Today Noelle Marshall is a Detective in Bend, Oregon. Thirteen years ago, her husband Sacramento Assemblyman Derrick Bell was murdered and Noelle was badly wounded and left for dead. The FBI is looking back into the case, and after interviewing Derrick's family in Sacramento they are in Bend to interview Noelle and her family members. Noelle has never been able to remember the full events of the night of the murder, but she has remembered some things, but she has only told some of the things she remembers. Some things she cannot tell. Then someone blows up her car evidently afraid she does remember and wanting to finish the job. Then her youngest sister is kidnapped. Can Noelle and the FBI save her sister and finally end this long nightmare...and can Noelle live with the full information of that night, if she can finally remember it all...

5/5 stars: This is the first entry in Elliot's Noelle Marshall series, which is a Police Procedural Mystery that features a sheriff's detective who must face memories of her escape from a traumatic childhood, a seemingly perfect marriage to a politician that had a dark side and a secret she's kept for years about the night her husband died after the FBI reopens her husband's unsolved murder. As she struggles with the memory loss of the event and the past and present and leads and misleads collide, one thing is frighteningly clear. Her husband’s murder wasn’t just unsolved. It’s unfinished. And only the truth – no matter the risk – can save the next victim. With plenty of twists and turns, Elliot writes a gripping fast-paced police procedural investigative tale that will leave you on the edge until the final page. I really love how deftly Elliot unfolds the plot with an intriguing investigation and masterful reveals. Told in multiple timelines and POVs, Elliot's writing and character work are stellar; the characters are well-rounded and complex while remaining incredibly likable. Noelle's a tough lady who's gone through a lot and it's great to learn her backstory. I also look forward to seeing Noelle and Max's relationship grow. Additionally, I love catching up with Elliot's Bend, Oregon “universe”, particularly Mercy Kilpatrick. Elliot touches on some very tough topics; so take care and check the CWs. For more to read: Noelle first appears in book four of the Columbia River series, The First Death and Elliot's interconnected universe starts with A Merciful Death, the first book in the Mercy Kilpatrick series. Elliot's a long-time favorite author and this is an awesome start to a new series; highly recommend!

I received this eARC thanks to Montlake in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

Her First Mistake is a fast paced, suspenseful read that really will keep you guessing!
Thirteen years ago Noelle Bells’ assemblyman husband is brutally murdered and she is left badly injured. The crimes remain unsolved. The FBI decide to take a fresh look at this case, but will old enemies surface? Will they be able to find out who did this and are lives still in danger now?

This book is cleverly written, bringing to together not just the events of thirteen years ago and present day, but also things that happened in the years leading up to the murder.
It leads you in one direction but might your assumptions be incorrect??

As I’ve come to expect from this author, the mystery and suspense build throughout the book, right up until the end, but plenty happens to keep you engaged and wanting to read.

The characters become like old friends as you delve deeper into their lives, but just who can you really trust? Those with authority? Those closest to you? You really can’t be sure!

Definitely one I would recommend picking up!

I have been SO curious about Noelle Marshall for a while now. Having met her in the Columbia River series, often partnering up with Evan Bolton, I have often tried to figure out what her backstory is. Here's this statuesque blonde with a penchant for wearing expensive heels, who is a tough as nails detective. Where did she come from? Why is she single? What does she have against marriage? Well, in this book, we find out all of that.

Noelle's backstory was heartbreaking, in many ways, but it also showed what a tough and resilient woman she was. Family is super important to her, and we get to meet them all, as well as her best friend and extended family.

It was great seeing so much of Evan again, and meeting some new characters that I know will be popping up in books to come, especially one particular FBI agent. I can't wait to get more of them and Noelle together!

Another amazing story from Ms. Elliot!

Kendra Elliot never fails me with her books. I always know I’m in for a good read when I pick one up. Noelle is a character I’ve always admired, so I’m thrilled she’s getting her own spinoff series now.

Noelle’s backstory is revealed piece by piece in both present day interviews and past timeline flashback chapters throughout the first half of the book. At least, what she can remember of the event that shaped so much of her life — her husband’s murder — is revealed anyway. There is so much depth to her life that forms the character of the woman she is in the present, and the cold case murder investigation stirs up a lot of history. It forces her to face questions she may not want answers to and may have been better left in the past.

We also meet Max Rhodes as one of the FBI agents investigating the case. From the little glimpses of it we got in this book, I am looking forward to seeing how the connection between Max and Noelle gets to play out throughout the series. I think they’re going to be a really good fit and I can’t wait to get to know Max better.

This was a great start to this spinoff series. I’m ready for more. Thank you to Montlake via NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The first book of Elliot’s new series Noelle Marshall, revolves around a cold case where thirteen years before a young assemblyman was murdered and his wife left for dead. His wife, now using her maiden name Noelle Marshall, is currently a detective for the Deschutes County Sheriff's office in Oregon. No one knows her past or that she was the wife of Assemblyman Derrick Bell. After moving from Sacramento, and bringing along her sisters and grandparents, she started a new life and left the past behind. Now the FBI is taking a fresh look at the cold case and Agents Keaton and Rhodes arrive in town ready to question Noelle and the secrecy about her past begins to unravel. But there’s one problem, she has no memory of the night her husband was killed as she was struck on the head and has amnesia. Her First Mistake moves back and forth between Noelle’s earlier years, her marriage, and husband’s murder to her present day role in the sheriff’s office. The first novel in Elliot’s new series offers suspense, mystery, action, strong family dynamics, a tale of political ambitions, friendships, and more. This is a great start to a new series and Elliot’s fans will enjoy connections to the author’s Columbia River series. A very enjoyable read and I look forward to the next books in the series.

Absolutely amazing!

I am yet to be disappointed by any book released by Kendra Elliot and this book is no different, it delivers on every front.

For anyone who has been reading the Columbia River Series, you will love finally hearing Noelle’s story and will undoubtedly be in anticipation of book two. If you’re new to Kendra Elliot, don’t worry, you don’t need to have read any of the other series to enjoy this one.

Noelle has lived a very private life since moving to Bend, keeping details of her past under wraps. Her friends and colleagues know that she has been married twice before, without and further details about those marriages. She came to the forefront in the last Columbia Rivers Series book, which nicely leads to this new series. It intertwines familiar characters such as Detective Evan Bolton, who Noelle works with at a Detective at the Deschutes Couty Sheriff’s Office, and FBI Agent Mercy Kilpatrick who is based in Bend.

When Noelle is called into the FBI office for a meeting, she initially believes it is about a case she is working on. However, she is blindsided when the meeting is actually to question her again about the murder of her husband 13 years ago, an incident that left her hospitalized with a severe head injury and memory loss. The reinvestigation has someone worried that new facts may finally come to light, putting Noelle and her sisters in danger. What really happened on that day 13 years ago? Who has been keeping secrets all this time? Will Noelle’s memory finally be restored?

Kendra delivers an absolute page-turner that keeps you engaged from start to finish. Even if you manage to piece together what you think happened before it is revealed, it is a totally engaging read. It’s full of great characters and the beginning of a new romance.

Great suspense that kept me guessing until the end. Even when I knew the resolution to the mystery, I still was shocked.
Noelle and Derrick have a storybook marriage, or so it seems on the surface. One day Noelle wakes up in the hospital to find that Derrick has been killed, and she is the main suspect.
Lots of moving parts, great characters, and fast paced plot make this a must read.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to #NetGalley for the ARC of #HerFirstMistake. I wasn’t sure what type of book I was expecting, however this book exceeded every pre conceived notion! It’s such a good, solid read that keeps the reader interested and invested, but it isn’t too stressful. I had a small thought about the ending, but way more was involved into the unraveling of the plot at the end of the book than I expected. Can’t wait to read the next book and see where the characters go from here.

I always look forward to this author books, the plot flows, capturing me from the first pages. Questions of was the wife guilty, hiding behind memory lost of that night. I enjoyed this book and recommend this book.
As well as all the other books this author has written.
Given arc by Net Galley and Montlake Publisher

I have no idea why Kendra Elliott named this book Her First Mistake. Nevertheless, I loved it. Noelle Marshall was a bartender and she had two sisters, Eve and Lucia. Eve married a man named Adam. Noelle met Derek Bell at the bar where she worked. He was wealthy and had his heart set on becoming an assemblyman. They fell in love and decided to get married. Derek's mother and brother never accepted Noelle. During the engagement, his mother took over the planning of the wedding right down to what Noelle was going to wear. He had an assistant who planned everything Noelle would wear and how she would present herself in public. Noelle had been a very strong and independent woman but through all of this she was losing herself. She had lost her parents and her grandfather And Aunt Daisy had raised her and her sisters. Her grandfather noticed that Noel was changing And he he was not pleased with it, therefore he was not pleased with her husband. Her best friend Savannah noticed the change in her too. At first she didn't say anything to her, but eventually she had to say something because she couldn't stand what was happening to her.

It wasn't long before Derek won the election. He had wanted Noelle to get pregnant but she didn't want to so she continued to take her birth control pills without telling him. They were married for 6 years and during that time he got progressively more aggressive with her, yelling at her, belittling her even grabbing her and shaking her. His personality changed completely and she found he became more and more irritable. She got to a point where she was afraid of him.

One day, she went to lunch with her sister Eve and then she returned home. The next thing she knew, she was in the hospital. Derek had been killed and Noelle had been severely attacked. She had no memory of what had happened. Even though it wasn't true, Derek's mother and brother were sure Noelle was hiding something, they even thought she had something to do with his death. Because Derek was an assemblyman, the FBI took over the case. Alice was the FBI agent in charge of the investigation. She and Noelle grew close and got to be best friends. In light of all the publicity, Noel decided to get away. She moved to a small town near Bend, Oregon. Her family followed her there, that is her grandfather, her aunt Daisy, her sister Eve and brother-in-law Adam, and her baby sister Lucia Alice had convinced Noelle that she would make a good law enforcement officer so she First, join the police force in Sacramento where she lived, and then the sheriff's department in The small town near Bend where she lived.

Noelle fared well in her small town because no one knew who she was and she had told no one about her past. 13 years after Derek's murder, the FBI reopened the investigation with Max as the lead investigator. He decided to re-interview everyone, the Marshals and the Bells. In 13 years, Noelle still had no memory of what happened. On one occasion, Derek's brother showed up at the sheriff 's station to see Noelle. She knew he hated her and she had no desire to see him but she saw him anyway. He dogged her about Derek's death and told her that she better tell the FBI the truth. She kicked him out of the office. The next day, she and her sisters went to their usual yoga session and after went to the bakery for pastries and tea. When they were outside standing next Noelle's vehicle it exploded. Of course, the first thought was that Derek's brother had rigged it, but the FBI did their due diligence and learned that he was already gone back home.

All three women went home. Lucia lived in an apartment over Eve's garage. Lucia had said she was going to go home and take a nap, and Eve was going to do the same and then afterwards they were going to meet. Eve phoned Lucia and didn't get any answer. That didn't sit well with her because she knew Lucia didn't have a car. So she went outside and found Lucia's purse on the ground dumped out. She also found the door to Lucia's apartment open. She got scared and called the police first, and then Noelle. Noelle phoned Max. They all concluded that Lucia had been kidnapped. In the meantime, Savannah had come to visit Noelle. So the two of them went to Eve's house along with Max. When they got back to Noelle's house Adam was there with Lucia. And he had a gun. He was holding on to Lucia and it was clear he had kidnapped her. He demanded money from Noelle and he wanted her car keys. He knew Derek had been rich and he had worked for him and he assumed that Noelle had a ton of money just laying around. But she only had $200 which she said he could have. Noelle had a state-of-the-art security system but Lucia and Adam knew the code. That's how they got into her house. Adam pointed the gun at Noelle but Lucia screamed at him reminding him that he promised he wouldn't hurt her. So he shot Savannah. After that he took Noelle's money and her SUV and fled. Noel called for an ambulance and went to the hospital with her best friend.

This is where Max comes in. He calls in his FBI buddy and they begin a search. Noelle contacted Eve and told her what Adam was up to and of course Eve is devastated. Max takes Noelle to her friend's house because he doesn't think it's safe for her to return home, after which he sets out on the search. Of course Noelle can't keep still. After all, she's a detective. So she calls into the station and gets the details about where they are and she steals her friend's vehicle and goes there. It turns out, they'd spotted her SUV parked on the side of the road and found Adam hold up in a house nearby. Max has also called in the police and a SWAT team. So they make contact with Adam in the house and he says he knows Noelle is there and he wants to speak with her. She talks to him and he tells her he wants her to come to the house unarmed within 5 minutes. If she doesn't go to the house he will start killing people off. The people in inside is a woman with her two daughters and her son-in-law. There was a daughter who lived in the basement who had escaped from the house and was there with the police. Max and the hostage negotiator were trying to convince Noelle not to go in but she says that she has to. In spite of everything, she wants to see if Lucia is still with him or if he has killed her. When she doesn't respond to Adam immediately a shot is fired in the house. Now Noelle knows she has to go. So she puts on tactical gear and heads out.

When she gets to the house Kristen, one of the daughters opens the door. Adam tells her to come in and leave the shield outside. When she gets inside she sees Lucia but she doesn't look right. It's clear to Noelle that she's on drugs. It turns out, Adam was a drug dealer and had been providing Lucia with drugs for years. He had also been giving methamphetamines to Derek. Anyway, Adam tells Kristin to take Noelle upstairs where she finds the rest of the family tied up and gagged. There's a huge mirror on the wall and all of a sudden Noelle's memory comes back. Adam goes upstairs and within a matter of seconds, there's a loud noise downstairs with shattering glass and the SWAT team has invaded the premises. Adam goes downstairs and he's shot and killed.

I found this book to be addictive. The plot was easy to follow but I really got into all the twists and turns. The author took the reader back and forth between 13 years ago and present and then counting down from Derek's death. At first I didn't like all the bouncing around but then the more I read the more I was able to make sense of it all. I've read more by this author and I really, really like her. I gave this book five stars.

A good introduction to a new series, although I have discovered that Noelle actually isn't a new character, but features in another series by the same author. So for me, it was a standalone/new series and it was a great read overall.

Noelle now works as a detective and the story covers a lot of her past life and experiences, leading to make her the woman she is today. Her husband was murdered several years ago, she was left for dead and the case is still unsolved. Noelle has memory blackouts from that day and not everyone believes she is innocent. In the present day, the FBI are reopening the case and this brings lots of buried emotions to the surface for Noelle and her family.

I didn't like how blatantly rude the FBI were to Noelle and the time lines jumped all over the place constantly, which was hard to keep track of at times. A good plot though and laid good foundations for future books featuring these characters.

4 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Kendra Elliot and Montlake for an ARC in return for an honest review.

13 years earlier Noelle Marshall survived the brutal attack that killed her husband. As a high profile and well connected politician his murder was investigated by the FBI but because Noelle only had patchy memories of the attack the investigation went nowhere.

After the death, one of the investigating agents encouraged Noelle to pursue a career in law enforcement and following that path led her to becoming a detective with the Oregon State Police.

But after 13 years the FBI are taking another look at the murder of her husband to see if anything shakes loose.

And something has. Noelle has said or done something that has made the killer start to suspect her memories are returning but she has no idea what that is. Now with the help of the two FBI Agents she must dig up the truth of her husbands murder before the murderer silences her forever.

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Noelle Marshall has been floating in the background of Kendra Elliot’s Columbia River series for a few books now. She has become a fan favorite and finally she is getting her own series. And she doesn’t disappoint. Her First Mistake is much more cerebral than previous books but it is tight, gripping and an edge of your seat thrill ride.

I absolutely loved this book!
This amazing read starts with such a powerful event and I knew right there, it was going to be great.

Noelle met a handsome assemblyman, got married and was having this beautiful and sophisticated life, but then nothing prepared her for what happens next.
Noelle wakes up in a hospital bed, and her husband was murdered by an intruder at their home. The case goes unsolved.

Between the timelines from present to thirteen years ago, the suspense and mystery builds up nicely and you can’t stop reading. Very twisty and tense, with a shocking ending.

I can’t wait for book #2!

Thank you so much Montlake, Amazon Publishing, MBC Books and Kendra Elliot for inviting me to be part of the Bookstagram Tour, and for sending me this eARC via NetGalley, opinions are my own.

this book is a gripping, suspenseful novel that pulls a detective into the heart of a cold case she thought was buried forever. Thirteen years after the murder of Assemblyman Derrick Bell, Noelle Marshall, now a detective, is forced to confront her darkest secrets when the FBI reopens the case. As long-hidden truths and shocking twists emerge, Noelle must face the terrifying realization that Derrick’s death may be far from the last—and only the truth can stop it.

3/5 Stars – Solid Suspense, But Not Her Strongest

Her First Mistake is a decent, fast-paced thriller with some intriguing twists and a strong lead character. Kendra Elliot knows how to build suspense, and there’s a nice balance of action and emotional tension throughout the story.

However, the plot feels a bit familiar, and a few of the twists are predictable if you’re a regular reader of the genre. Some side characters lack depth, and the ending wraps up a little too neatly for the buildup. That said, the pacing keeps things moving, and the writing is polished as always.

It’s an enjoyable read, especially for fans of Elliot’s previous work, but it doesn’t quite stand out among her best.

I was given an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Noelle is a detective with a past and that past is coming back. Why is the FBI calling her in to go over that terrible night again. She can’t remember what happened. But someone close to her does know and she and her family are in danger.
Is she going to remember in time?

This is a new series by Kendra Elliot so don’t look for Mercy Kilpatrick.

Kendra Elliot’s “Her First Mistake” is the first book in a new series. Set in Oregon, this book tells the back story of Noelle Marshall. Primarily it involves the murder 13 years prior of Assemblyman Derrick Bell and the attack on Noelle, who was married to Derrick. Noelle is now a detective in the local Sheriff’s office when two FBI agents arrive from Sacramento, CA to interview her and her family members again.

The book alternates for most of the book between multiple timelines – the five years leading up to the attack, the investigation after the attack, and present day. The reader learns about how Derrick and Noelle met, as well as how their relationship (and marriage) began vs. what it became.

I had read a couple other books from Kendra Elliot so it was nice to see a couple guest appearances from characters I know are in her other books. For example, Mercy Kilpatrick has a couple interactions with Noelle in this one. This book started a little slow for me, but once I got used to the different timelines, the pace picked up. I was a little underwhelmed by the ending, but I may be in the minority.

Overall, I recommend this book. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC.

I confess I have not read the Columbia Rivers series where Noelle features so to me this is all brand new. This was not a disadvantage as it is Noelle's origin story. Through reading this, I learnt about Noelle and those around her. The plot is electrifying and I could not put this down, I ended up reading this in one sitting. There are plenty of twists and shocking moments in this too. I will definitely read more of these.
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for an advance copy.

What an emotionally charged book. We learn about Noelle’s past and it’s quite surprising. This book is a thrilling roller coaster ride. I found myself holding my breath a few times. Max is a very interesting character. This book is an invigorating read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley.