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Her worst nightmare brought back to life, she risks everything for a second shot at justice.

For thirty years, FBI scientist Olivia St. Martin has lived with guilt and one abiding certainty–that while she wasn’t able to save her sister’s life, she did testify and helped to convict the rapist and killer. When shocking new evidence exonerates the man Olivia is sure she saw abduct her sister, she breaks every rule in the book to uncover the truth.

Driven by the possibility that she put the wrong man behind bars, Olivia discovers that a serial killer has been at large all these years. Believing that the monster has just struck again in Seattle, Olivia leaves her lab and poses as a field agent, sharing her unofficial investigation with a hardworking Seattle cop. Olivia doesn’t want to lie to detective Zack Travis. And she certainly doesn’t want to fall in love. But as the investigation intensifies, Olivia and Zack find that they’re rapidly losing control–over their hearts, their secrets, and a case that threatens to consume them.

432 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 28, 2006

236 people are currently reading
2370 people want to read

About the author

Allison Brennan

110 books5,275 followers
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Allison Brennan believes that life is too short to be bored, so she had five children and writes three books a year.

In 2019, Allison relocated from Northern California to Arizona with her family and assorted pets. She loves baseball, hiking, family game night, and (of course) reading.

RT Book Reviews called Allison “a master of suspense” and her books “haunting,” “mesmerizing,” “pulse-pounding” and “emotionally complex.” She's been nominated for many awards, and is a three time winner of the Reviewer's Choice award winner for RT Book Reviews as well as the Daphne du Maurier award. Most recently, she was nominated for Best Paperback Original by International Thriller Writers.

With over 45 books and dozens of short stories, Allison is writing multiple series and the occasional stand alone thriller. Her most recent book out now is THE MISSING WITNESS, part of the Quinn & Costa series. In June Allison is launching a new Phoenix-set series about a family of private investigators starting with YOU'LL NEVER FIND ME.

You can reach Allison through Goodreads or her website.


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5 stars
2,064 (44%)
4 stars
1,725 (36%)
3 stars
742 (15%)
2 stars
116 (2%)
1 star
31 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews
Profile Image for Jonetta.
2,593 reviews1,325 followers
October 21, 2019
When she was just five years old, FBI scientist Olivia St. Martin witnessed her sister’s abduction by a man who subsequently murdered her. It completely reshaped her life, including her career choice. Now, recent DNA tests reveal that the man she helped convict was not the murderer and she’s determined to help find the actual killer. Her analysis takes her to Seattle where the most recent child victim was found and appears to be the work of the same person. However, she’s allowing Detective Zack Travis to believe she’s a field agent in order to help with the case.

This was a tough story as it involves the sexual assault and murder of children, always rough, but thankfully the author chose to handle the details sensitively and without a lot of graphics. Olivia’s story is sad but she’s become an expert in forensic science and her research significantly helped the Seattle Police Department target the right person, sift through relevant clues and stay focused on key leads. I found the investigation chilling and the procedurals highly interesting. Olivia’s developing relationship with Zack was the weak link here as their romance just didn’t ring authentic as it ramped up too quickly and his later reaction to her duplicity felt contrived.

Despite my issues with the romantic element, I very much enjoyed the story as it moved rapidly and had multiple points of view, including the killer’s, which always heightens the tension. This was a really good series and I’m looking forward to the next connected one by this author.
Profile Image for Anita.
2,646 reviews218 followers
October 13, 2019
I am not a fan of the serial killer genre and when the victims are children, I'm really not a happy camper. What saves this story is that there are very few details and nothing graphic, thank goodness. Good plot, solid romance and very solid character development.

As a 4-year old Olivia St. Martin tried to save her older sister from being kidnapped, raped and murdered. She failed, but she was able to testify and put the monster away for the rest of his miserable life. Fast forward 34 years and DEA has proved that the wrong man was convicted. Olivia's life as an FBI scientist is turned upside down and now she is on a mission to find the monster who really killed her sister and she isn't concerned about the rules. What she finds shocks and horrifies her.

Zack Travis is a Seattle, WA homicide detective and he has a murdered child with no witnesses and little evidence. When FBI Agent Olivia St. Martin appears with an unbelievable theory he is willing to listen her because he has no other options. Deceiving Zack is not what Olivia set out to do, but to her the ends definitely justify the means. Falling in love with him was definitely not a part of her plan.
Profile Image for Melissa.
530 reviews
October 10, 2019
When Olivia St. Martin was 5 years old, she helped convict the man who raped and murdered her sister. 34 years later he has been released. DNA testing proves he did not do it. Olivia is haunted by the fact the she may have been wrong and starts to research the case. She soon finds similar murders all over the US. She blames herself for the serial killer being out there and sets out the catch him.

Any book that is centered around the brutal deaths of children is hard to read, but the author does a nice job making the subject low key. There are no graphic scenes and no detailed accounts.
Olivia St. Martin is a strong troubled woman who does what anyone would do to find the truth. Even risk losing her job. I can understand her need to set things straight, but I wish she could have done it without lying to Zack Travis. Zack Travis is a good cop and just as determined as Olivia is to catch the killer.
It was nice seeing Quinn and Miranda again. I like how the author worked them into the story since Olivia was in Seattle.
The back story of the killer is a tragic one and is told from his point of view throughout the book. I like when authors do this. It breaks up the story and gives the reader insight into why the bad guy is doing what he’s doing. The reader is able to get his side of things. This story also follows Brian Hall, the man falsely accused of Olivia’s sisters’ murder. The reader gets to see what can happen to someone who spends 34 years in prison as an innocent man. The ending is expected, but not overdone.
The romance between Olivia and Zack is slow and easy, not forced. It’s just the right amount to go along with everything else.
Profile Image for Diane.
677 reviews30 followers
April 21, 2014
Another despicable serial killer - but did they catch the right one?

This 3rd book in the Predator Trilogy features the lab rat "Olivia St. Martin" - friend of Rowan Smith from The Preyand Miranda Moore from The Hunt - all 3 were classmates in the FBI Academy at Quantico, all 3 have emotional issues, and all 3 got involved in the cases of their lives.

This book was no different, except Olivia is on the case because of deceit - not in a bad sense, but still.

The man she thought had abducted her older sister back when they were kids and then killed her and was caught mostly with Olivia's testimony gets released because of DNA evidence. So who was the real killer and where is he now.

Not a bad read - Kjen you will love this series - the hot scenes are hot and "lengthy" :)

2 thumbs up for the trilogy.
Profile Image for Lauren.
2,516 reviews159 followers
July 14, 2022
The Kill
3.5 Stars

As a child, Olivia St. Martin witnessed the kidnapping of her older sister - an act that destroyed her family. As an adult, Olivia joined the FBI and became a forensic scientist. Now the man Olivia helped convict has been exonerated and Olivia realizes that her sister’s killer is still out there and still killing. When she learns of a series of similar murders, Olivia put her career in jeopardy by posing as a field agent and lying to the investigating officer, Detective Zack Travis - a man that she is also falling in love with.

The third and final installment in Brennan’s Predator series is another fantastic thriller. Unfortunately, the romance is, once again, much weaker than the suspense.

The mystery is the highlight of the book with a villain who is as evil and vicious as they come. The investigation and forensic details are interesting and add an element of realism to the plot.

Zack starts out as a typical judgmental and territorial cop who dislikes having the Feds in on his case. As the investigation continues, he and Olivia grow closer and he begins to acknowledge her contribution and respect her work. That said, Olivia’s secrets ultimately get in the way and undermine their relationship.

Olivia is a troubled heroine and while her past goes a long way toward explaining her problematic actions in insinuating herself into the investigation, it does not mitigate the fact that her behavior puts a damper on the romance as the reader is constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop.

In sum, an exciting and gripping thriller but the romance feels forced.
Profile Image for Marca.
1,047 reviews
March 12, 2010
Good mystery, terrible main character. Olivia once worked for the FBI and now works for the crime lab. When Olivia was five, her 9 year old sister was abducted in front her. The body of her sister was found a few days later. Little Olivia identified the killer from his tattoo; he was convicted & sent to prison; case closed. Almost. Years later, DNA frees the man and Olivia is worried that the real killer is still out there. Great premise. Olivia, however, is a basket case. How did she ever get into the FBI? She has two emotions: “lip trembles” and “storms out of the room.” Plus, the minute she meets Seattle Police Detective Zack, you can almost hear “boom chicka wah wah” in your ears. The writing switches from mystery to erotica, which is not my thing. I almost laughed because it was so lascivious. I stuck with it because I wanted to see how the mystery ended, but I need to avoid romance writers who also write mysteries.
Profile Image for Anne - Books of My Heart.
3,852 reviews226 followers
June 22, 2020
I'm enjoying these law enforcement / police investigations with strong, talented women involved. I've finished this first trilogy so now I'll find the next set. I really like how the author created trilogies.

The topic of this one is horrifically sad - abused girls around 10 years old.
684 reviews1 follower
November 17, 2021
I thought the third book might be better since the second was marginally better than the first, but no. Again, the premise and the story was intriguing, but the characters were straight out of LMN casting: petite beautiful woman with secrets and a brawny man with a heart of gold who is determined to unearth all that “batters against her soul. “ And I have to admit to a certain bias. The author obviously does her research about crime and psychology, but she neglected to do some simple stuff. Her comments on girls gymnastics showed total ignorance and there were a couple of grammatical errors that irritated me. Sloppy editing.
262 reviews11 followers
January 26, 2013
January 26th, 2:10 Ohio time. I started reading this today, and...okay. I'm hoping there's a reason for it, but why would a very meticulous and anal killer leave DNA evidence? He steals trucks to hide what he drives and leaves very little trace evidence in them, maybe some blood of the victim, and he returns the vehicles when he's done. He doesn't even quite "steal", he "borrows" the vehicles from people on vacation so there's no one to report them missing. He commits four murders and immediately moves away from the area. He changes his name every time he moves, and works in a job where he can spy on people and it's not weird for him to strike up conversations with customers. ...Why would he leave very blatant evidence behind?!

This is annoying and frustrating to no end. I love books like this, where parts of it are told from the killer's perspective. Silence of the Lambs and Se7en are two of my favorite movies, and Buffalo Bill one of my favorite criminals. I love how the plots are more about how the killer is getting away with everything, and if the police will catch him, over how smart the cops are in relation to the dumb criminal leaving evidence and fingerprints all over the place. Those movies, and book in the case of SotL, have apparently spoiled me.

I hope this book gets better. I haven't even touched on the boring and transparent relationship. I bet they sleep together before the case is solved, which is how most books like this go.

Edit: January 26th, 4:10.

Not going near another of this author's books. Healing sex and the magical power of love are not my cup of tea, and the murderer was lame, at best. Decent premise, if the author hadn't felt the need to have Olivia whine about her past which was beyond her control, the cop mope about his past which he was slightly to blame for, and of course Every Single Person had some uber-traumatic event that happened in their past. I don't care if this was the third book in a trilogy and I only read the last one. It was enough.

And the side plot about Hall...pure filler. No real impact on the main plot at all, except to...what, keep the tension up? Didn't work. You expect the attack, and since there always has to be a Happily Ever After, you know nobody important will die. Clichéd and flat-out annoying.

I'm sorry if this seems unnecessarily harsh. I'm not saying the author is a horrible writer and should never write another book as long she lives. I don't care if she does or not - I'm just not going to read them.
Profile Image for Lyndi W..
2,042 reviews210 followers
September 12, 2012
I tried to read Miranda's story, but found her actions to be so unreasonable, I couldn't stand it. I wanted to give the author another shot, so I tried Olivia's story. And I found her to be pretty damn unreasonable, as well, but not as bad.

I liked the story, I really did. But there was a lot of nonsense that wasn't necessary. It felt like filler and without it, the story would have still been a full length novel. I don't want to read about Olivia's self-guilt trips every freaking chapter. I don't want to read about how much Olivia frets over stupid shit that she has, and never had, any control over.

So I didn't read it. I skimmed the hell out of this book, basically just looking for dialogue and reading the first and last sentence of each paragraph. I seriously doubt I missed anything.

The plot was good and the villain was sufficiently scary. The romance felt real and the forensics were interesting. I liked the characters, too. And I usually have issues with the heroine. But I didn't have an issue with Olivia, I really just had an issue with the author and how much she repeated herself - usually about Olivia's guilt and worrying.

Tedious. That's the word I'm looking for... the writing about Olivia was tedious.

I'd probably recommend this book, but it'd be waaay down the list of recommendations.
Profile Image for Meghan.
3,367 reviews7 followers
February 17, 2020
This is a great trilogy and individual story. Olivia has been mention or in a smaller role in the first two stories, but now we see her story that was first described in book one evolve. All three women had personal reasons regarding loss for joining the FBI, but none worked out quite like they thought.

Olivia is dealing with a shock regarding the events from decades ago and takes action to try to remedy the error. Through some finagling and white lies we see her meet up with Zach Travis and the case starts to come together. As with all books by AB there is a romantic angle, but it is not the main focus of the story, rather it compliments and at time complicates the issue for the main characters.

This story is disturbing as it is about a serial rapist and killer of little girls. The path of horror covers 30 years and multiple states. The descriptions are detailed and had me following along with the team. Well done and can’t wait to read more!
Profile Image for Le Monde du Polar.
124 reviews4 followers
March 15, 2025
Allison Brennan nous plonge avec « Poursuite fatale » dans un thriller haletant où les blessures du passé dictent le présent. Paru initialement sous le titre « The Kill », ce roman explore les conséquences dévastatrices d’un drame survenu trente ans auparavant, un traumatisme qui continuera de faire des victimes jusqu’à ce que justice soit rendue. L’intrigue s’articule autour d’Olivia St. Martin, une scientifique travaillant au FBI, à qui la vie a cruellement arraché sa sœur durant son enfance. Cette perte irréparable a façonné son existence entière, lui conférant une détermination sans faille lorsqu’une analyse ADN révèle que le condamné pour ce meurtre est finalement innocent...
La suite de ma chronique sur mon blog :
https://lemondedupolar.com/science-en...
Profile Image for Lexi Sky.
8 reviews
April 29, 2020
I liked it but it was predictable, especially after reading the first two. Same storyline just different murders. Girl wants to catch a killer and does everything she can to stop him and along the way she has help from a man she at first doesn't want help from and a man who doesn't really like the women then they "fall in love" after like three days. Then the girl almost dies and the guy "can't imagine his life without her." Then they fight and they don't want to talk to each other then something else dramatic happens and it's the same thing all over again. The murder mystery was fine, but I didn't see a point in the romance. There is a serial killer on the loose, why in the world are they worried and sleeping together. But I also hate romance novels.
1,010 reviews
January 7, 2019
In keeping with my goal to read all of her books, this is an early one in her career. I'd assign it 2.5 stars if I could. I enjoyed seeing some of the characters I've come to like in her books, but the writing in her later works is much better. I had a hard time buying into the romance part of the book, when the couple "falls in love" only a few days after working an intense serial murder case together. Three months later they are married. I'm glad I read it, if only to appreciate how her books continue to get better.
Profile Image for E.R. Yatscoff.
Author 19 books29 followers
August 1, 2019
I normally keep well away from serial killer stories but was talked into this one. The victims are children and the twist will take the reader in two directions. Good investigation and the FBI lab woman Olivia gets into some soft porn twice near the end: well done, but a page too much. Action, when it happened was good and descriptions and imaging are fine. This was a clearance pile book. Read my thrillers!
527 reviews3 followers
April 24, 2021
Witnessing her sister's kidnapping as a child, feeling responsible for her sister's death, missing the notice and compassion of her parents she testified against the man responsible insuring he never gets parole. Now an adult more little girl are kidnapped and murdered the same way. did she testify against the wrong man? Can she stop the next killing?

Will her lie cost her the man she now loves?
1,137 reviews3 followers
July 4, 2017
Olivia St. Martin witnessed her sister's abduction when she was 5 years old. Brian Harrison Hall was convicted of the crime. Now 34 years later DNA evidence proves it wasn't him. Now Olivia feels guilty about the time he spent in jail. She has vowed to find her sister's abductor and killer no matter what. It may just cost her job an life.
Profile Image for Fran Alsaud.
811 reviews1 follower
December 18, 2017
De la misma línea que sus antecesoras, esta una historia con bastante intriga desde el primer capítulo en una carrera contra el tiempo para lograr atrapar a un asesino en serie de niñas, no tan predecible como en otras historias. Entretenida y de lectura rápida.
Profile Image for YellowBlackKing.
355 reviews9 followers
May 21, 2025
Ich fand es sehr spannend. Anfangs fand ich Zack unsympathisch, aber nach einiger Zeit mochte ich ihn und die Lovestory mit ihm. Olivia war mir auch sympathisch. Das Ende gefiel mir auch sehr gut. Den Täter konnte ich vorher nicht erahnen, aber ich fand ihn passend.
Profile Image for Sandra.
79 reviews5 followers
July 2, 2017
Another great book by Allison! I just love her books and this was a great read! Lots of suspense with a little romance mixed in is perfect!!
Profile Image for Patricia.
443 reviews11 followers
January 13, 2018
WOW, What a Roller Coaster of a ride, (in other wards) when you thinks it's over, It's not... AMAZING!!! My 3rd of the Series, this by (FAR) was the best, Amazing Author...
Profile Image for Lottie.
597 reviews9 followers
July 4, 2018
very good book.....lots of suspense !!
7 reviews
September 11, 2018
First book I'd read of hers. I'm going to read more just hopefully in order next time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews

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