Series: Noelle Marshall (#2)
Format: 317 pages, Hardcover
Release Date: January 6, 2026
Publisher: Montlake
Source: Publisher
Genre: Thriller, Suspense
For a detective and an FBI agent, two seemingly disparate murder investigations collide with a twist in an explosive novel of suspense by a Wall Street Journal bestselling author.
In the crisp mountain air of central Oregon, a teenage girl’s search for discarded cans leads to a horrifying discovery: a body, brutally murdered and abandoned in the woods. The case falls to Deschutes County Detective Noelle Marshall, who finds herself navigating a community steeped in secrets, suspicion, and distrust of outsiders—especially law enforcement.
Miles away, FBI Special Agent Max Rhodes investigates a different kind of darkness—chatter about a violent uprising from a shadowy militia group preparing for war. The two cases seem worlds apart. But as Noelle digs into the murdered man’s past and Max closes in on the source of the terror plot, their paths begin to converge in a terrifying way. This was no random killing. It was a message. A merciless killer and a hidden army are operating in the same shadows, and finding the link between them is the only thing standing between a single murder and a full-blown massacre.
No One Knew is the second installment in author Kendra Elliot's Noelle Marshall series. The story is told via Detective Noelle Marshall, Special Agent Max Rhodes, and Emma Chambers, a young woman who finds a dead body that triggers a series of events that include Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick and Police Chief Truman Daly to stop a possible terrorist attack around Bend, Oregon. The story opens with a haunting discovery: a lonely teenage girl, scavenging for discarded cans in the woods to scrape together a living, stumbles upon a brutally murdered body.
This chilling find pulls Deschutes County Detective Noelle Marshall into a complex investigation in a tight-knit community riddled with secrets, suspicion, and deep-seated distrust of law enforcement. Meanwhile, FBI Special Agent Max Rhodes (Noelle's romantic interest from the first book) is tracking ominous online chatter about a violent uprising planned by a shadowy militia group gearing up for war. What initially appear to be two unrelated cases slowly converge in shocking ways, revealing that the murder was no random act—it was a deliberate message, and the stakes quickly escalate from a single homicide to the threat of a full-scale massacre.
Noelle Marshall continues to be a standout protagonist: tough, intelligent, and layered with personal history that makes her relatable. Her evolving relationship with Max adds emotional depth without overwhelming the suspense—it's sweet, realistic, and full of chemistry. The teenage witness, Emma, is heartbreakingly well-drawn; her loneliness and resilience steal the show and add a poignant human element to the thriller plot. The book explores timely issues like militia extremism, community distrust of authorities, and the power of unlikely alliances.
Yet it also emphasizes hope, compassion, and people stepping up for one another. I find it interesting that both Noelle and Max have painful past histories. Noelle is still experiencing issues that force her to write everything down, while Max's family is still angry at him for something that happened 12 years ago, which makes him hunted by a villain in this story. This series is not finished. Elliot posted that she intends to continue Noelle's story, and I am all for it. I am looking forward to seeing Max's family issues resolved. I am looking forward to more of Mercy and Truman as well.
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