Book ~ "Only One Survives" (2024) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ 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.

Vienna and Madison have been friends since they met in grade twelve. Vienna comes from a broken home with no money while Madison comes from a wealthy family who don't want her hanging out with Vienna because they think she is a bad influence. After graduation, Madison moves to New York City to go to university, which is all paid for by her parents, and Vienna, after a fight with her mother and stepfather, follows her there. 

Vienna and Madison had formed a band in high school and eventually form on in New York City called the Bittersweets. Just as they are starting to get popular, they get in a car accident in the middle of nowhere. One of the band members died on impact and another is serious injured. The four surviving members plus a friend find a cabin to take shelter in. By morning, Vienna is the only one left as a couple more have passed away and Madison has disappeared.

Vienna is left to suffer the ramifications. The Bittersweet's popularity rises even more but really happened at the cabin, where is Madison and what did she do?

It was a fun read and there was an interesting twist around the halfway point. I kind of had to leave my sense of belief behind at some points but I just went with it. It's written in first person perspective in Vienna's voice. As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "The Revenge List" (2023) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ The people in Frankie Morgan’s life say she’s angry. Emotionally stunted. Combative. But really, who can blame her? It’s hard being nice when your clients are insufferable, your next-door neighbor is a miserable woman and the cowardly driver who killed your mother is still out living it up somewhere.

Somehow, though, she finds herself at her very first anger-management group session - drinking terrible coffee and learning all about how “forgiveness is a process.”

One that starts with a list.

Frankie is skeptical. A list of everyone who’s wronged her in some way over the years? More paper, please. Still, she makes the pointless list - with her own name in a prominent spot - and promptly forgets about it ... until it goes missing. And one by one, the people she’s named start getting hurt in freak accidents, each deadlier than the last.

Could it be coincidence giving her the revenge she never dared to seek ... or something more sinister?

If Frankie doesn’t find out who’s behind it all, she might be next.

Frankie works for her father in his construction business. She has a bad temper and her father finally has enough and tells her she has to get anger management training or else. She goes to the first meeting and the assignment is to make a list of everyone who has wronged you. No problem ... her list includes people from her past and present. She throws the list out when she gets home but then goes looking for it when accidents start happening to people on the list. She wonders whether it's a coincidence and if it's not, who is doing it. In the meantime, she starts to receive sunflowers (her favourites) left anonymously at her door and her brother's young daughter needs immediate medical attention.

I've read and liked a few books by this author but I thought this one was dumb and I didn't like it. Frankie is an adult and has a wicked temper ... she knows she has a wicked temper ... yet she keeps freaking out and doing stupid things and gets arrested. Her father has had enough yet she still lashes out at him. I found Frankie unrealistic and unlikable. She quickly thinks she figures out who is behind it and confronts them many times. The whodunnit came out of nowhere and I wasn't buying it.

It's written in first person perspective in Frankie's voice. As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "Never Coming Home" (2022) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ First comes love. Then comes murder.

Lucas Forester didn't hate his wife. Michelle was brilliant, sophisticated and beautiful. Sure, she had extravagant spending habits and that petty attitude, a total disregard for anyone below her status. But she also had a lot to offer. Most notably, wealth that only the one percent could comprehend.

For years, Lucas had been honing a flawless plan to inherit Michelle’s fortune. Unfortunately, it involved taking a hit out on her.

Every track was covered, no trace left behind and now Lucas plays the grieving husband so well he deserves an award. But when a shocking photo and cryptic note show up on his doorstep, Lucas goes from hunter to prey.

Someone is onto him. And they’re closing in.

Three years ago, after a whirlwind romance, Lucas and Michelle got married. Michelle comes from a wealthy family and as soon as Lucas met Michelle, he has been plotting on how to get her money. But he's been patient and because of a prenup agreement, the only way he'll get her money is if Michelle passes away. He does what he has to do and hires someone to kidnap and kill her. While the police are looking for her and her family is waiting for her to come home, Lucas plays the hopeful husband, knowing that will never happen. But then things start happening and Lucas suspects the hit man is messing with him and he's determined to find and stop him. Lucas had a rough upbringing and he's worked too hard not to get the money he feels he deserves.

I liked this story and was curious to see how it ended (the "whodunnit"). It's written in first person perspective in Lucas' voice. Although I knew he was a bad guy, I still found him a bit likeable (Michelle isn't portrayed as likeable at all). Lucas thought he was so smart and would get foiled every time he turned around. As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "Her Secret Son" (2019) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ When Josh’s longtime partner, Grace, dies in a tragic accident, he is left with a mess of grief - and full custody of her seven-year-old son, Logan. While not his biological father, Josh has been a dad to Logan in every way that counts, and with Grace gone, Logan needs him more than ever.

Wanting to do right by Logan, Josh begins the process of becoming his legal guardian - something that seems suddenly urgent, though Grace always brushed it off as an unnecessary formality. But now, as Josh struggles to find the paperwork associated with Logan’s birth, he begins to wonder whether there were more troubling reasons for Grace’s reluctance to make their family official.

As he digs deeper into the past of the woman he loved, Josh soon finds that there are many dark secrets to uncover, and that the truth about where Logan came from is much more sinister than he could have imagined.

Josh and Grace are living together and raising Grace’s eight-year-old son, Logan. Josh has been in Logan’s life since he was two years old and considers him his son (Logan’s biological father was a apparently a one night stand and is not in their lives). When Grace suddenly passes away in a freak accident, Josh realizes he has to start the process of formally adopting Logan so he can keep them together. To do this, he needs Logan’s birth certificate and other documentation. If Josh can’t prove that he has any legal right to Logan, he’s concerned they will take him from him. Grace was estranged from her parents and has no other family. When Josh can’t find anything, he requests it from the state Grace said Logan was born in … but there is no record of Logan’s birth. Grace liked living under the radar … paying cash for everything, not wanting to get a mortgage, not wanting to get married, etc. In hindsight, this gets Josh wondering who Grace really was and was Logan really hers? Josh becomes determined to find out who Logan really is, even it if means losing him.

I’ve read a few books by this author and liked this one. It took a weird turn towards the end that seemed unrealistic to me but I guess it had to happen to have the ending make sense. I was satisfied with the “why” thinks had happened. It is written in first person perspective in Josh’s voice. As a head’s up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "Sister Dear" (2020) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ When Eleanor Hardwicke’s beloved father dies, her world is further shattered by a gut-wrenching secret: the man she’s grieving isn’t really her dad. Eleanor was the product of an affair and her biological father is still out there, living blissfully with the family he chose. With her personal life spiraling, a desperate Eleanor seeks him out, leading her to uncover another branch on her family tree - an infuriatingly enviable half sister.

Perfectly perfect Victoria has everything Eleanor could ever dream of. Loving childhood, luxury home, devoted husband. All of it stolen from Eleanor, who plans to take it back. After all, good sisters are supposed to share. And quiet little Eleanor has been waiting far too long for her turn to play.

Eleanor’s parents are divorced. She doesn’t have much of a relationship with her mother or sister, Amy, but she is close to her dad, who unfortunately is dying. On his deathbed, she discovers that he really isn’t her dad and she finds out the name of her biological father. Since she now has no family she wants to be with, she decides to approach her biological father and has visions of a great reunion and being welcomed into his family as his daughter. It doesn’t work out that way … in fact, because she is the product of an affair, he tells her to leave him and his family alone.

Eleanor doesn’t think this is fair so sets out to infiltrate his family by contacting his daughter, Victoria, and eventually becoming good friends with her. The closer Eleanor gets to Victoria, though, the guiltier she feels about deceiving her as they become good friends.

I had started reading this book last year and found it very negative and depressing. Eleanor is always putting herself down and that got tiresome. So I stopped reading the book. I’ve since read a couple other books by this author and have liked them so I thought I give it another try. I got through it this time but I didn’t enjoy it any more. I found Eleanor unlikeable and depressing, even when things were starting to turn around for her. I found the ending convoluted and unbelievable.

I like this author’s writing style but I just didn’t like the story. It’s written in first person in Eleanor’s voice. As a head’s up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "The Neighbours" (2018) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ After a night of fun, Abby was responsible for the car crash that killed her beloved brother. It is a sin she can never forgive herself for so she pushes away the man she loves most, knowing that he would eventually hate her for what she’s done, the same way she hates herself.

Twenty years later, Abby’s husband, Nate, is also living with a deep sense of guilt. He was the driver who first came upon the scene of Abby’s accident, the man who pulled her to safety before the car erupted in flames, the man who could not save her brother in time. It’s this guilt, this regret that binds them together. They understand each other. Or so Nate believes.

In a strange twist of fate, Liam (her old lover - possibly her true soulmate) moves in with his own family next door, releasing a flood of memories that Abby has been trying to keep buried all these years. Abby and Liam, in a complicit agreement, pretend never to have met, yet cannot resist the pull of the past - nor the repercussions of the dark secrets they’ve both been carrying.

Abby and her brother, Tom, were extremely close, even sharing a birthday just a year apart.  Their father had abandoned the family when they young and their mother wasn't warm and fuzzy.  Abby and Tom were out celebrating one night when they got in a deadly car accident.  Abby was drinking and driving and was thrown from the car but Tom couldn't get out of the car.  Nate had been passing by and came across the accident and wasn't able to save Tom.  He visited Abby in the Abby regularly and they became friends.  Abby felt extremely guilty for causing Tom's death and pushed away Liam, the love of her life, because he and Tom were close and she was afraid he'd blame her for Tom's death.

Twenty years later, Abby and Nate are married and have a teenage daughter named Sarah.  New neighbours and it's Liam (!!) and his wife, Nancy, and their son, Zac.  Abby and Liam pretend not to know each other and Abby avoids Liam, to the point of badmouthing him to Nate to keep him away.  But Nate's a friendly and helpful guy and has no problem being friends with Nancy and Liam, much to Abby's dismay.

This is the second book I've read by this author and I liked it.  I liked the writing style ... it is written in first person perspective from Abby, Nate and Nancy's points of view (the chapters are labeled so you'll know whose voice it is) plus there are Sarah's diary entries.  There were lots of twists and turns at the end, most I didn't see coming.  I didn't find Abby and Liam likeable, even more so as the story went on.  As a head's up, there is swearing and adult activity.

Book ~ "You Will Remember Me" (2021) Hannah Mary McKinnon

From Goodreads ~ He wakes up on a deserted beach in Maryland with a gash on his head and wearing only swim trunks. He can't remember who he is. Everything - his identity, his life, his loved ones - has been replaced by a dizzying fog of uncertainty. But returning to his Maine hometown in search of the truth uncovers more questions than answers.

Lily Reid thinks she knows her boyfriend, Jack. Until he goes missing one night, and her frantic search reveals that he's been lying to her since they met, desperate to escape a dark past he'd purposely left behind.

Maya Scott has been trying to find her estranged stepbrother, Asher, since he disappeared without a trace. Having him back, missing memory and all, feels like a miracle. But with a mutual history full of devastating secrets, how far will Maya go to ensure she alone takes them to the grave?

A man wakes up on a beach in Maryland wearing just a pair of shorts and no ID.  He has a head injury and can't remember who he is or where he is.  He's wearing a watch that indicates his name is Brad.  For some reason, he thinks he's from Maine so manages to sneak a ride there, hoping he can figure out who he is.  Once there, he discovers his name is actually Asher and his stepsister, Maya, is overjoyed to have him home and take care of him.

Lily and Jack have been dating for a couple years and she's frantic when he disappears.  The police suspect she may be involved so she does some sleuthing on her own and discovers that Jack is actually Asher and travels to Maine to find out why he had been living under a different name.  There she discovers he has lost his memory and is torn between wanting to help him and being angry and because he'd lied to her.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I enjoyed it ... I look forward to reading other books by this author.  I liked the writing style and it kept me interested right to the end as there were lots of twists and turns.  It is written in first person perspective from Lily, Ash and Maya's points of view (the chapters are labeled so you'll know whose voice it is).  As a head's up, there is swearing.