Girl One: Murder

Maya Gray #1

by Molly Black

FBI Special Agent Maya Gray, 39, has seen it all. She’s one of BAU’s rising stars and the go-to agent for hard-to-crack serial cases. When she receives a handwritten postcard promising to release 12 kidnapped women if she will solve 12 cold cases, she assumes it’s a hoax.

Until the note mentions that, among the captives, is her missing sister.

Maya, shaken, is forced to take it seriously. The cases she’s up against are some of the most difficult the FBI has ever seen. But the terms of his game are simple: If Maya solves a case, he will release one of the girls.

And if she fails, he will end a life.

Maya embarks with an urgency unlike any she’s ever felt. In a race against time, and with her sister’s life hanging in the balance, she must unravel the link between the 12 captives and end the killer’s dark game once and for all. Is this killer toying with her? Does he truly have her sister? Will he ever give her back?

Or will Maya end up sucked too deep into this killer’s twisted cat-and-mouse game to notice that she, herself, is the prey?

Genres: Mystery, Audiobook, Thriller, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Fiction, Ebooks

250 pages, ebook

First published October 12, 2021

About the author

Bestselling author Molly Black is author of the MAYA GRAY FBI suspense thriller series, comprising nine books (and counting); of the RYLIE WOLF FBI suspense thriller series, comprising six books; of the TAYLOR SAGE FBI suspense thriller series, comprising eight books; of the KATIE WINTER FBI suspense thriller series, comprising eleven books (and counting); of the RUBY HUNTER FBI suspense thriller series, comprising five books (and counting), and of the CAITLIN DARE FBI suspense thriller series, comprising five books (and counting).

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

BOOKS BY MOLLY BLACK

GRACE FORD FBI THRILLER

NEARLY MINE (Book #1)

NEARLY SAFE (Book #2)

NEARLY FREE (Book #3)

NEARLY GONE (Book #4)

NEARLY HIS (Book #5)

CAITLIN DARE FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

COME GET ME (Book #1)

COME FIND ME (Book #2)

COME TAKE ME (Book #3)

COME CATCH ME (Book #4)

COME SAVE ME (Book #5)

RUBY HUNTER FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

IF I RUN (Book #1)

IF I TELL (Book #2)

IF I LIVE (Book #3)

IF I FORGET (Book #4)

IF I RETURN (Book #5)

MAYA GRAY MYSTERY SERIES

GIRL ONE: MURDER (Book #1)

GIRL TWO: TAKEN (Book #2)

GIRL THREE: TRAPPED (Book #3)

GIRL FOUR: LURED (Book #4)

GIRL FIVE: BOUND (Book #5)

GIRL SIX: FORSAKEN (Book #6)

GIRL SEVEN: CRAVED (Book #7)

GIRL EIGHT: HUNTED (Book #8)

GIRL NINE: GONE (Book #9)

RYLIE WOLF FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

FOUND YOU (Book #1)

CAUGHT YOU (Book #2)

SEE YOU (Book #3)

WANT YOU (Book #4)

TAKE YOU (Book #5)

DARE YOU (Book #6)

TAYLOR SAGE FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

DON’T LOOK (Book #1)

DON’T BREATHE (Book #2)

DON’T RUN (Book #3)

DON’T FLINCH (Book #4)

DON’T REMEMBER (Book #5)

DON’T TELL (Book #6)

DON’T HIDE (Book #7)

DON’T BLINK (Book #8)

KATIE WINTER FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

SAVE ME (Book #1)

REACH ME (Book #2)

HIDE ME (Book #3)

BELIEVE ME (Book #4)

HELP ME (Book #5)

FORGET ME (Book #6)

HOLD ME (Book #7)

PROTECT ME (Book #8)

REMEMBER ME (Book #9)

CATCH ME (Book #10)

WATCH ME (Book #11)

Reviews

[Laurie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I abandoned this audiobook at 16 minutes in, because our heroine, a so-called star in the FBI, makes the decision to break all protocol and, on her own, without backup, apprehend a murderer who is much bigger and stronger than her..it’s not a crisis situation, he’s sitting in his living room, but she reasons that he might flee before backup can arrive..this despite he has no idea she’s onto him..despite that her car is outside and she has a cell phone. This is absurd; that’s not the action of an experienced FBI agent but rather the action of an arrogant rookie who endangers her entire team. It’s also bad writing. I like strong, independent female characters, but not when they’re stupid.
Rant over, but I can’t believe anyone could get past chapter one of this mess.

[Krystin | TheF*ckingTwist · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book Blog | Bookstagram

A 4-star average rating. Y'all are joking, right?



This was predictable nonsense with absurd characters, inhuman dialogue, terrible police work and immature writing. I'm on the "this was written by AI and the author isn't real" conspiracy train. Toot toot, motherfuckers!


⭐½ | 1.5 stars rounded up

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

FBI Agent Maya Gray works in the agency's cold case unit. In the first chapter during an interview, Maya figures out a killer that no one has caught for 10 years. She takes him down in a fight all by herself. Is this luck or is she really that good? Not believable but makes for a lively beginning.

Maya's sister Megan has been missing for 5 months. Maya receives a postcard from a serial killer who says he is holding 12 women captive and, in order to avoid the death of one, he tells her to find the Moonlight Killer with a tight time frame. Maya travels to Cleveland to work with Detective Spinelli.

I would classify this one as a romantic suspense. It's book 1 in 6. The book is easy to read and follow. It's edited correctly, unlike the last Kindle that I read. I liked Maya's character - she's 35, 5"9", athletic, former Army, works with no partner, and she's alone in her personal life too. My conclusion on her -- she is good and lucky. I liked her better as the story progressed. Most, not all of my eye rolling stopped. Good chase scenes in the story.

I rounded down on this book due to the unbelieveability and because the story doesn't finish. Readers must go on and read the next book. It's obvious where the next 5 books are heading. I don't like stories that don't end. However, I would read the next one because I liked Maya's character.

I won a Kindle copy in a Goodreads giveaway. I appreciate the win because this is a new author for me.

[Laur · Rating 4 out of 5]

FBI Special Agent Maya Gray, is very successful at handling and solving cold cases. She’s about to get a very special case, with a very specific time frame to solve it. In a mysterious post card sent to her, a killer says he has 12 bunnies (young women) and threatens to kill 1 if she does not solve the case within a short specified time. Maya has reason to believe that one of these captured women may be her sister who has been missing for 5 months due a clue in the postcard.

Use to working alone, a handsome police detective is assigned to work with her. She is initially reluctant, but her hands are tied. An FBI officer who is seemingly butting into police work is not welcomed. More problems ensue as complaints are being made by interviewed persons and the police department. But Maya, even though dead tired and already having come to many dead ends, can’t give up. She’s determined in this cat and mouse game to do what a killer asks - solve a case in a few days or risk a captured woman (bunny) being killed.

Will she be able to do it? If so, will the killer make good on his words?

Enjoyed this one a lot. Good pace.

[LV Lady]

Who is this author? Show me "her" picture, please. Tell me more about her than just write-ups from book covers; tell me her history instead of just telling me she is a best-selling author (like her website posts under About).

Are these cookie-cutter books (98 listed on Goodreads) simply computer-created and driven, all produced by AI programming?

If you've seen her being interviewed on TV would you please let me know on what show and when?

Suspicious. Just like KATE BOLD books. Same website construction. No information there is an actual person behind the book besides publishers.

[Jeanette · Rating 1 out of 5]

I came close to calling it quits a dozen times. Then I skipped massive amounts of pages. Here’s the thing, you won’t actually miss a single bit of action by skipping 100+pages. That’s all you need to know.

[ᴀɴɴᴀ (ғʀᴇᴇ ᴘᴀʟᴇsᴛɪɴᴇ) · Rating 1 out of 5]

2~ ɪᴛs ᴊᴜsᴛ ɴᴏᴛ ғᴏʀ ᴍᴇ.
ᴛʜɪs ᴛʏᴘᴇ ᴏғ ᴡʀɪᴛɪɴɢ sᴛʏʟᴇ ɪs ɴᴏᴛ ғᴏʀ ᴍᴇ, ᴀʟsᴏ sᴇᴇᴍᴇᴅ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴀsᴇ ᴡᴀs sᴏʟᴠᴇᴅ ᴛᴏᴏ ᴇᴀsʏ. sᴀᴡ ʜɪɢʜ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡs ғᴏʀ ᴛʜɪs ᴀɴᴅ ɪ ᴡᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ʟɪᴋᴇ ɪᴛ ᴀs ᴛʜɪs ɪs ᴀ sᴇʀɪᴇs ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴄᴏɴᴛɪɴᴜᴇs ᴏɴ ʙᴜᴛ ɪ ᴡᴏɴᴛ ʙᴇ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ʙᴏᴏᴋs.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This isn't the greatest police procedural but it was fun to read. Sadly, the narrator is very hard to understand at higher listening speeds so that took away from the experience.

[The Phoenix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Typical female FBI agent story with main character having a missing family member which incorporates into whatever case she is working on.

[Avid · Rating 3 out of 5]

2-3 ☆ rating. I like the premise of the story but there were too many things that interfered with it being enjoyable to read without being interrupted by something majorly irritating. High on the list was the audio repeating several times. Imagine hitting rewind to hear the same last 2 sentences repeat 3 times in a row. It got old very fast. Other pet peeves were things like the main character supposedly solving cold cases in a matter of days, how many times she toys with thinking about the sexy cop she's working with yet a dozen women including her sister's life and are on the clock of a crazed man. 🤔 IDK, many repetitive things in the book. ie: You'll definitely know she's gotten further in those couple days than anyone did in over 2 years working the case. No idea how many times that was in the book!

I would not pay money for the book & I would suggest reading it instead of listening if it's available as an ebook. Perhaps it is better as you can skip portions. I hope this author improves with her writing. 👍

[Angela Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5✨

Now this has piqued my interest. 12 cold cases, 12 kidnapped women. You fail to solve the cold case, one woman dies ~ that includes the agent's very own sister.

I initially thought that this book will solve all 12 cases. Nope. 1 cold case, 1 book series. The suspense is soooooo riveting I binge listened to this the whole night 😅

P.S. Should be 5 stars but took out 0.5 of a star. There are parts in the audio that were annoying ~ parts that have been repeatedly read like some sort of a glitch and parts were the audio just keeps getting louder or softer. Kinda weird and somehow ruins the intial experience for me.

[Tommy Murtagh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Plotholes that would give Swiss Cheese a bad name.

Where to start? And how did the editor let this pass? Something feels off on almost every page. Lazy plotting, paper-thin dialogue, not a single character to care about. And always the weight of considering 11 more of these books. My decision is made; there’s far better out there.

[Rhonda Fonicello · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horrible. Wanted to abandon after Chapter One. Sloppy police work that NEVER would have happened with a real FBI agent. Claims of strong, independent woman, but she comes off as stupid every time she breaks proper protocol. The "who done it" came way out of left field. A waste of my time.

[ally wright ⋆˙⟡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars! first read of 2026 and it was pretty entertaining! some parts were very predictable but it reminded me of a james patterson book!

[Vivianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐☆☆ (3 out of 5 stars)

This book had potential and offered a fast-paced read, but it lacked the depth and originality I was hoping for. While parts of the mystery were interesting, much of the story felt predictable and didn't leave a strong impression. Still, it was entertaining enough to maybe continue the series—with tempered expectations.

I wasn’t very impressed by the beginning. While the opening scene tried to create tension and mystery, it felt more far-fetched than thrilling. An FBI agent going off on her own, discovering someone is a killer, then not calling for backup and getting into a physical fight—it just didn’t make sense. It immediately made me question the realism and logic of the plot, which is not the best way to start a book.

That said, I did enjoy the pacing overall. The book is quite short at 239 pages and reads quickly. I liked the central mystery with the killer and his "bunnies", and the storyline involving her sister gave the story a more emotional layer that helped me stay interested.

Still, the plot and final reveal were underwhelming. Everything was very predictable, and I never felt truly surprised by any twist. I usually love books that feel like they’re beyond anything I could imagine writing myself, but sadly, this one didn’t reach that level. It was fine—just not remarkable.

In the end, I don’t have strong feelings about this book. It was okay. Not bad, not great. I’ll probably continue the series, but I’m keeping my expectations low.

[Alicia Meyepa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay, not the best read. The ending wasn’t predictable but just so random, it came out of nowhere. Liked that the lead detective was a woman though 🔥

[Bec · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. I am listening to the series as I work and this book was good enough to keep my attention, it I wouldn’t say it’s the best mystery book ever written. One down, a lot more to go I suppose.

[Weiping Yin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Puzzled Story

There are many puzzles in this book. Number one: what does the author try to tell readers, collectively law enforcement is incompetent while individualism is the heroic way? Number two: the criminals are smarter than FBI. In the book killers are always one or many steps ahead of law enforcement. Actually, in the story, the killer dictates FBI’s action. Number three: “see something, say something” doesn’t exist in small communities. Most of the regular population in the book are “deaf” and “dumb”, having no clue what is going on in the community. It is disgraceful.

[freelancer55 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Went in with high hopes to this book as I ventured into the world of audiobooks for the first time, but alas it fell short. I thought this was like the womens murder club books at first and got excited but it dragged on. Loved the main character but maybe it was the narrator that killed it for me, just couldn’t get into it

[Chelsea Hazendonk · Rating 3 out of 5]

The supposed big reveal had a massive lead up for something that I found mediocre, and as quick as it came, it was then gone. I can see how the ending is meant to be a cliff hanger too, but I just wasn’t fussed by it. I’ll still read the next one to find out what happens though and for a free kindle download, it was a good one!

[Nicky Mottram · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audio version of this book 📕- the first book in the Maya Grey series, an ok read though it seemed a little rushed and I think some background of Maya’s sisters disappearance would have just made it a bit more gripping!

[Rita Moura · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️!!!!!!

[Katie Moran · Rating 3 out of 5]

listened as audiobook on Spotify - was a good listen, but as it’s part of a 6 book series, I felt a bit unsatisfied by the ending

[Becky Rice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in a new series. I did enjoy it, but was a tad annoyed by the overuse of the word "said". She said, he said, etc

[GheridenTheBookBard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy a good FBI crime mystery, and Girl One: Murder by Molly Black definitely delivers on that front. The story kicks off with a gripping opening as Maya Gray, our sharp and determined FBI agent, tackles a decade-old cold case with impressive resolve. Her intelligence and intuition make her a compelling protagonist—someone you root for even when the odds are stacked high.

That said, the opening also has a moment that stretched believability for me: Maya taking down a much larger man solo felt a bit too convenient. Still, it's easy to overlook that once the central mystery unfolds, especially as the case becomes personal with hints that her missing sister might be involved.

The plot develops at a steady pace—never dragging, but also rarely spiking with intense highs. The mystery deepens in satisfying layers, especially as Maya faces dead ends, uncooperative witnesses, and a web of silence that makes every clue feel hard-earned. I appreciated that she leaned on her wits rather than brute force, though at times, it did feel like luck played a stronger role than it should have.

Molly Black does a solid job with world-building, painting both the setting and side characters with enough depth to keep the story grounded in reality. Maya herself is well-written and layered, and I’m hopeful future installments will continue to explore her complexity while dialing up the suspense.

Overall, Girl One: Murder is a strong start to what could be a gripping series. I’ll definitely be picking up the next book to see where Maya’s path leads.

[Denise · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was written by a child, right?

Synopsis: “Decorated” FBI agent “skilled” at solving cold cases flirts with Cleveland cop while her sister is kidnapped and/or dead.

It lost me close to the beginning when said FBI agent couldn’t remember how long her own sister was missing. “It’s been, what, five months?” DAWG. YOU DON’T REMEMBER HOW LONG YOUR SISTER HAS BEEN MISSING?

She goes on this wild goose chase to Cleveland after she receives this mystery postcard. Her boss is so good that he remembers the name on the card belongs to a dead girl from Cleveland.

In Cleveland, she spends 50% of the time worrying/musing about “getting close to people.” She literally just met this man. She spends about 20% of the time flirting. She spends 20% thinking about the same seven thoughts over and over. She spends the remaining 10% remembering her sister is probably hostage somewhere or maybe even murdered.

The cops who worked on this murder are terrible because I could have told you that dance instructor was a pervert in the first 20 seconds. She’s not much better because she doesn’t figure this out for a long time.

I’m unclear on the amount of time she was there, but it wasn’t long. In that time, she solves a cold case murder, gets a pervert dance instructor arrested, and gets one of the abducted women released.

She’s a marvel, really, considering her thought process is that of a child or maybe an animal with advanced skills.

[Beth Lechman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't to sure about this one and almost gave up. I kept reading and it did get better.
When FBI Agent Maya Gray receives a postcard telling her someone had taken 12 bunnies and one will die if she doesn't solve a cold case she thinks it is a prank at first until a childhood nickname for her is included in the script. The only one that knows this is her missing sister. She is given a deadline to solve the case or one of the women will die. She will do anything to make sure her sister stays alive.
The captor tells her he will let one bunny go if she solves the case in time.

Full of suspense as the story ratchets up.

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

FBI Special Agent Maya Gray is a BAU rising star. She has cracked some of the hardest cases, but when she is on another case, things change dramatically for her. She gets a postcard that says they have her sister and 11 other girls. If she can solve a cold case of their choosing they will release a girl. It also contained a riddle she must solve by a certain time or someone else will die. Can she find the answers in time?

[Melani Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series was chosen by my teen daughter to read together. My other teens are also enjoying it. We were listening to the audiobooks together, but we each wanted to continue when the other was not around so we are now reading or listening independently so we can get through the series more quickly. Fingers crossed for the bunnies!

[Carolina Rojas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lighter crime read