Kiss Her Goodbye

By: Lisa Gardner

Narrated by: Hillary Huber

Brought to you by Penguin.

Frankie Elkin usually prefers her cases cold. Until she finds herself in the broiling streets of Tucson, Arizona, where an Afghan refugee has been missing for three weeks.

The woman she is looking for, Sabera Ahmadi, is a wife and young mother, haunted by war, scarred by her past.

The police and Sabera’s husband seem indifferent to her disappearance.

But Frankie knows trauma. She knows it can fuel or destroy you.

And when she sees the distress in Sabera’s daughter’s eyes, she makes a decision she soon regrets: find Sabera.

But in order to solve the mystery of Sabera’s present, Frankie must revisit her past in order to uncover the dark secret she is hiding.

A secret so dangerous it might kill them both …

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Praise for Kiss Her Goodbye...

'Tense, timely and totally gripping. Lisa Gardner at her very best' Ruth Ware

'Gripping, emotionally raw, and utterly unputdownable' Noelle Ilhi

'Pitch-perfect. A thought provoking tale that lingers with you in ways both small and profound' David Baldacci

'A triumph of storytelling. Both a heart-pounding thriller and a deeply intimate look at a family in crisis. Timely and completely gripping' Louise Penny

'A rollercoaster ride of a read with its cliff-hanging suspense, twists and turns, and steep emotional plunges. Buckle up.' Sandra Brown


© Lisa Gardner 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Critic reviews

A tense, timely thriller with emotional heft and gripping twists

Riveting . . . Heartbreaking violence and masterful suspense elevate things further. This will thrill the series’ existing fans, and it’s a great starting point for newcomers.

Frankie Elkin is a jewel of a character with new facets being revealed in every book. In Kiss Her Goodbye, Gardner, always a pitch perfect writer, elevates her game to produce a thought-provoking tale that lingers with you in ways both small and profound.

Just when you think that this master of suspense couldn’t get any better, she levels up … Kiss Her Goodbye is blow-you-away fantastic!

A triumph of storytelling. Lisa Gardner has fashioned a novel that is both a heart pounding thriller, and a deeply intimate look at a family in a crisis. All the characters come alive, making the story of the Ahmadi family timely, thought-provoking and completely gripping. And I love being back in the company of the remarkable Frankie Elkin. Brava!

Kiss Her Goodbye is Gardner at her fiercest - gripping, emotionally raw, and utterly unputdownable. Frankie Elkin is the kind of heroine I can't get enough of: flawed, fearless, and unforgettable

Kiss Her Goodbye is a rollercoaster ride of a read with its cliff-hanging suspense, twists and turns, and steep emotional plunges. Buckle up.

This fourth action-packed Frankie Elkin installment will excite fans and newbies alike. It is filled with an odd assortment of wonderful characters, including a boa constrictor and an iguana. Alongside the mystery, Gardner ably describes the horrors of refugee camps and the trauma facing immigrants fleeing oppression.