This author has several series available but they all look like they were published within a couple months of each other, which makes me think she's just using a template to grind them out. I doubt I'll read another but at least I didn't have to pay for this one.
May 26, 2023
This one was so bad to me that I returned it to Audible to get my credit back. MC is pretty much a dishrag, with occasional moments where she sort of sticks up for herself, but then quickly dissolves back into making you think this is a person you would never willingly spend time with.
The first chapter is all tell, no show. I can't understand why she is praised for her performance as an FBI agent. She seems almost incompetent, and the brash youngster she's so dismissive of (I'm quitting before they hook up and/or she falls in love with him, I'm pretty sure at least one of these things will happen in later chapters and I won't be here for it) is consistently shown as far better at figuring anything out than she is. I found her unlikeable. The only positive things in the case so far drop into her lap with no effort on her part.
The first chapter is all tell, no show. I can't understand why she is praised for her performance as an FBI agent. She seems almost incompetent, and the brash youngster she's so dismissive of (I'm quitting before they hook up and/or she falls in love with him, I'm pretty sure at least one of these things will happen in later chapters and I won't be here for it) is consistently shown as far better at figuring anything out than she is. I found her unlikeable. The only positive things in the case so far drop into her lap with no effort on her part.
June 22, 2023
This book was promising when I read the prologue, but between the spelling and grammatical errors, it was hard to read. As the book went on, the errors weren’t as bad, but the story was. The plot is very surface level with no depth or true backstory to the characters who deserve it. It seemed rushed at the parts that needed more description and explanation and very lengthy and wordy and repetitive at parts that weren’t relevant. The main character suffered this horrible trauma but it seemed more like a crutch to carry the book with a poorly explained backstory and no answers. I wouldn’t recommend this book unfortunately.
November 13, 2023
At the end of the Kindle edition of "New Girl in Town," author asked readers to leave a review. The review part disappeared and I am clueless as to how to leave a review. Why does Kindle pop up the Review form when one first opens the book? And where does it disappear to at the end?
She would not have liked my review, if I had been able to post it on the Kindle edition.
I skipped through most of this boring novel. The FBI agent sounded like an immature, inexperienced agent, not the top-rated one she was touted to be. The repetitious self doubt, depression and predictable romance did not add to the story. Take out that stuff and it would have been a short story.
"She did not want to imagine that parents could abuse their child that way." Not very worldly if she was not aware of horrid things parents do to children.
She kept saying "young girl." I think a young girl is a child, not a teenager.
Part of a sentence: "behind Veronica's." Behind her what? I assume author meant "behind Veronica's death." These choppy sentences that made me stop, made it a hard read, not a good read.
"that she was comfortable coming to her house." I think she meant "that HE was comfortable."
Man sleeping with file on chest, suddenly awakens, sits straight up ~ not a word about the papers inside the file flying all over the place.
"Fair few volunteers..." what does that mean?
"letting himself into the cabin..." How? Did she leave the door unlocked or had she given him a key.
Now she keeps mentioning living in "a secluded cabin in the woods," a "cabin in the middle of wilderness," yet..
"her neighbor's came out to see what was going on." What neighbors? And if she had nearby neighbors why was the first cabin the girl went to in the middle of the night?
I liked the story, but not the way it was told, and did not like the main character, the FBI agent. Doubt it I will give the Olivia Knight series another chance.
She would not have liked my review, if I had been able to post it on the Kindle edition.
I skipped through most of this boring novel. The FBI agent sounded like an immature, inexperienced agent, not the top-rated one she was touted to be. The repetitious self doubt, depression and predictable romance did not add to the story. Take out that stuff and it would have been a short story.
"She did not want to imagine that parents could abuse their child that way." Not very worldly if she was not aware of horrid things parents do to children.
She kept saying "young girl." I think a young girl is a child, not a teenager.
Part of a sentence: "behind Veronica's." Behind her what? I assume author meant "behind Veronica's death." These choppy sentences that made me stop, made it a hard read, not a good read.
"that she was comfortable coming to her house." I think she meant "that HE was comfortable."
Man sleeping with file on chest, suddenly awakens, sits straight up ~ not a word about the papers inside the file flying all over the place.
"Fair few volunteers..." what does that mean?
"letting himself into the cabin..." How? Did she leave the door unlocked or had she given him a key.
Now she keeps mentioning living in "a secluded cabin in the woods," a "cabin in the middle of wilderness," yet..
"her neighbor's came out to see what was going on." What neighbors? And if she had nearby neighbors why was the first cabin the girl went to in the middle of the night?
I liked the story, but not the way it was told, and did not like the main character, the FBI agent. Doubt it I will give the Olivia Knight series another chance.
March 24, 2024
Bland characters with overused plot
While I wanted to enjoy this book like I have many other series with strong, female protagonist, who are in law-enforcement this one fell flat. Delete character spent most of the book, ruminating about her own life instead of focusing on what was right in front of her how she missed who the unsub was is beyond me… she never even attempted to use her laptop to look up anything she was far more interested in pining away for her partner, and acting as if the tragedy of her sister‘s car accident made her somehow a bad detective. I mean she was a bad detective, but that was due to the author writing which was lackluster and had several grammatical errors.
Spoilers - one thing that was extremely hard to move past was the lack of common sense of this detective. What detective doesn’t use the resources available to her from the FBI and check previous owners, Follow up on someone who recently moved to town, And do they know how the FBI lab works at Quantico? I don’t think they do. if you were looking for a strong lead read the Emily Slate series or the Tracy Crosswhite series both are written extremely well and actually have flushed out characters who do their job and not spend their time commiserating about their own selves. And yes, we know everyone in law-enforcement, has to drink so much coffee.
While I wanted to enjoy this book like I have many other series with strong, female protagonist, who are in law-enforcement this one fell flat. Delete character spent most of the book, ruminating about her own life instead of focusing on what was right in front of her how she missed who the unsub was is beyond me… she never even attempted to use her laptop to look up anything she was far more interested in pining away for her partner, and acting as if the tragedy of her sister‘s car accident made her somehow a bad detective. I mean she was a bad detective, but that was due to the author writing which was lackluster and had several grammatical errors.
Spoilers - one thing that was extremely hard to move past was the lack of common sense of this detective. What detective doesn’t use the resources available to her from the FBI and check previous owners, Follow up on someone who recently moved to town, And do they know how the FBI lab works at Quantico? I don’t think they do. if you were looking for a strong lead read the Emily Slate series or the Tracy Crosswhite series both are written extremely well and actually have flushed out characters who do their job and not spend their time commiserating about their own selves. And yes, we know everyone in law-enforcement, has to drink so much coffee.
May 5, 2025
I gave it 3 stars because
I enjoy Olivia and Brock together. The rest of the investigation read like an arm chair detective with no resources. This is the FBI and not once did they do background checks or cross reference people who might have lived in Seattle as well. Amelia shows up on her door step and asks for an ambulance for a starved frightened girl in the woods and the EMT shows up without the police? Is Maggie the only officer? Is their a chief? On the first day the felt defeated and she traveled all the way to Seattle for a file that held nothing. It could have been sent to her quicker via fax. Both are frantically looking at a folder as if expecting something new. They never checked to see who a sets of keys and lost track of their theories just as fast. Airline's mom was involved with all these support groups but no one checked their background. Olivia has a daily pity party which is really annoying which hinders her from seeing a bigger picture. If she is so upset and obsessed by what happened to her mother and sister, why was she not investigating it? Every other thought was of them and held back the story. If it weren't for the chemistry between Olivia and Brock, I would have abandoned this story. I hope as we proceed on to the next case we get a real investigation the FBI way.
I enjoy Olivia and Brock together. The rest of the investigation read like an arm chair detective with no resources. This is the FBI and not once did they do background checks or cross reference people who might have lived in Seattle as well. Amelia shows up on her door step and asks for an ambulance for a starved frightened girl in the woods and the EMT shows up without the police? Is Maggie the only officer? Is their a chief? On the first day the felt defeated and she traveled all the way to Seattle for a file that held nothing. It could have been sent to her quicker via fax. Both are frantically looking at a folder as if expecting something new. They never checked to see who a sets of keys and lost track of their theories just as fast. Airline's mom was involved with all these support groups but no one checked their background. Olivia has a daily pity party which is really annoying which hinders her from seeing a bigger picture. If she is so upset and obsessed by what happened to her mother and sister, why was she not investigating it? Every other thought was of them and held back the story. If it weren't for the chemistry between Olivia and Brock, I would have abandoned this story. I hope as we proceed on to the next case we get a real investigation the FBI way.
October 18, 2024
Lead Character is a mess!
I don’t know how Elle and K.S. Gray came up with this character of Olivia but she’s nothing like the other strong characters in her Blake Wilder series. This character needs some serious help. The FBI should never have hired her. She’s not very good at her job. She compares herself in the end to the character that kidnapped the children. She needs some serious psychological counseling, and should not be an FBI agent. I got so sick and tired of hearing about her sister and mother. I know she’s grieving but the fact that she’s still grieving this hard after so long should tell her she needs some serious psychological help. And nobody is telling her this either. I feel Brock could be a good agent but he didn’t stand up to her as much as he should have. And nobody research or background checks were done at all. I mean, is this an FBI story or what? To me, it seemed more like a cozy mystery filled with people who didn’t really know what they were doing. I understand grief but this was ridiculous when there was no talk of her getting help for it. Anyway, I will most likely not be reading the rest of this series. And who is K.S. GRAY? I can’t find any info on him or her.
I don’t know how Elle and K.S. Gray came up with this character of Olivia but she’s nothing like the other strong characters in her Blake Wilder series. This character needs some serious help. The FBI should never have hired her. She’s not very good at her job. She compares herself in the end to the character that kidnapped the children. She needs some serious psychological counseling, and should not be an FBI agent. I got so sick and tired of hearing about her sister and mother. I know she’s grieving but the fact that she’s still grieving this hard after so long should tell her she needs some serious psychological help. And nobody is telling her this either. I feel Brock could be a good agent but he didn’t stand up to her as much as he should have. And nobody research or background checks were done at all. I mean, is this an FBI story or what? To me, it seemed more like a cozy mystery filled with people who didn’t really know what they were doing. I understand grief but this was ridiculous when there was no talk of her getting help for it. Anyway, I will most likely not be reading the rest of this series. And who is K.S. GRAY? I can’t find any info on him or her.
October 31, 2025
Took so long cause I had to drag my way through it. Not impressed, whoever is the editor needs better glasses cause I found so many errors that distracted me from the plot. Now onto the plot of the book…
The agent is the best, she’s the worst. She’s seen stuff and is hardcore but the next second gets weak and sympathetic. It felt like a dueling of the main character’s traits and was not consistent enough for me to like her. So she was practice kidnapping other girls who were never found and we are going to glide over the fact that they could be dead? She didn’t seem to care since she found the ones that went missing under her watch. It doesn’t make sense for her to let some go and kill others.
Also side note there is NO WAY a case goes to trial within two weeks, that’s the most unrealistic part. Some of the biggest questions like how they got into the house thousands of miles away makes no sense and why didn’t she just kidnap girls from Baltimore if that’s where her daughter is from instead of a small suburban DC town. Don’t recommend, too many questions and holes. Also didn’t build up the suspect enough - when she said “Susan” it took me a good ten minutes to remember who the heck Susan even was.
How did she kidnap her daughter in Baltimore and bring her back to the shed without being detected? The FBI would not let one agent take on a hostage situation. So much doesn’t make sense but at least the book is over. Also, “this is the most precious thing I own so I’m gonna leave it in a tree where teenagers come make out”. Yeah that makes no sense
The agent is the best, she’s the worst. She’s seen stuff and is hardcore but the next second gets weak and sympathetic. It felt like a dueling of the main character’s traits and was not consistent enough for me to like her. So she was practice kidnapping other girls who were never found and we are going to glide over the fact that they could be dead? She didn’t seem to care since she found the ones that went missing under her watch. It doesn’t make sense for her to let some go and kill others.
Also side note there is NO WAY a case goes to trial within two weeks, that’s the most unrealistic part. Some of the biggest questions like how they got into the house thousands of miles away makes no sense and why didn’t she just kidnap girls from Baltimore if that’s where her daughter is from instead of a small suburban DC town. Don’t recommend, too many questions and holes. Also didn’t build up the suspect enough - when she said “Susan” it took me a good ten minutes to remember who the heck Susan even was.
How did she kidnap her daughter in Baltimore and bring her back to the shed without being detected? The FBI would not let one agent take on a hostage situation. So much doesn’t make sense but at least the book is over. Also, “this is the most precious thing I own so I’m gonna leave it in a tree where teenagers come make out”. Yeah that makes no sense
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2021
Wonderful read
This is the first Elle Gray book I have read. I enjoyed the story, as it also showedthe life of Olivia Knight, an FBI Agent. Olivia just moved to a small town, an hours drive out of D.C. She movedtryingto find peace from the city and the thoughts of what happened with her family. Olivia had many cases, that left her with sleepless nights anf longer days. Now she is thrown into case, in her new town, when a girl shows up on her porch, during the night. Olivia has to work with an Agent she doesn't know. Can they work together, become friends, or solve the case together. This is a great story, about how everything can affect us and even causing problems , with our job. Can Olivia get through everything , to stay with the case and the FBI, or has she come this far, to finally quit? For me, this was a wonderful story and mystery, to read the book straight thru, in one reading. The ending was a bit of surprise. I am now on my wayto reading my next Elle Gray book. Hope she writes more about Olivia.
This is the first Elle Gray book I have read. I enjoyed the story, as it also showedthe life of Olivia Knight, an FBI Agent. Olivia just moved to a small town, an hours drive out of D.C. She movedtryingto find peace from the city and the thoughts of what happened with her family. Olivia had many cases, that left her with sleepless nights anf longer days. Now she is thrown into case, in her new town, when a girl shows up on her porch, during the night. Olivia has to work with an Agent she doesn't know. Can they work together, become friends, or solve the case together. This is a great story, about how everything can affect us and even causing problems , with our job. Can Olivia get through everything , to stay with the case and the FBI, or has she come this far, to finally quit? For me, this was a wonderful story and mystery, to read the book straight thru, in one reading. The ending was a bit of surprise. I am now on my wayto reading my next Elle Gray book. Hope she writes more about Olivia.
January 3, 2023
Exciting but
The story is a good one with some very exciting moments. The ending was very insightful as to the cascading effects of loneliness and absence of parental love. However the proof reading was substantially lacking. There were several grammatical errors that could not be attributed to deliberate use of vernacular. At one point the voice was changed from third person to first person, causing this reader consternation until it was realized that it was an error. At another point the main character’s sister was referred to as Victoria rather than Veronica, her name used elsewhere. Finally parts of the story taxed my credulity. For the agents to adventure into the woods without benefit of compass, maps and GPS is nonsense, especially at night. Furthermore, bushwhacking through cover as was described would be very difficult for anyone that was not specifically trained and equipped. Good overall as a mystery but authors need to pay more attention to proofing and creating more credible conditions surrounding the activity of the protagonist.
The story is a good one with some very exciting moments. The ending was very insightful as to the cascading effects of loneliness and absence of parental love. However the proof reading was substantially lacking. There were several grammatical errors that could not be attributed to deliberate use of vernacular. At one point the voice was changed from third person to first person, causing this reader consternation until it was realized that it was an error. At another point the main character’s sister was referred to as Victoria rather than Veronica, her name used elsewhere. Finally parts of the story taxed my credulity. For the agents to adventure into the woods without benefit of compass, maps and GPS is nonsense, especially at night. Furthermore, bushwhacking through cover as was described would be very difficult for anyone that was not specifically trained and equipped. Good overall as a mystery but authors need to pay more attention to proofing and creating more credible conditions surrounding the activity of the protagonist.
June 16, 2024
Olivia is unprofessional and childish. She meets her new partner and instantly falls in love with him. They just met but she's already imagining introducing him to her father. And of course she blushed like a 13 year old any time someone tells her she's doing a good job 🙄
She is egotistical. She blames herself for being unable to solve an impossible case. There are literally no clues yet she feels responsible for being unable to solve the case.
She is completely immature. They are investigating but she loses her cool and refuses to act professional.
The whole investigation is shit. They aren't actually investigating anything. Just making assumptions as they go along. Brock being able to diagnose Susan as an alcoholic after a brief conversation is so far fetched and ridiculous.
Woman are rarely being taken serious as is, but having Oliva who is supposedly this brilliant agent act so childish and immature really ruined this book for me. Done with this series and maybe this author too.
She is egotistical. She blames herself for being unable to solve an impossible case. There are literally no clues yet she feels responsible for being unable to solve the case.
She is completely immature. They are investigating but she loses her cool and refuses to act professional.
The whole investigation is shit. They aren't actually investigating anything. Just making assumptions as they go along. Brock being able to diagnose Susan as an alcoholic after a brief conversation is so far fetched and ridiculous.
Woman are rarely being taken serious as is, but having Oliva who is supposedly this brilliant agent act so childish and immature really ruined this book for me. Done with this series and maybe this author too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 1, 2021
This was just fair, boring book
I have read all the other books by Elle Gray and thought they were all 5 stars, well written and suspenseful. This last book was way below her usual standard. The main character, Olivia, was whinny, whined every other sentence about how her mother left her, her father was absent in her life and her sister had died and how lonely she felt, yet moves to a small town in the country, in a house in the forest and has no neighbors. The plot was ordinary and simple, yet the character kept saying it was her most difficult case to date, what types of cases did she have before…looking for lost kittens? Being an FBI agent, she never went into the office and when the case was solved, stayed home for three weeks waiting for another case to be called in. I’d love to have that work schedule! Felt like the book was rushed into printing or written by a first time author. Hope the next “Olivia” book is more developed and interesting!
I have read all the other books by Elle Gray and thought they were all 5 stars, well written and suspenseful. This last book was way below her usual standard. The main character, Olivia, was whinny, whined every other sentence about how her mother left her, her father was absent in her life and her sister had died and how lonely she felt, yet moves to a small town in the country, in a house in the forest and has no neighbors. The plot was ordinary and simple, yet the character kept saying it was her most difficult case to date, what types of cases did she have before…looking for lost kittens? Being an FBI agent, she never went into the office and when the case was solved, stayed home for three weeks waiting for another case to be called in. I’d love to have that work schedule! Felt like the book was rushed into printing or written by a first time author. Hope the next “Olivia” book is more developed and interesting!
November 18, 2023
I’m not sure how others gave this book has a four star rating. The writing was amateurish with multiple grammatical errors. The storyline was filled with implausible events and a main character who is supposed to be an excellent FBI agent, but all she does is wallow in self-doubt—which was so irritating that I found myself skimming and glossing over much of the book. Even her backstory, which is supposed to be so meaningful and explain her determination to solve her case, is ridiculous—an older sister who died in a car accident years ago (we are supposed to believe that the police department is incompetent and missed that she was murdered) and her mother vanished suddenly without a trace, but this doesn’t concern our main character one bit—never even thought of looking for her (her instincts tell her that her mother obviously abandoned her remaining family, leaving behind all her money, clothes, phone,ID, etc. and hasn’t been heard from since).
July 11, 2024
The main character in this book, Olivia Knight, is a self-absorbed, whiny, anxiety-riddled FBI agent. The story should have been good - a small town where teenage girls go missing and suddenly return. Instead, it's a smarmy love story between two FBI agents who haphazardly investigate the disappearances while worrying about what people will think of them if they don't solve the case. Olivia is told over and over what a great agent she is - but inside her head all she thinks about is how everything that happens somehow relates to her own life.
Even worse, the story is just not well done. So many mistakes that it makes it difficult to read. For example, when two victims suddenly return, Olivia calls their parents instead of a forensic team or local police. After missing for several weeks, they are just sent home - no interviews, tests, etc.
The worse thing about this book is that the author bothered to write a second book in the series!
Even worse, the story is just not well done. So many mistakes that it makes it difficult to read. For example, when two victims suddenly return, Olivia calls their parents instead of a forensic team or local police. After missing for several weeks, they are just sent home - no interviews, tests, etc.
The worse thing about this book is that the author bothered to write a second book in the series!
December 15, 2025
I was a huge fan of the Blake Wilder series and read all of the books within just a few months, so I was really excited to start the Olivia Knight series. Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed. The grammar and misspellings throughout the book were very distracting, and there were several moments where I had trouble following what was happening because of them. I didn’t experience this issue at all with the Wilder series, which makes it especially confusing since this is the same author.
I also found the ending a little unrealistic—Brock leaving DC to move to a small town after working with Olivia for only a couple of weeks felt rushed and hard to believe 😅. Especially after he had mentioned how much he enjoyed the city. That said, I did enjoy the twists and turns, which is why I’m still giving it 3 stars. I plan to try the next book in the series and am hopeful it will be an improvement.
I also found the ending a little unrealistic—Brock leaving DC to move to a small town after working with Olivia for only a couple of weeks felt rushed and hard to believe 😅. Especially after he had mentioned how much he enjoyed the city. That said, I did enjoy the twists and turns, which is why I’m still giving it 3 stars. I plan to try the next book in the series and am hopeful it will be an improvement.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2022
New Girl in Town Delivers
New Girl in Town, Book One in the Olivia Knight, FBI series keeps you guessing until the very end. Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down. Young girls are being kidnapped right out of their homes and the people of Belle Grove are terrified. Olivia and her partner Brock are determined to solve this impossible case no matter what. This isn't your typical criminal. It takes imagination and expert investigative skills to save the young girls who are kidnapped. I loved the way we get to know Olivia and Brock's personality as they learn to work together as partners. I look forward to reading the next Olivia Knight book to learn more about her own mysterious family and her growing relationship with Brock. If you love a good mystery with a a dash of humor this book is for you!
New Girl in Town, Book One in the Olivia Knight, FBI series keeps you guessing until the very end. Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down. Young girls are being kidnapped right out of their homes and the people of Belle Grove are terrified. Olivia and her partner Brock are determined to solve this impossible case no matter what. This isn't your typical criminal. It takes imagination and expert investigative skills to save the young girls who are kidnapped. I loved the way we get to know Olivia and Brock's personality as they learn to work together as partners. I look forward to reading the next Olivia Knight book to learn more about her own mysterious family and her growing relationship with Brock. If you love a good mystery with a a dash of humor this book is for you!
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