Thank you to the Publisher for my arc.

I really wanted to enjoy this but the pacing ended up being super weird and I didn't enjoy it enough to keep reading. Plus the characters seemed very bland and one sided.

Oh, the raw portrayal of fame's dark underbelly in this book hits you like a punch to the face or a sudden drenching of ice-cold water – an unparalleled realism that leaves you reeling! This mystery is a harrowing, intense, heart-pounding experience, expertly executed with riveting twists that catch you off guard at the most unexpected moments. Unreliable characters, toxic relationships, and jaw-dropping revelations keep you on the edge of your seat, making it an addictive ride you can't bear to put down until you reach the perfect ending. It's simply phenomenal!

Meet Vienna Taylor, a drummer destined for greatness, a co-founder of EmVee alongside her high school best friend Madison Pierce. Born into poverty, raised by a verbally abusive mother, and grappling with the challenges of caring for her grandmother with dementia, Vienna's life takes a drastic turn after a sudden tragedy. The opportunity to move to NYC arises, allowing her to form their rock band "Bittersweet" with Madison and three new members.

The narrative gracefully shifts between the past and present, unraveling the complex and toxic relationship between Madison and Vienna. A tragic accident claims the lives of their bandmates, leaving only Vienna and the documentary maker Libby as survivors, while Madison mysteriously goes missing. Was the tragedy an accident, or is one of them a cold-blooded killer seeking the spotlight?

As you flip through the pages, suspicions fall on a particular band member with a penchant for selfish actions. But what if everything isn't as it seems? What if we've been led astray from the beginning? The gripping storytelling, clever twists, and well-paced narrative demand your attention until the very end. This book is not just deserving of five stars; it warrants your book club's undivided focus. I wholeheartedly and emphatically recommend it, celebrating Hannah Mary McKinnon's exceptional talent in crafting complex, flawed, and deeply layered female characters. Kudos to her brilliant writing style!

A heartfelt thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/MIRA for generously sharing this enthralling book's digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

Hannah Mary McKinnon does it again! Be prepared to cancel all plans when you start this book because you won’t want to put it down! I think my neighbors heard me yell, “wait, what!”. Fast-paced, crazy twists and turns, and unputdownable!

Hannah Mary McKinnon has created a suspenseful gem. I was on the edge of my seat through this whole book and loved every minute of the ride.

Only One survives was a fun read!

The book follows two different timelines: backstory of Vienna and Madison meeting and forming a band with 3 other women; then flashing to the night of their bus accident and their night spent in a cabin during a snow storm.

I enjoyed the book! It was a quick, fun read. Some parts of it felt a little YA. Some of the twists were predictable and could see coming miles away but it didn’t necessarily take away from the journey getting there.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and MIRA in exchange for my honest review!

I have a fear of red heads…

My dad used to tell me as a kid if I looked a red head in the eyes they would steal my soul. This was even more terrifying being my cousin who was more like a sister had fire engine red hair. She locked me in many bathrooms, she beheaded my dolls but I mean… maybe it was out of love??

Madison, with the bright red hair, reignited my fear. I was instantly #teamvienna .

Only One Survives

This is a book that will cause your head to snap right off your neck with the whiplash of twists that greet you at every corner.

Hannah my little smushy bear, you have fully orchestrated the worst kind of mean girls and brought them to life. This book is what nightmares are made of.

How far would you go for fame? Could you put a price tag on friendship?

Teaser :

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 careens 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 must take shelter in a nearby abandoned cabin. But Vienna’s dreams devolve into a terrifying nightmare as, one by one, her fellow band members meet a gruesome end…and Madison simply vanishes in the night.

Has Vienna’s closest friend finally decided to take center stage on her own terms?

She doesn’t want to believe it.

But guilty people run.

This was an enjoyable read. I did get a bit lost at times with all the characters and fell a bit flat at points but this was a fun ride!

When a book combines snowy abandoned cabins, rock-n-roll, sexy female characters and more than a few murders, you have my attention. I believe Hannah Mary McKinnon’s “Only One Survives” will be one of the biggest selling books of the new year.
I found myself in the rather strange position of actually rooting for the lead character to get away with her rather heinous crimes. At one point in the book, as a matter of fact the character herself questions whether or not her actions make her a serial killer. While that question is rather obvious, she is a likeable enough character and for most of the book I was sure Ms McKinnon was going to pull some rabbit out of her hat in the end and make the “villainess” innocent after all. I thought the ending in particular was stellar and provided a just means for her lead star.
Thank you to Net Gallley for the early copy to review.

Only One Survives by Hannah Mary McKinnon
Pub date: July 2024

I read this one super early but this premise was just too enticing to wait. I’m glad I did because it was just what I needed to pull me out of a huge slump.

Vienna Taylor has had a fairly rough life, raised by a narcissist mother, they’ve moved from one home to another based on her mom’s current manly flavor of the month. When they finally settle in one place Vienna’s senior year, she meets Madison Pierce, and after an initial conflict, they become best friends. Bonded through a love of music and rebellion, they form EmVee, a duo, with Vienna on drums and Madison on guitar. EmVee doesn’t survive their teenage years for reasons you’ll have to read about!

Fast forward a few years to a lot of life changes and the girls have formed a band in NYC, the Bittersweet. The bands success is skyrocketing and while on their way to celebrate with their manager, the bands vehicle veers off an icy desolate mountain road, leaving them stranded. What happens next is a thrilling exploration into human nature, jealousy and the lure of success.

This is twisty and dark, and chilling! Telling past and present is the perfect way to explore the workings of a twisted mind.

My thanks to HTP/Mira for this gifted DRC.

I love McKinnon's books and this was a solid 5-star read for me! It begins with a car crashing and members of the band, Bittersweet inside. Protagonist, Vienna is rescued by the cops and another member, Madison is missing even though there's a horrible snowstorm. Written in a "now" and "then" format, the novel depicts the band's formation when the girls meet in high school, rise to fame, and fight their way to stardom (some more than others)! Needless to say, it's a gripping story of jealousy, greed, betrayal, and blackmail. I powered through this book as it's heart-pounding and sucks your breath away!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Madison and Vienna meet in 12th grade and become fast friends through their love of music. They start a duo, EmVee, but drift apart some when Madison moves to NYC. Vienna soon follows, though, and they add three members to their group and the Bittersweet is formed. On the way to an event, their SUV crashes during a blizzard and they find shelter in a creepy abandoned cabin nearby.
With dual timelines, readers get a sense of what Madison and Vienna were like in high school and then forming an all-girl band on the verge of being megastars.
This is dark, twisty, and fantastic! I did not see that coming!
A highly entertaining thriller about friendship, music, revenge, justice, and greed.
Recommend!

It’s forty two days after the tragic accident where up and coming hot all-female rock band, the Bittersweet had a terrible car crash in the Catskills. Isabel Riotto and sisters Gabi and Evelina Sevillano were killed and Madison Pierce is missing. Now surviving member Vienna Taylor has been taken in for questioning. What really happened on that horrible night?

Oh, mention “all female rock band” and I’m sold. Then add tragic accident? Yes, pleaseandthankyou. I’m here for it. It was no DAISY JONES AND THE SIX but it was a fun, enjoyable read. Recommended if it sounds good to you.

𝑭𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒕 𝒗𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆. 𝑫𝒐𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆, 𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆. 𝑨𝒍𝒍 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚. 𝑬𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆. 𝑻𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒆𝒏.

ONLY ONE SURVIVES reads partly like an episode of 𝑩𝒆𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒄, partly like a podcast, and partly like a scandalous article in a celebrity tabloid. Drummer Vienna Taylor and guitarist Madison Pierce were an unlikely duo. After a minor scuffle in the cafeteria landed them in the principal's office the first day of their senior year, their shared detention made them realize they had a common love--music. McKinnon does a fantastic job bringing these two girls to life, from describing their disparate backgrounds and how one girl had to work so much harder for everything than the other.

After attaining a certain level of success as a duo, the girls expand to a group of five dubbed The Bittersweet. They're on their way to an event when their vehicle leaves the road, careening down the side of a mountain, leaving one dead and another severely injured. They find solace and shelter in an abandoned cabin, but one by one, the surviving members of the band die, and one of Vienna's last cognizant memories is someone with red hair rushing her before she lost consciousness. When she comes to, she's alone, and her beautiful red-haired best friend and bandmate Madison is gone. Would she really kill her band just to have center stage? Guilty people do run, and tragedy does bring headlines, and headlines bring fame, no matter how fleeting.

When part two started, I needed a minute to process what I was reading. I was already hooked before, but now I read like a woman possessed, and her ending was something I never could have anticipated. Highly entertaining, deeply unsettling, ONLY ONE SURVIVES is a cautionary tale of betrayal at the hands of those closest to you and the desire to be remembered in a world who only remembers the most current headlines. Sometimes tragedy brings opportunity, McKinnon writes, providing you know where to look. Many thanks to NetGalley and HTP/Mira Books for this early read. This title will publish July 16, 2024.

Vienna and Madison come from two completely different backgrounds, one tough and the other in the lap of luxury, although they bond over their love of music and form a band in high school. Years later in NY they add three other members and are on their way to success when there’s a tragic car accident and only two survive that night. But what really happened is the plot of this book and it’s done very well. A suspense page turner.

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 accident the fallout of everything and getting twist after Marvoulous 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 a dare I say a bittersweet ending the only one question remains are you #teamvienna or #teammadison only time will tell