While not my favourite Frankie Elkin novel (nothing can beat the heart-pounding drama of the second book) I really enjoyed this book. The mystery kept me guessing till the end and Frankie's newest team of misfits are all so enjoyable. I highly recommend this book.

Kiss Her Goodbye is a mildly interesting novel in the Frankie Elkin series of finding missing persons. This novel centers around a missing woman from Afghanistan who has been resettled in Tucson by the government. A lot is learned about the woman from a journal she keeps for her 4 year old daughter in the event that she is separated from her. There is a fair amount of action in this novel involving murders, iguanas, snakes and the plight of refugees entering the United States. I thank NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this novel prior to publication.

I loved the first two Frankie Elkin books, but this this book and Kiss Her Goodbye both disappointed me. They're not Frankie Elkin books. Where is her personality? Where if the nail-biting plot? This installment became a skimmer at 50%. The highlights of this book were Darryl, Bart, Genni and the iguana.

I’m always a big fan of Gardner’s work and this was no different. Always a good plot and twists and turns with endings usually wrapped up very neatly. Will definitely recommend this one to readers!

Frankie Elkin is back on the hunt for another missing person, this time an Afghan refugee that left her husband and young daughter behind. As usual, she takes a job locally to fund her basic living expenses - this time it's pet sitting for a wealthy game developer. Frankie is a strong character, but this installment had the side characters playing a much larger role than usual. This book can technically be read as a standalone, but it's the fourth in the series and I highly recommend that you start at the beginning so you can fall in love with flawed Frankie from day one. This story focuses on a very serious issues with deadly twists and turns, but Gardner folds in some wit and humor that balances out these issues. The characters are all fully formed, flawed, and a delight to get to know.

I can't wait to see where Frankie lands next! Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the opportunity to read this book prior to its publication in exchange for this honest review.

Another amazing Frankie adventure! I love how researched these communities she dives into are - even if this one was particularly heart wrenching. Frankie comes in with some much compassion and grit, you just feel inspired to make a difference too. I personally could have done without the snakes… but it did add for quite the comedic relief at times. Already can’t wait for her next adventure!

“Kiss Her Goodbye” is the fourth installment in the Frankie Elkin series and it’s the best one so far. Here, Frankie is searching for a young refugee mother from Afghanistan, Sabera. As Frankie digs deeper into the immigrant community and into Sabera’s past as a potential government informant, the possibility of finding her alive dwindles.

I really appreciated the research and level of detail that went into creating a story about the immigrant experience while simultaneously keeping me on the edge of my seat. Sabera’s letters to her daughter throughout the book are heartbreaking and her firsthand accounts of surviving war only to be cast into the fresh hell of refugee camps are shocking.

However, the standouts in this book are the cast of characters that Frankie finds to help her along the way. Due to her nomadic lifestyle, she needs a job and a place to stay when she arrives to look for Sabera. She finds both as a pet sitter for an eclectic tech nerd on his palatial estate. There, she cares for Petunia, a huge Iguana with her own backyard lanai and a penchant for massages, Marge, a five-foot Python that has figured out how to escape her enclosures and a dozen assorted baby snakes who need to be hand-fed live crickets. The estate comes complete with Daryl, a ballroom dancing ex-con chauffeur and Genni, a 6+ foot drag queen who dresses to the nines in a different theme each day. A cranky detective and his social worker sister round out the crew.

For a topic as heavy as a missing war-torn immigrant, the eclectic cast of side characters helps to lighten the mood quite a bit. It also provides for a very satisfying if not completely believable grand finale.

Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Frankie is back in an unputownable thriller that has her searching for a missing woman. The case is complex, the side characters are all interesting, and F is F…funny, dry, with a heart of gold and the resolve of stone. Can’t wait to see where she goes next.

This one had me hooked right from the start. A missing woman, a shady husband, a genius kid, and a brutal double murder? Yeah, I was in.

Frankie Elkin is such a solid character—relentless, smart, and just stubborn enough to push through when no one else will. The story moves fast, with just enough twists to keep you guessing, and the tension ramps up quick once that video drops. From that point on, it’s clear this isn’t just a simple missing person case.

What really got me was the family dynamic. The Ahmadis are way more complex than they seem at first, and little Zahra is honestly one of the most memorable parts of the book. Her photographic memory adds a whole new level of suspense—and worry.

It’s not a perfect five for me because a few moments felt a little over the top, but honestly, I didn’t care much. The emotional weight, the pacing, and the mystery all hit hard. If you like thrillers with heart, danger, and characters worth rooting for, this one delivers.

Lisa Gardner’s Say Goodbye is a gripping psychological thriller that delves into the darkest corners of human behavior. The story follows Frankie Elkin as she investigates a disturbing case involving a missing mother. Gardner weaves a complex, layered narrative full of tension, dread, and emotional stakes.

What sets this book apart is the depth of its characters—especially Franky, who is both tough and vulnerable, shaped by her past trauma. As the investigation unfolds, Gardner keeps readers on edge with chilling twists and a relentless pace. The villain is one of the most disturbing you’ll encounter in crime fiction, and the themes of abuse, survival, and control are handled with unflinching intensity.

With razor-sharp writing and a deeply unsettling atmosphere, Kiss Her Goodbye is not just a thriller—it’s an emotional and psychological deep dive. Disturbing, addictive, and impossible to put down, this novel proves why Lisa Gardner is a master of the genre.

* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.

The newest installment in the Frankie Elkin series is a race against time to find a missing Afghan woman in Arizona. We learn bits and pieces of her backstory as Frankie works with her friends before something happens go Sabera. I love this series and Gardner’s writing, and while this is a really good book it’s not my favorite of the series so far.

I will absolutely keep reading this series and highly recommend it!

This is my second favorite Frankie Elkin novel! I loved the variety of characters and all of them coming together. The story was fast-paced and just so good. Highly recommend!!

Frankie is back at it! Searching for a young afghan refugee. Loved the added cultural aspect of this story as well as the exploration into the different challenges these refugees face. Overall another compelling story in the series highly recommend!

By Lisa Gardner, Kiss Her Goodbye. War-torn young mother determined to start over.  It's not always easy to escape the sins of the past. When Frankie is asked to help locate an Afghan refugee in Tucson, AZ, she's hesitant to leave her new relationship. Aliah, her mentor and new friend, knows Sabera would never voluntarily leave her 4 year old daughter behind. In searching for the missing woman, Frankie discovers that this family is going through a lot.
This was a fascinating experience to learn about a culture I had never heard of before. I was captivated by the descriptions of refugee camps, camps filled with refugees, and the loss of a country. Despite her undaunted nature, Frankie enlists her cast of friends to help her in her search. There were many beautiful parts of this book, but there were also many painful parts as well. I knew nothing about refugee camps and only heard about the Taliban on the news. I'm so far removed from it all, it didn't seem real. Lisa expresses such a vivid, bleak picture of despair that I found myself feeling as though I was in the camp with these people.

You can tell that a lot of research went into the writing of this book. It was interesting, informative and entertaining. This book made me look at refugees in a different way. Also , iguanas. Solidified my opinion of snakes however.
Sometimes so much happened at one time, I would need to reread parts. Very fast moving book. Crazy characters. Lots of recent history. Fell in love with the four daughter. Gave place to legitimate mental issues. Very real. This is a very well written book.

Lisa Gardner is one of my top 5 contemporary authors. I don't take this lightly, and I'm often hesitant to start a new work from a favorite author because I'm worried it won't live up to my expectations. I had no need to worry with Gardner's latest, "Kiss Her Goodbye." I found myself devouring the book at such a pace that I actually rearranged my family's dinner plans so I could read while mindlessly stirring a pot of soup. I enjoyed seeing my beloved characters develop further, while remaining true to their original form. I can't wait for the next installment!

I love the Frankie Elkin series and was so excited to be sent book #4! Lisa Gardner is such a great storyteller and does a great job of making her characters seem real. She makes you feel like you are really in the setting of the book and I loved the random reptiles in the mansion in this one. I was a little confused by parts of this and still had some questions at the end- it was hard to tell what was real and wasn’t. Overall, I love Frankie and will always read any book in this series! I did question the title and the cover after reading because I felt like it didn’t really match the storyline at all.

Thank you Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC!

Kiss Her Goodbye is the fourth book in the Frankie Elkin series and I have missed her. This series is like an old friend that you are being reunited with after too long. This story is set in Arizona, where Frankie, a seasoned missing persons expert, embarks on a quest to find Sabera, a young Afghan refugee who has mysteriously disappeared. As Frankie delves into Sabera's life she finds that the scars of war and her past life in Afghanistan has followed her to Arizona. Sabera and her family are in trouble and Frankie with her new team of friends are determined to figure out who has Sabera and is trying to get her family. This story has tons of twists and just when you think you have figured out who the enemy is Lisa Gardner throws a twist that will leave you stunned. I love this series and Ms. Gardner can't write them fast enough so I have to continue to reread to get my fix. If you haven't tried this series you are missing out on so much suspense, mystery and intrigue.

A twisty international intrigue that had me turning pages continuously. There were some intense scenes; all the more dramatic given its present day relevance. While there were intense scenes, there were also comical scenes to balance. I am really enjoying the Frankie Elkin series and can’t wait for her next adventure!

As someone who’s really enjoyed the Frankie Elkin series, Kiss Her Goodbye didn’t quite land the same punch as its predecessors for me. While there were definitely moments of intrigue, the present-day storyline just didn’t feel as gripping or emotionally rich as Sabera’s backstory, which ended up stealing the spotlight.

Frankie, who usually brings such a unique voice and energy, felt a little more subdued this time around. Her personality shone through mostly in her sharp, subtle exchanges with a detective who, unfortunately, wasn’t a major part of the plot. I missed the vivid atmosphere and tension that made the last two books so compelling.

That said, Lisa Gardner still knows how to craft a layered mystery, and I’ll absolutely be picking up the next one—this just wasn’t my favorite stop on Frankie’s journey.