This was a great read!! Perfect if you’re a fan of snowed-in murder mysteries and unreliable narrators!

This book follows the story of a band of five girls who are in a car crash in the Catskills during a snow storm. They seek shelter in an abandoned cabin.
There are lots of different writing platforms: the four years leading up to the crash where the two founding band members become best friends, to the day of the accident, and the months following, as well as tv transcripts, news reports, and social media follower comments.

The day after, only one band member emerges from the cabin and we get her POV from past and present.

This is my first book by this author, and I was absolutely sucked in to the story. I will recommend this one for sure! How the story unfolds, the character development, the epilogue.. chef’s kiss!

I would recommend if you’re a fan of
-girl bands
-unreliable narrator
-toxic friendships
-murder mystery

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Unfortunately I wasn't able to finish reading this book because the formatting of the ARC on the Netgalley app made it look super zoomed out and impossible to read. Font was way too small.
I plan to read this once the book is released in an easier format

Hannah Mary McKinnon is DIABOLICAL. This unhinged story of an all girl rock band and the tragedies that strike is killer, pun intended! Hannah can turn a character on a dime and leave you reeling in the wake of their wrath, and you will never see it coming. I finished this book and had to do some souls searching because… I almost wanted the villain to get away with it? This would not be the first time that Hannah has made me feel this way about a villain and I know it won’t be the last. I wish I had longer with these characters but I could not stop reading once I got started, I finished it in about 24 hours time! I am still shocked and in a state of dismay… I know this one will stick with me for a long time to come.

Talk about the bad side of fame! I have loved Hannah Mary McKinnon since The Neighbors and she hasn’t let me down yet!

This was an awesome thriller perfect for all fans of the genre but especially for fans of Daisy Jones and the Six!

One by one members of a band called The Bittersweet go missing. This was a story of how far some will go to get to the top. It was diabolical, unnerving, intense, and it kept me awake because I just had to finish it. I LOVED it!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Many thanks to @thrillerbookloverspromotions for having me on this tour! Additional thanks to @netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, MIRA for the digital ARC.

What the goody-twosuide-boots just happened? 🤯 That was a twisty ending! This book definitely wasn’t what I expected, but still an enjoyable read. 𝙊𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 is out July 16th!

Vienna and Madison met in high school under less than ideal circumstances. Surprisingly, they become best friends, ones who are from very different worlds. Vienna’s mother and stepfather care mostly about themselves and Madison’s parents just want her to be the best at what they think she should be. They also think Vienna is a bad influence, but in reality, it is Madison, who is always up for a party.
But they have one truly strong bond, music. Their duo,EmVee, with Vienna playing the drums, and Madison on guitar was how their musical journey began. But when they become ‘The Bittersweet’ with three new members, it really seems like the group will make it in this very tough industry. Unfortunately, fate doesn’t care what might be. The band and their documentary maker (Libby) are involved in a horrible car crash. Only Vienna and Libby walk away from the wreck, but it is what happened to the other members that will shock and surprise you.
I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll just say that at one point everything I thought was true was turned upside down. I had to stop and rethink all that I had read to wrap my head around the direction the story took. Now though, my lips are sealed so I don’t hit the wrong note and give something away. I will say that once that ‘what’ moment hit, I could not stop reading. I had to know how this story would end.4.5 stars.

Totally bingeable, Dark, twisty, sinister, fuck with your mind amazing
Holy shit this one is next level mind blowing! My new favourite by Hannah Mary McKinnon. I love the past and present timeline. The past leading up to the accident and how Madison and Vienna became EmVee turning into bittersweet and then after the accident the fallout of everything and getting twist after Marvellous twist my mouth hanging opening to my jaw hitting the floor
This is one spectacular written thriller filled with pop rock culture and references, suspense, friendship, hate, lies, revenge and dare I say a bittersweet ending the only question remains are you #teamvienna or #teammadison only time will tell…

𝑶𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒃𝒚 𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒂𝒉 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝑴𝒄𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒏

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4/5

❗️I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily❗️

This was such a different kind of thriller! It does get a little confusing because there’s multiple timelines, but it’s worth reading. This shows the downside of fame!

Vienna Taylor and her best friend Madison Pierce followed their dreams (much to their families displeasure), and started a band, the Bittersweet, a few years later, their house hold names. Their music got them noticed, then when their tragic accident kept them in the spotlight.

On the way to a show, the Bittersweet is in a car accident, and stranded in the snow in the middle of nowhere. After coming across an abandoned cabin, the girls think they found the answer, until they all end up dead, one by one.

I’ve gotta say I really enjoyed this book. It was like Daisy Jones & The Six meets Yellowjackets. The book revolves around Vienna, the lone surviving member of the band The Bittersweet. They were involved in a terrible car accident which led to a series of events in which all but her perished.

The book is split between the years before the accident, where Vienna first becomes friends with Madison, the time of the accident, and post-accident as well. Vienna was a very interesting character to follow, and the twists were fun as well.

Thanks as always to NetGalley for the ARC.

This is a rock and roll story, not just a thrilling locked room horror..

Vienna Taylor meets Madison Pierce in high school. They are polar opposites and Madison runs wild with a very wealthy net below her while Vienna has no support or resources at all. Against the odds they create a band that garners attention and a deal. The Bittersweet is formed with the addition of a three new members and the band is on their way to an event when their van crashes on an icy mountain. One by one, the band members die, finally leaving only Vienne behind while Madison disappears. What really happened to the band Bittersweet? Did Madison leave them all behind?

McKinnon provides flashbacks, current story as well as portions of websites and commentary to build atmosphere. The crash itself is so real and so gruesome, but you cannot look away. This story will get in your bones and never let go. Grab Only One Survives, turn on the light and plan to read all night long!

.#harlequin #thrillerbooklovers #thrillerbookpromotions #onlyonesurvives #hannahmaymckinnon

Only one survives starts out with a strong atmospheric scene in which 6 females who have braved a snow storm for a work road trip (working being the life of a rock band), and as a result find themselves careening off a cliff and crashing in the snow.

What you need to know about this book: The majority follows the relationship between two best friends “em and vee”, who meet in high school, start and band, and the events living up to expanding the band and the present day car crash of a situation (metaphorically and literally).

Secondly, there are multiple formats to this book, scenes set in the past, scenes in the present tense where the group is attempting to brave the elements of the snow storm and find help and shelter. The third and fourth formats are newspaper articles and radio interviews where the band is being discussed pre and post car accident.

In the post we know these things, one of the girls is missing, two are alive, and the rest are dead. But we don’t know who, how or why until the end.

What I liked about this book: I love snowstorm thrillers which this book features, at some points we also have a locked door element where there is no help around, no cell service and a potential killer on the loose.

I liked the different formats and change between timelines. I liked the dynamics between two friends coming together from different backgrounds (rich and poor), the different pros and cons to their upbringing, the obstacles this caused and the result of those obstacles.

The way the twist dropped towards the end, there wasn’t any warning or gradual build it, it was literally dropped into the readers lap by one single sentence that I had to go back and read 3-4 times to make sure my eyes weren’t deceiving me. The twist really caught me off guard so props to the author for that.

What I wasn’t a fan of: the overall ending I felt was too unbelievable, the author spent so much time on building character profiles that felt very solid, so when everything got jumbled around at the end I struggled to adjust mentally or believe what I was seeing,

This started out as a snow storm thriller and although that aspect was present, the majority of the book was spent in the past and beyond that moment in time. As snowstorm thriller tropes are one of my fave I just wish there was more scenes within that category for me to enjoy the elements of.

Overall this was a good read, my first of this author and likely not my last.

Thank you to Hannah Mary McKinnon, Harlequin trade publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy.

This was my first book by this author and won’t be my last! I love a good psychological thriller, especially ones that are unpredictable, and this book is all that and more. Character development, pacing - all perfect! I’ll recommend this closer to publication day and come back with social media links. Thank you for the opportunity to read in advance!

Wowww this one kept me on my toes the whole way through! I love a good thriller/mystery and this one delivers!

This was my second Hannah Mary McKinnon book and I loved it! The story is about a girl rock band who gets into a car crash on their way to an event and only one of them Survives. The chapters alternate between Before the crash and After. I was equally invested in both timelines and Hannah wrote the emotion of the characters beautifully. The characters had both likeable and unlikable qualities which added to the suspense because you didn't know who to trust. The ending was not what I was expecting and I love that in a thriller! I definitely recommend picking this one up! It was alot of fun!

Thank you to NetGalley, Hannah Mary McKinnon and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an ARC!

A band of girls travel to the Catskills but get in a car accident on the way. Only one of them survives and one is left missing. The book is broken up into two parts- the first part is a slow burn and gives the back story of the girl’s friendship while also jumping the present POV. The second half is more “thriller” with a few twists. The big twist actually got me and I was surprised I fell for it. The ending twist was easy to predict. Overall, it was a good read and I enjoyed it!

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. “Only One Survives” tells the story of Vienna Taylor and her band, Bittersweet, alternating timelines between the early formation of the group, and the aftermath of a tragic accident that later results in the deaths of several band members.

The narrative takes quite a turn shortly after the mid-way point, using a familiar thriller trope that creates a ‘Breaking Bad’ vibe to the story. The relatively early reveal leads to a somewhat slow, drawn-out denouement during the second half of the book.

Pacing issues aside, the characters are engaging and the ‘rise to fame’ complications are timely and relatable in today’s social media world. Overall, an enjoyable read and recommended for fans of the genre. 3.5 stars (rounded down to 3).

I want to thank the author for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely love Hannah Mary McKinnon and all books she has and could ever write! When I saw this arc in my inbox I jumped with excitement. I could not set this book down, I set all things aside to just disappear into this book. You get everything!!! Twists and turns, mystery, surprises and fear all mixed into one serving. You will be gripping the sides of your book, your chair or whatever is around you—all the way to the last page. You will be second guessing these characters and everything you think you know as you read. I loved this book and 10/10 recommend. Run fast and slap this book straight on your TBR.

I had requested this thinking it was an isolated who-dun-it cabin in the woods trope. Only about 1/4 of it is actually set there, but it goes along with the flashbacks of Vienna and Madison. (Which, I DID actually like the flashbacks and hearing about their past). The rest of the book is basically Vienna dealing with the aftermath of everything. The ending was definitely NOT what I was expecting, and who 'survives' was also not what I expected. I had to sit for awhile after that ending, tbh. I don't know if I hated it or loved it, lol. This book wasn't what I was expecting but I also think I'd read other books by this author still. Thank you to Netgalley, publisher, and author for this ARC.

Interesting premise that didn't quite meet my expectations.

Vienna Taylor had to grow up fast in less than ideal circumstances. When her beloved grandmother dies, Vienna finally leaves home to move to New York with her best friend from high school, Madison Pierce. We follow Vienna through the trials and tribulations of establishing a life in New York while Madison attends college and parties with her college friends. What Vienna really wants is to make music and finally, she gets a band together that seems like it's going to take off.

Just as the band is finding fans and support within the music industry, an accident on the way to a music event in the Catskills changes everything. Plunging temperatures and a blizzard force the band to take cover in an abandoned cabin in the woods. With no cell signal and several band members badly injured, it doesn't seem like things could get worse - until they do. Vienna's band members start to disappear. Can she find a way out before she is a victim?

I thought that this might be a closed circle mystery, with lots of time spent in the remote cabin where sinister and spooky things are happening. Then I thought that the story was actually about fame and how it can corrupt those that seem utterly incorruptible. Then I thought "ahh hah", it's actually a serial killer story where the big nasty conscience-free baddie is too smart to get caught and continues to kill with impunity.

It is none of those things. I'm hoping that from the description of my experience reading, you understand why I rated this book 2 1/2 stars. It had a lot of potential but in my opinion, struggled with it's identity. There were so many good things happening in the story, starting with the band being trapped in a cabin during a snow storm. There was an opportunity to really dig into the isolation, the creepiness of the situation and the fact that one of them is a murderer but that didn't happen. In my opinion, the cut over from the cabin to the next part of the book was awkward and I spent the rest of my reading time trying to figure out what this book wanted to be.

I think the potential in this book is amazing but it didn't quite get there for me.

Thank you to Netgalley, HTP Books and the author for providing me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Daisy Jones twisted into a locked room mystery in a remote cabin. I read all the author’s other books, and I enjoyed this turn away from domestic thrillers. I’ll be eager to see what she does next.