Only One Survives
Hannah Mary McKinnon
On Sale Date: July 16, 2024
9780778305477
Trade Paperback
$18.99 USD
400 pages
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Becoming the star is easier when the rest of your band is dead…
All drummer Vienna Taylor ever wanted was to make music. If that came with fame, she’d take it—as long as her best friend, guitarist Madison Pierce, was sharing the spotlight and singing lead. And with their new all-female pop rock band gaining traction, soon everyone would hear their songs…
Except, on the way to an event, the Bittersweet’s van careened off an icy mountain road during a blizzard—leaving one member dead and another severely injured.
In order to survive the frigid night, the rest took shelter in a nearby abandoned cabin. But Vienna’s dreams devolved into a terrifying nightmare as, one by one, her fellow band members met a gruesome end…and Madison simply vanished in the night.
What really happened to the Bittersweet? Did Vienna’s closest friend finally decide to take center stage on her own terms?
She doesn’t want to believe it.
But guilty people run.
Read until the end for a Q&A with the author!
And check our Review of the book
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Internationally bestselling author Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. Her seven suspense novels include NEVER COMING HOME, THE REVENGE LIST, and ONLY ONE SURVIVES, and her work has been optioned for the screen. She also writes holiday romantic comedies as Holly Cassidy. Hannah Mary lives in Oakville, Ontario, Canada with her husband and three sons. You’ll find her on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Threads as @hannahmarymckinnon, and please visit www.hannahmarymckinnon.com for more.
SOCIAL LINKS:
Author website: https://hannahmarymckinnon.com/
X/ Twitter: @HannahMMcKinnon
Instagram: @hannahmarymckinnon
BUY LINKS:
Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/only-one-survives-original-hannah-mary-mckinnon/20588569?ean=9780778305477
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/only-one-survives-hannah-mary-mckinnon/1144036619?ean=9780778305477
Books A Million: https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Only-One-Survives/Hannah-Mary-McKinnon/9780778305477?id=9198703440116
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Only-Survives-Hannah-Mary-McKinnon-ebook/dp/B0CHFPT67X
EXCERPT:
1
The day of the accident
Something screams at me to open my eyes. Just open your eyes. I don’t want to. Darkness thicker than molasses surrounds me like a cloak. It feels safe. Comforting. As if my brain already knows I can’t handle what I’ll see. If I look, no matter how small or fast of a glimpse, I’ll never forget.
As I press my eyes shut, trying to block out the voice in my head, long spindly shadows emerge from the depths of my mind. They beckon me to follow them, down, down, and I give in, ignoring the screaming as I let myself sink deeper and deeper into the stillness, a place of peace.
Vienna, open your eyes.
It won’t go away. Won’t leave me alone. A thought emerges from the thick fog swirling through my brain. The voice isn’t mine. It’s not inside my head. I raise a hand in a feeble attempt to bat the words away.
“Vienna, wake up,” the voice says, clearer now. “Please, please wake up.”
It’s a herculean effort to do as I’m asked, and as my eyes flicker open, I turn my head, glance over my left shoulder.
Madison’s leaning forward and staring at me, her fiery red hair disheveled, her emerald eyes wild, wide with fear and a hint of what might be relief. I’m not sure what to make of the mixture. I’m not sure what to make of anything. I look away, but not before I see tears snake down her cheeks and drop onto her blue hoodie.
“Can you hear me?” she says.
My throat’s dry, rough as sandpaper. I don’t think I can speak but manage to push out a weak-sounding “Yes.” I nod in case Madison didn’t hear, and the movement brings a stabbing pain to the side of my temple. When I touch my head, I feel a tender lump beneath my fingers. Why am I hurt? Why—
Everything returns all at once. A sudden whoosh of thoughts and memories and fear—so much fear—banishing the darkness like birds startled from a tree.
Six of us were in my old Tahoe SUV. The Bittersweet—Madison, Gabi, Evelina, Isabel, and me—plus Libby, the documentary research assistant who’s been shadowing us over the past few weeks. It’s midafternoon in early December, and we were driving from Brooklyn to a holiday party in the Catskills hosted by our record label. A major event Madison insisted we couldn’t miss, no matter what.
No matter the impending storm.
A sequence of images flashes through my mind. Gabi offering to drive because I was tired. The weather turning earlier than expected, and far worse than anything we’d anticipated. Whiteout conditions. Getting lost in the middle of nowhere. A steep, winding, narrow road up a hill. Slippery lanes. Me tightening my grip on the cup of coffee in my hands, opening my mouth to tell Gabi we were perhaps going a little too fast.
And then…
My fists bunch tight as I recall the sudden movement when the Tahoe slid. This is when the memories slow down. It’s as if I’m watching the events unfold from above, all in slow motion. I remember the SUV getting closer and closer to the edge of the road. When I looked out of the passenger window, there was no asphalt left on my side, only the tops of snow-laden trees and a sharp drop below.
Renewed panic rises, making my heart pound. It leaps into my throat, threatening to choke me when I relive the sound of our collective screams as we crashed into the metal barrier.
There was a tiny moment of disbelief. A fraction of an instant when I truly believed we’d be fine, before the barrier gave way, and the Tahoe toppled over the edge of the road, right side first. One second, I thought we’d be all right, we’d be safe, and then we rolled once, twice.
After that…
I search my brain for what came next but there’s nothing.
My coffee cup’s empty, its contents spilled, the scent turning my stomach. At least the vehicle’s upright now, which I’m grateful for, but the front passenger side where I’m sitting is severely crushed, the windshield and front window shattered, half-gone. Thumb-size snowflakes drift in through the holes, landing on my jacket. As I watch them soak into the fabric and disappear, I long to go back into the darkness. Pretend none of this has happened. Maybe if I escape for a while, everything will be back to normal when I wake up.
Except I know it won’t.
“Are you all right?” I ask Madison, turning around again, and she nods.
I look at the others. Gabi’s in the driver’s seat, shoulders trembling, face pale, but she’s not making a sound. Libby’s in the back row, one hand over her mouth as she sobs. Evelina’s slumped face down on the floor, her body twisted at an unnatural angle. There’s blood on her jacket. My gaze searches for its origins but can’t find it.
Madison leans over, touches Evelina’s shoulder, but she doesn’t move. Was she knocked unconscious, too? Is that why it’s taking her longer to wake up? My gaze sweeps the rest of the vehicle, my temple throbbing again. It takes me a moment to spot what else is wrong.
There are five of us.
Five.
There should be six.
“Wh-where’s Isabel?” I say. “Where did she—”
“Look.”
The tone of Gabi’s whisper makes a shiver tear down my spine. She points to the broken windshield, and I follow her line of sight. At first, I’m unsure of what I’m seeing. A jumble of clothes at the base of a tree? It’s what I tell myself until I register the bright teal color. The exact shade of the puffer jacket Isabel wore when we left Brooklyn. The coat she refused to take off, even after we cranked up the heat.
“No,” I say, wrestling with my seat belt, breaking free. “No, no, no, no.”
Scrambling, I heave myself up and climb over Gabi, hands yanking on the driver’s door. Mercifully, her side opens, and I jump out.
Driven by pure adrenaline, all temptation of going back to the darkness banished for good, I run to the heap of clothes—the heap I know is Isabel—gasping as I fall to my knees at her side.
A tree branch thicker than my arm is embedded in the left side of her chest where her heart should be, her shirt torn and spattered with deep red. Her eyes are open, staring at the gray skies above, but she doesn’t blink. She doesn’t move.
A guttural scream rises from deep within me, and I put my head back to let it escape. Before it can emerge, the smell of smoke makes the noise wither and die in my throat.
The Tahoe’s on fire. My friends are still inside.
2
4 years 4 months before the accident
Landing at the principal’s office two hours into the first day of twelfth grade had to be some kind of record. Considering I was a brand-new student at Rosemont High, and the aptly named, stone-faced Principal Mason didn’t seem to have much of a sense of humor, I decided not to ask.
“I’m not impressed with either of you,” he said, before turning to me. “Vienna, I understand you’ve just arrived in town but it’s no excuse. Madison, I’m surprised to find you in this predicament. I’d have thought you’d know better.”
Tuning out his monotone about decorum, expectations, and mutual respect, I snuck a glance at Madison. I didn’t know her last name and didn’t care. She was the reason we found ourselves in this mess. If it weren’t for her, I’d be in calculus class. Although in a way she’d done me a favor as math was my least favorite subject.
Neither of us had said much, Principal Mason clearly enjoyed hearing himself talk. While I leaned back in my chair, Madison sat with a rod-straight spine, hands neatly folded in her lap, giving the occasional nod. Enviable, natural red waves tumbled past her shoulders, and she had choppy bangs, which emphasized her big green eyes and near flawless skin.
My gaze dropped to her perfectly manicured nails, and the Lululemon backpack by her feet. I’d seen her cute tan suede ankle boots at Portland’s Maine Mall on Saturday, had quickly calculated I’d need over ten shifts at my ice cream parlor job to buy them, double if Mom’s boyfriend found the money I’d hidden again.
I bet Madison never needed to save for anything. Her jean shorts were as trendy as her backpack and boots, and they were strategically ripped in all the right places. Not the DIY job I’d done on the pair I’d got from the local pawnshop.
At least nobody had the same ones, and I liked the fact mine were original whereas Madison was a carbon copy of all the other rich girls circulating around the building. The ones who air-kissed, flicked their hair, and pretended commoners like me were invisible. Girls who summered.
I wondered if this was the first time Madison had ended up in front of Principal Mason. She seemed too much of a goody-two-suede-boots to me. Her mom was probably head of the parent-teacher committee, baked treats for the staff to keep them on her side. Whatever consequences came our way, no doubt Little Miss Madison would shimmy out of them faster than I could say blueberry muffins.
“Are you going to answer me, Vienna?” Principal Mason’s use of my name snapped my wandering attention back to him. “Or do you plan to continue sitting in silence?”
My eyes flickered over his fluffy dark brown hair, which reminded me of a duckling, and I took in his polyester-blend suit and Snoopy tie. Maybe he wore the latter to prove to himself he was a fun guy. He wasn’t fooling me.
A knock on the door stopped me from answering his question. Principal Mason’s assistant stepped into the office, a short guy whose desk nameplate read Harry Sweet. He didn’t look much older than me and might’ve borrowed his dad’s pine-green corduroy jacket to give himself an air of authority, but all it did was transform him into a kid playing dress-up.
“I made the calls to the parents,” Harry said. “Ms. Taylor didn’t pick up.”
Unable to help myself, I let out a snort.
“Something you can share with us, Vienna?” Principal Mason asked.
There were a million things I could’ve said about my mother. My total lack of surprise at how Harry’s quest to reach her had failed would’ve been as good a place as any to start. She’d ignored school phone calls pretty much since first grade, including the time I’d fallen off a stone wall and Grams had taken me to get stitched up.
Mom’s excuse was her busy work schedule at the gas station in Falmouth where we’d lived until the beginning of this summer, except most days I could smell alcohol on her because she’d been at her local bar.
Maybe I should’ve told Principal Mason how Mom had never attended any of my school performances since I was eight, despite her knowing they were my favorite thing in the world.
Once you’ve seen one goddamn school concert you’ve seen them all, Mom told her boyfriend du jour when she hadn’t known I was within earshot, or maybe she’d seen me and hadn’t cared. There’s two hours of your life you’ll never get back.
She had no idea how wrong she was. My previous school’s production of The Addams Family had been such a success, we’d added another date. Mom still hadn’t come. Instead, she’d partied with Rick, her latest beau and the man who was the reason why I’d ended up at Rosemont for my senior year.
I hated how we’d moved from Falmouth to Portland’s North Deering area, and now lived in his house. So did Grams, who seemed to loathe Rick more than I did, but at least we had a non-leaky roof over our heads and no longer shared a bedroom.
I loved Grams more than anyone but sleeping in the same room was exhausting now her dementia had got worse and she confused the time of day, thinking it was afternoon when it was the middle of the night.
Principal Mason cleared his throat and raised his eyebrows as he waited for an answer. Was there something I could share? Sure. Something I wanted to?
“Nope.” I omitted the customary sir to see if it would infuriate him, but to his credit, the guy didn’t react.
“Mr. Pierce will be here any minute,” Harry said, and as I glanced at Principal Mason, I noticed a twitch of his upper lip, a small widening of his eyes. This news clearly bothered him.
“Madison,” he said, turning to my newfound nemesis. “Before your father arrives, would you please explain what happened at the cafeteria?”
Madison swallowed hard and took a deep breath. Wait for it, I thought, expecting a master class in how to wrap people around your little finger. What would she do? Go vamp and bat her eyelashes at the principal? Lean forward while subtly using her arms to push her boobs together as she insisted none of this was her fault? Maybe she’d wait for her father to rush through the door, and do a daddy’s little girl routine, bursting into tears so he felt protective of her.
As I studied her, Madison looked straight ahead, raised her chin, and crossed her arms, her body language almost identical to mine. Her whole demeanor was interesting and…unexpected.
Principal Mason was about to speak when another man pushed past Harry, who immediately fled and closed the door behind him. I swear the temperature in the office dropped twenty degrees, making me sit up straight as if on autopilot.
The tall man I presumed to be Mr. Pierce wore a dark suit with a crisp white button-down shirt. Instead of a fun comic-strip tie, his was black, covered in silver spheres, and secured with the most precise knot I’d ever seen. I guessed him to be in his late forties, and whatever he did for work, it had to pay more than well. With his clothes, haircut, and shiny shoes, Madison’s father oozed cash.
I’d never known my dad. Mom had me when she was twenty-one, another drunken one-night stand with an out-of-towner whose name she couldn’t remember. She’d regretted him, and me, ever since.
“Mr. Pierce,” Principal Mason said, holding out a hand, fingers trembling slightly.
“Ronald,” Mr. Pierce said as they shook. “What’s going on?”
“There was an incident at the cafeteria,” Principal Mason offered.
“What are the specifics of this incident?”
“Well, uh, Madison and Ms. Taylor here—” the principal gestured at me “—ended up in a scuffle.”
Mr. Pierce whipped his head in Madison’s direction, and she shrank into her seat, almost as if she wished it would swallow her. “You got into a fight? Explain.”
“It was nothing,” Madison said, her voice small now, her defiance gone.
“Which is why you ended up here,” her father replied, waving a hand around. “On your first day back. Let’s try this again. Tell me what happened. I rearranged a client call to be here, and I’d appreciate you not wasting more of anyone’s time.”
There had been a few occasions over the past years when I’d longed for supportive parents who’d come to the school. A few years ago, I’d been bullied by a girl named Patsy. She’d picked on me for whatever reason, and when I’d asked Mom for help, she’d instructed me to do whatever Patsy did to me but twice as hard.
Mom’s idea hadn’t gone down well—when Patsy kicked me in the shins, I’d done it back, and the teacher had spotted me. Then again, Patsy had limped for a week, and she’d left me alone thereafter, so maybe Mom’s approach hadn’t been the worst idea. Still, it would’ve been nice to have her show her face from time to time, although looking at Mr. Pierce now, I was thankful for her lack of interest, and for the fact my dad wasn’t around.
“Madison.” His tone could’ve sliced Harry’s metal nameplate in half. “I want an answer.”
When I glanced over, my animosity toward Madison faded. She seemed terrified. Shoulders hunched, arms still crossed, chin now pointing to her chest.
“It was my fault,” I said, and Madison let out a tiny gasp.
I don’t know why I spoke up or why I chose to lie. Maybe it was because I saw part of myself in Madison, the way I’d been until I’d clued into building myself a suit of invisible armor, so nobody’s jabs, taunts, or comments got beneath my skin.
Her father stared at me. “I don’t believe I was talking to—”
“Who cares? You wanted an answer,” I said, cutting him off, figuring it would be the easiest way to draw his ire in my direction and away from his daughter. I didn’t have to live in the same house as him. In fact, I’d never see him again, so I didn’t care what he thought. “I cut in front of Madison at the cafeteria. She pointed out the back of the line, and I told her to get lost. Things got heated.”
“And who pushed whom first?” Principal Mason said, his authoritative tone making a comeback now he was talking at a student, not with an intimidating parent.
I shrugged. “I shoved her.”
“Very well,” Principal Mason said. “Thank you for being honest, Vienna. You’re new to this school, but we don’t take assault lightly here.”
“Assault?” I said with a laugh. “Seriously?”
“I shoved her back,” Madison jumped in, “which means technically I assaulted her.”
“Madison.” Mr. Pierce’s blue eyes bored into her. “You’re almost an adult. You most certainly know this is no way to behave.”
As he paused, his gaze swept over me while a distasteful look he couldn’t quite—or didn’t want to—hide crossed his face. As he took in my edgy raven bob, the rows of silver hoops in my ears, my homemade ripped jean shorts, and the Joan Jett Bad Reputation tank top—the black one with the set of bright red lips—I knew exactly what he was thinking: this one’s trouble.
“Principal Mason,” he said, still staring at me, “I expect consequences for them both.”
“Well, seeing as it’s the first day of school and they spoke up, I think we should—”
“Start as we mean to go on? Quite.” Mr. Pierce made his way to the door and pulled it open, rattling the gray set of blinds covering the window. Before stepping out, he turned and looked at each of us in turn before adding, “I trust you’ll make the right decision, Ronald. Madison isn’t busy this afternoon.”
“That’s not true, Dad,” she said. “I have my audition for the orchestra after school.”
He waited a beat. “Not anymore.”
I watched as Principal Mason gave Madison a pained look while she clenched her fists and bit her bottom lip almost hard enough to draw blood. Seemed I’d been too quick to judge. A love of music and a shared hatred for at least one of our parents? Maybe we had stuff in common after all.
Excerpted from Only One Survives by Hannah Mary McKinnon. Copyright © 2024 by Hannah McKinnon. Published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
Q&A with the author:
A) ABOUT ONLY ONE SURVIVES
· Back cover:
Becoming the star is easier when the
rest of your band is dead…
All drummer Vienna Taylor ever wanted was to
make music. If that came with fame, she’d take it—as long as her best friend,
guitarist Madison Pierce, was sharing the spotlight and singing lead. And with
their new all-female pop rock band gaining traction, soon everyone would hear
their songs…
Except, on the way to an event, the
Bittersweet’s van careened off an icy mountain road during a blizzard—leaving
one member dead and another severely injured.
In order to survive the frigid night, the rest took
shelter in a nearby abandoned cabin. But Vienna’s dreams devolved into a
terrifying nightmare as, one by one, her fellow band members met a gruesome
end…and Madison simply vanished in the night.
What happened to the Bittersweet? Did Vienna’s
closest friend finally decide to take center stage on her own terms?
She doesn’t want to believe it.
But guilty people run.
· Describe ONLY ONE SURVIVES in four words and a few sentences
Ø Four words: Original, twisted, thrilling, surprising
· What’s “the story behind the story.” Tell us about the inspiration for ONLY ONE SURVIVES?
The very first sliver of an idea came from an abandoned house a few miles from my home. I drove past it one frigid afternoon, and saw the words Come Play written in red paint on the front door, which I found deliciously creepy. The image stuck with me, and I attempted to build a story featuring an abandoned lodge and work colleagues, but it didn’t sit right.
I sent a short description of my idea to my friends, authors Jennifer Hillier and Samantha M. Bailey, asking what they thought. They both liked it, and Sam suggested I make the group of people a band. The idea gave me an immediate ooh moment followed by one of them thinks the band’s worth more dead than alive. I knew I was onto something because writing a thriller featuring a band felt fresh and cool. The story shifted quite significantly compared to my initial idea, but the abandoned house remained a constant.
My editor, Dina Davis, was a fantastic help in my pulling the plot together because I got stuck as I developed the outline. We brainstormed Vienna and the Bittersweet’s trajectories, and our collaboration was brilliant. I’m immensely proud of how the novel turned out.
· What did you prefer writing: character or plot?
Personally, I find it impossible to separate them because they’re intrinsically linked. I typically start with the plot, and as I thought about it and built on my “what if…” scenario, Vienna’s character took shape and guided the story. I couldn’t have grown one without the other.
· Did any of your characters “speak” to you?
All. The. Time. I “heard” (i.e. imagined) conversations between my characters, or they’d nudge me to get my butt in my chair and tell the story. Sometimes I’d go to bed with a plot point bugging me and by morning it was be solved. The brain and sub-conscience are wonderful tools indeed.
· What surprised you as you wrote ONLY ONE SURVIVES?
How much I enjoyed crafting the different pieces for the book, meaning newspaper articles, blog posts, radio interview transcripts, and social media comments. The majority of Only One Survives is told from drummer Vienna’s point of view, so adding these elements was a fun and interesting way to show what was happening from a different perspective. The radio interview transcripts, in particular, were a blast to write because I could vividly imagine the characters chatting to one another.
· What’s this about free bonus material for ONLY ONE SURVIVES?
I’m so glad you asked. The wonderful HarperCollins team and I put together downloadable, free bonus material that includes a Dear Reader letter, discussion questions, a Spotify playlist (listen here), lyrics I wrote for six of the Bittersweet songs mentioned in the book, as well as an extended conversation with me about the novel.
The bonus material looks gorgeous and is a way for the reader to extend and enhance their experience with Only One Survives. Visit https://hannahmarymckinnon.com/book-short-stories/only-one-survives/ for the download, or click here.
· How did you go about writing the lyrics for the Bittersweet’s songs?
I’ve never written lyrics before, so the first thing I had to do was understand how a song is structured. Next, I put myself in Vienna’s shoes and used lyrics to convey how she saw the world, and how she felt about everything going on in her life. It was a fascinating and exciting experience as well as a huge challenge. I hope to continue writing lyrics as I thoroughly enjoyed it. Once I started, I didn’t want to stop.
B) WRITING CAREER
· Your first book was published in 2016. At what point in your life did you realize you wanted to be a writer?
Not until my forties when we came to Canada and my start-up HR company failed. I had a decision to make—keep working a corporate job or try something new. I plumped for the latter and I love my second career so much, I can’t imagine doing anything else.
· Why do you write thrillers as Hannah Mary McKinnon and romantic-comedies as Holly Cassidy?
My first novel, Time After Time, was a romantic-comedy, and I switched to suspense and thrillers thereafter. I love thrillers and writing them is a fascinating experience as I delve into a fictional criminal’s mind. It can get very dark in there, so writing funny holiday romantic-comedies as Holly Cassidy counterbalances that. Plus, Christmas is my favorite holiday. The pseudonym, meanwhile, helps my readers distinguish my work.
· How much has your life changed since becoming an author?
When I worked in corporate, I
rarely had the opportunity to be truly creative. That being said, I loved
working on different projects, e.g. opening a subsidiary in Germany or managing
the merger with another company. I adored being in a new situation and figuring
out how to work through it. I guess it’s similar to writing a book in that
sense—my characters are always in a new scenario, and I have to help them get
out of it (or not, depending…)
· Describe a typical day of your author life
I’m not sure there is a typical day, which is also why I love this career so much. I might be walking around while muttering to myself about a new plot, pushing through the first draft of a novel, working on edits, designing graphics, interacting with readers on social media, asking people some seriously weird questions for research, or perhaps attending a conference. Most of the time it’s a combination of any of the above.
C) PROCESS
· Tell us about your plotting process
I’m very structured in my approach to outlining and follow a combination of Save the Cat by Blake Snyder, and the Plotstormers course I took with www.WritersHQ.co.uk Essentially, I break my story into small steps, from beginning to end. While I don’t come up with every single plot point or twist, I have the basics, which help me move from one chapter to the next. I also “interview” my characters, have a photo gallery, and build a map of the area I’m dropping my characters into. Typically, this process takes me around a month, depending on the book.
· How much research do you do in advance?
I don’t do a lot of research before I write but tend to put placeholders for areas that need fleshing out and go back to them after I’ve finished my first draft. That way I’m not spending hours on facts that don’t make the cut, or getting sidetracked by facts which are interesting, but potentially irrelevant to the story.
· What did you know about the music industry before writing ONLY ONE SURVIVES?
Nothing! However, one of my childhood friends, Roger, manages artists and has worked in the music industry for 30 years, and he graciously let me pick his brain, and read an early version of the manuscript. The fabulous character Roger Kent is based on him, right down to his favorite artist George Michael.
· ONLY ONE SURVIVES is full of great music—what did you listen to as you wrote the book?
Funnily enough, I didn’t listen to music as I wrote. I find anything other than instrumental chill out music too distracting. However, I listened to a lot of rock and pop rock when I wasn’t working on the novel, which I found energizing and inspiring. Nothing changes my mood or evokes a memory faster than my favorite tune.
· Finish this sentence: “I can’t write unless I…”
…have a tidy desk. For me, a cluttered space = a cluttered mind. It makes me jumpy. I also need a huge jug of water, and, if possible, a nearly empty Inbox.
D) INSPIRATION
· Where do you get the ideas for your novels?
With The Revenge List, it was after batting various plot ideas around with my agent Carolyn, and former editor Emily that a random idea popped into my head: “What if an anger management group therapy exercise went terribly wrong?” For Only One Survives a tiny nugget of inspiration came from driving past a dilapidated, abandoned house on which someone had spray painted Come Play.
Something somewhere will catch my eye or my ears, and (for my thrillers) I’ll imagine what happened to a fictional person, what could still happen, and how I could make it worse for them. And yes, I’m fully aware of how evil that sounds…
· Is anything in ONLY ONE SURVIVES based on real-life experiences?
Heck no! There might be the odd detail or reference to something here or there, but the rest is made up. That’s the fabulous part of my job.
E) ADVICE
· What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Finally, share your work. It can be scary, but it’s
the only way you’ll get feedback and improve your craft.
F) ABOUT ME
· Tell us more about how you started writing
My thrillers are:
Ø The Neighbors (2018)
Ø Her Secret Son (2019)
Ø Sister Dear (2020)
Ø You Will Remember Me (2021)
Ø Never Coming Home (2022)
Ø The Revenge List (2023)
Ø Only One Survives (2024)
My romantic-comedies are:
Ø Time After Time (as Hannah Mary McKinnon – 2016)
Ø The Christmas Wager (as Holly Cassidy – 2023)
Ø The Christas Countdown (as Holly Cassidy – 2024)
· What’s your dream job other than being a novelist?
As a kid I wanted to be a lawyer or a police officer but at this point in my life it would be working in TV or film albeit writing or directing, not in front of the camera. Maybe I’ll attempt writing a screenplay one day. I have ideas…
· Favorite holiday destination you’ve visited, and dream destination you’d like to visit
· What are some things you enjoy when not writing?
I read a lot (no surprise there) and love being whisked away into the worlds other authors create—thrillers, romantic comedies, or otherwise. Hiking or simply walking around my neighborhood is a firm favorite, and I’m a huge fan of the movies (I love the trailers). I have a home gym with a water rower that’s a great workout and incredibly peaceful. Baking is fun too (hence the gym sessions). I make a mean lemon curd cheesecake.
· Is there anything you’d like to say to your readers and fans?
Thank you for your continued and unwavering support. Readers, reviewers, bloggers, bookstagrammers, librarians, book sellers—you amaze me with your generosity and creativity every day. Thank you for everything you do!
G) WHAT’S NEXT
· What are you working on now?
My next Holly Cassidy holiday romantic-comedy publishes October 2024. It’s called The Christmas Countdown, a grumpy-sunshine story about a recently heartbroken woman who’s given up on love and the holidays, until she’s tasked by her sister to complete Advent calendar challenges. A charming baker might be the spoonful of sugar she needs to reignite her belief in herself, love, and Christmas again. It was inspired by the Advent calendars I used to make for my kids.
As for a thriller, I’m working on my next one—a story about a missing man and his sister’s desperate attempts to find him, but it’s a little early to share more about the plot. Let’s just say it may be my most twisted one yet.
H) BIOS & SOCIALS
Hannah Mary was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and now lives in Canada with her husband and three sons. Connect on Facebook and Instagram @HannahMaryMckinnon, and on Twitter @HannahMMcKinnon.
Bio short
Hannah Mary was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and now lives in Canada with her husband and three sons. Connect on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads @HannahMaryMckinnon, and visit www.hannahmarymckinnon.com for more.
Bio medium
Internationally bestselling author Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. Her seven suspense novels include NEVER COMING HOME, THE REVENGE LIST, and ONLY ONE SURVIVES, and her work has been optioned for the screen. She also writes holiday romantic comedies as Holly Cassidy. Hannah Mary lives in Oakville, Ontario, Canada with her husband and three sons. You’ll find her on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads as @hannahmarymckinnon, and please visit www.hannahmarymckinnon.com for more.
Bio long
Internationally bestselling author Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. While her debut, TIME AFTER TIME, was a rom com, she transitioned to the dark side thereafter. Her seven suspense novels include NEVER COMING HOME, THE REVENGE LIST, and ONLY ONE SURVIVES, and her work has been optioned for the screen. It’s rumored Hannah Mary still has a softer side because she also writes holiday romantic comedies as Holly Cassidy, the first of which is THE CHRISTMAS WAGER. Hannah Mary lives in Oakville, Ontario, Canada with her husband and three sons. You’ll find her on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads as @hannahmarymckinnon, and please visit www.hannahmarymckinnon.com for more.
Socials
Website: www.HannahMaryMcKinnon.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/HannahMaryMcKinnon (@hannahmarymckinnon)
Instagram: www.instagram.com/HannahMaryMcKinnon (@hannahmarymckinnon)
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@hannahmarymckinnon
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/15144570.Hannah_Mary_McKinnon
BookBub: www.bookbub.com/authors/hannah-mary-mckinnon
LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/hannahmarymckinnon
First Chapter Fun www.firstchapterfun.com
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