Recent Afghan refugee Sabera Ahmadi was last seen exiting her place of work three weeks ago. The local police have yet to open a case, while her older, domineering husband seems unconcerned. Sabera’s closest friend, however, is convinced Sabera would never willingly leave her three‑year old daughter. At her insistence, missing persons expert Frankie Elkin agrees to take up the search through the broiling streets of Tucson. Just in time for a video of the young mother to surface—showing her walking away from the scene of a brutal double murder.
Frankie quickly realizes there’s much more to the Ahmadi family than meets the eye. The father Isaad is a brilliant mathematician, Sabera a gifted linguist, and their little girl Zahra—she has an uncanny ability to remember anything she sees. Which given everything that has happened during the girl’s short life, may be a terrible curse. When Isaad also disappears under mysterious circumstances and an attempt is made on Zahra’s life, Frankie realizes she must quickly crack the code of this family’s horrific past.
Someone is coming for the Ahmadis. And violence is clearly an option. When everything is on the line, how far would you go to protect the ones you love?
Kiss Her Goodbye is an intricate missing-person mystery and the fourth installment in the Frankie Elkin series by Lisa Gardner. Like all books in the series, the book can be read as a standalone, as the author provided enough of Frankie Elkin’s backstory to easily follow the plot, but there are brief references to Frankie’s past relationships in previous books that would resonate with the reader if they read the other books in the series.
The story follows amateur missing‑persons detective Frankie Elkin, whose growing reputation leads her into the missing‑person case of Sabera Ahmadi, an Afghan refugee mother in Tucson who went missing 3 weeks ago without a trace, leaving behind her young daughter, Zahra, & much older husband, Isaad. After some investigation, Frankie learns that Sabera herself is a gifted linguist, Isaad is a brilliant mathematician, and Zahra possesses a photographic memory—all of which may hold the key to solving the increasingly puzzling mystery.
The story is a dual POV and multiple timeline narrative, alternating between Frankie’s investigation and Sabera’s POV (beginning five years earlier) that recounts her mother’s death & family tragedy at the hands of the Taliban and her journey of survival to a refugee settlement with her instructor-turned-husband, Isaad. The two POVs are so emotionally contrasting and make the story multilayered and extremely intricate—readers are simultaneously presented an intricate, riddle-filled missing person mystery and an emotionally charged story of wartime trauma, displacement, motherhood, and survival! With all these layers and depth, this novel may be Gardner’s most ambitious and thought-provoking book in the series yet. Readers should be aware of potential triggers and difficult themes in this story, including graphic murder, war trauma, mental illness including psychosis & PTSD, and the unpleasant realities of refugees. All of these subjects are written with accuracy and in a compassionate tone that makes them easier to digest for sensitive readers.
Frankie Elkin is a sarcastic, flawed, and extremely resilient protagonist. In this book, there isn’t as much sarcasm or dark comedy in her dialogue or monologues—mostly because the plot is so intricate and she’s spending more time wrapping her mind around new clues and information constantly coming her way and interrogating others. The split POV/timeline also takes time away from Frankie’s perspective, Gardner makes Frankie’s gritty determination standout during the investigative scenes.
Frankie’s past trauma, alcoholism, and frayed relationships with her parents are briefly described in memories and dreams—but if you want to get a bigger picture of Frankie’s past and how she ended up here, it’s best to read the previous books. Despite her flaws, Frankie’s empathy and moral compass are evident throughout the story and give her further determination to solve the case. Sabera Ahmadi is a complex, highly intelligent, and haunted woman. Her heartwrenching story is the emotional heart of the book, and her letters to her daughter bring compelling insight to the real-world refugee experience. There are a lot of side characters in this book, most of whom Frankie interacts with, including Zahra (the daughter), Daryl (who becomes Frankie’s investigator sidekick and pet‑sitter companion), Genni (the queer chef), and Petunia, a memorable pet who adds comic relief and heartwarming moments to the story.
The story has a slow-burn start in both timelines. Frankie gets acquainted with her new life in Tucson and gets details on Sabera’s life and disappearance and begins her job as a pet-sitter. Meanwhile, in the past timeline, Sabera’s heartbreaking experience of losing her mother and fleeing Kabul sets the stage for her psychological instability and dangerous secret life. From there Gardner builds suspense deliberately, with new clues and information constantly being revealed about Sabara, her connections, and her whereabouts. Frankie’s investigation isn’t ever linear—instead it’s full of twists, backsteps, and turns that will leave readers dizzily scratching their heads and as perplexed with all the riddles as Frankie herself. Don’t expect to predict the outcome—instead be prepared for unexpected red herrings, emotional reveals, compelling detective work, and a breathtaking conclusion. Even with the little action early on, the payoff in the final chapters is shocking and satisfying!
Overall, Kiss Her Goodbye is an emotionally charged slow-burn thriller with compelling real world refugee experiences and insight into the turmoil in Afghanistan. Frankie’s subplot, which was prominent in previous books in the series, takes a back seat to Sabera’s emotional arc—but Frankie’s gritty spirit still shines through, and the overall emotional stakes of the story remain compelling and satisfying! Readers who enjoy puzzle plots, character-driven mysteries, and multilayered dual timeline thrillers will absolutely love this book!
Narrator Performance
The audiobook of Kiss Her Goodbye is a thrilling listen performed by powerhouse narrator Hillary Huber, who’s narrated all the books in this series!
Huber brings protagonist Frankie vividly to life with an articulate, determined-sounding voice that captures the gritty and empathic nature of the character. Frankie’s dialogue is always full of sarcasm and dark humor, and Huber uses her amazing acting skills and perfect comedic timing to make the character equally hilarious and compelling. The relationship between Frankie and her “sidekick” in the investigation, Daryl, is a real highlight—they both have wit and sardonic humor and feed off of each other during investigative work. Huber brilliantly conveys their bond through expressive, relatable dialogue and makes the petsitting “comic relief” scenes laugh-out-loud funny! Huber has fully embodied Frankie in every book in this series—and her performances are remarkably consistent but also have nuances to show Frankie evolving—listening to all four books is an extremely bingeable experience that readers won’t soon forget!
This book has a variety of (challenging) Afghan accents—from Sabera to her husband to her friends/foes in Afghanistan to Afghans in Tucson! Huber does an impeccable job providing authentic-sounding, differentiating voices for each and every one, including very convincing male voices for Isaad, an Afghan doctor, and Sabera’s cousin. With the vast variety of voices, multiple timelines, and incredibly contrasting POVs, the listening experience is extremely immersive and has a cinematic feel to it! As the tension builds in the final chapters, Huber increases the tension and urgency in her tone tenfold—making each scene and dialogue exchange thrilling and highly entertaining!
Overall, this unique and intricate mystery is greatly elevated by Hillary Huber’s dynamic performance and pacing! It’s a must-listen for audiobook readers who enjoy character-driven mysteries and multilayered thrillers with a cinematic feel! If you haven’t listened to Hillary Huber’s narration before, you’ll immediately fall in love with her amazing performance skills and flawless timing—and you’ll definitely want to check out her incredible backlog of diverse titles!
Narrator Performance
The audiobook of Kiss Her Goodbye is a thrilling listen performed by powerhouse narrator Hillary Huber, who’s narrated all the books in this series!
Huber brings protagonist Frankie vividly to life with an articulate, determined-sounding voice that captures the gritty and empathic nature of the character. Frankie’s dialogue is always full of sarcasm and dark humor, and Huber uses her amazing acting skills and perfect comedic timing to make the character equally hilarious and compelling. The relationship between Frankie and her “sidekick” in the investigation, Daryl, is a real highlight—they both have wit and sardonic humor and feed off of each other during investigative work. Huber brilliantly conveys their bond through expressive, relatable dialogue and makes the petsitting “comic relief” scenes laugh-out-loud funny! Huber has fully embodied Frankie in every book in this series—and her performances are remarkably consistent but also have nuances to show Frankie evolving—listening to all four books is an extremely bingeable experience that readers won’t soon forget!
This book has a variety of (challenging) Afghan accents—from Sabera to her husband to her friends/foes in Afghanistan to Afghans in Tucson! Huber does an impeccable job providing authentic-sounding, differentiating voices for each and every one, including very convincing male voices for Isaad, an Afghan doctor, and Sabera’s cousin. With the vast variety of voices, multiple timelines, and incredibly contrasting POVs, the listening experience is extremely immersive and has a cinematic feel to it! As the tension builds in the final chapters, Huber increases the tension and urgency in her tone tenfold—making each scene and dialogue exchange thrilling and highly entertaining!
Overall, this unique and intricate mystery is greatly elevated by Hillary Huber’s dynamic performance and pacing! It’s a must-listen for audiobook readers who enjoy character-driven mysteries and multilayered thrillers with a cinematic feel! If you haven’t listened to Hillary Huber’s narration before, you’ll immediately fall in love with her amazing performance skills and flawless timing—and you’ll definitely want to check out her incredible backlog of diverse titles!
The audiobook of Kiss Her Goodbye is a thrilling listen performed by powerhouse narrator Hillary Huber, who’s narrated all the books in this series!
Huber brings protagonist Frankie vividly to life with an articulate, determined-sounding voice that captures the gritty and empathic nature of the character. Frankie’s dialogue is always full of sarcasm and dark humor, and Huber uses her amazing acting skills and perfect comedic timing to make the character equally hilarious and compelling. The relationship between Frankie and her “sidekick” in the investigation, Daryl, is a real highlight—they both have wit and sardonic humor and feed off of each other during investigative work. Huber brilliantly conveys their bond through expressive, relatable dialogue and makes the petsitting “comic relief” scenes laugh-out-loud funny! Huber has fully embodied Frankie in every book in this series—and her performances are remarkably consistent but also have nuances to show Frankie evolving—listening to all four books is an extremely bingeable experience that readers won’t soon forget!
This book has a variety of (challenging) Afghan accents—from Sabera to her husband to her friends/foes in Afghanistan to Afghans in Tucson! Huber does an impeccable job providing authentic-sounding, differentiating voices for each and every one, including very convincing male voices for Isaad, an Afghan doctor, and Sabera’s cousin. With the vast variety of voices, multiple timelines, and incredibly contrasting POVs, the listening experience is extremely immersive and has a cinematic feel to it! As the tension builds in the final chapters, Huber increases the tension and urgency in her tone tenfold—making each scene and dialogue exchange thrilling and highly entertaining!
Overall, this unique and intricate mystery is greatly elevated by Hillary Huber’s dynamic performance and pacing! It’s a must-listen for audiobook readers who enjoy character-driven mysteries and multilayered thrillers with a cinematic feel! If you haven’t listened to Hillary Huber’s narration before, you’ll immediately fall in love with her amazing performance skills and flawless timing—and you’ll definitely want to check out her incredible backlog of diverse titles!
