Sister Dear is an entertaining, well-executed, wickedly addictive suspense novel that’s perfect for admirers of The Last Mrs Parrish and The Better Liar. Except, this story is so much more than that.

Eleanor is a well-studied character. As a child, she hardly felt loved as she didn't exactly grow up in a loving family: a mean sister, a cruel mother...who - she later realizes - had been lying to her for years while ill-treating her. Therefore, the emotional and verbal abuse has caused her to struggle with self-image and self-esteem.

Today, Eleanor is thriving; she has a business, she’s independent and she’s slowly regaining her worth and strength, but when she discovers a secret about her dying father - the only person who truly loved her and whom she’s always trusted - this was her breaking point. She needs to take matters into her own hands now...except, Eleanor didn't mean for her determination to turn so deadly. She'd never meant for it to come this far.

What did Eleanor do?
Why did she do it?

There’s no thin line between good and evil (which is one of the takeaways from the book) in this story. However, evil does surmount good in Sister Dear, where we get to see all the aspects of toxic family relationships, emphasized through some evil and cunning characters.

Now, how does this book stand out? Not only did the author’s storytelling skills improved with this novel, but she also managed to strip it from all cliches that are present in almost every other psychological thriller; our main character isn’t necessarily strong; she’s mainly flawed and the risky decisions she makes are all just a reflection of her difficult upbringing. The evil little twists at the end put that into perspective, and after that, you may be left with the question, “what if character X just did this instead of that?” or “what’s in store for our protagonist? Is there hope?”

I strongly believe this book is Hannah Mary McKinnon at her best.

Delicious and devious, readers will devour this page-turner. A fantastic, smart thriller that will appeal to all kinds of readers.

It’s bad enough dealing with the death of her much loved father, but then Eleanor discovers that the man she called father really wasn’t her dad at all. The product of an affair her mother had with a wealthy man, Eleanor finds herself increasingly angry and jealous of the life she could have had – of her half sister Victoria. Victoria had the kind of life Eleanor dreamed of, and now Eleanor intends to be sure she gets exactly what she deserves. Sibling rivalry on steroids!