For most of this book I was tense. Stella was absolutely obsessed with finding her brother and I felt was pretty self destructive.
The main predator had Stella on a short leash and I thought Stella was crazy to do stuff to the extent that she did.
I also thought Stella was quick to blame people with only suspicions. I was not a fan of her mother at all.
I sort of suspected who the predator really was because I kept asking what if??
It’s a provocative read!

This book was another home run by Hannah Mary McKinnon! She had quickly become one of my favorite authors since reading Only One Survives last year, not to mention she is the sweetest human!

A Killer Motive will have you clearing your calendar because you will NOT want to put it down! The writing was incredible - I was suspicious of everyone, there were secrets spilling out constantly and I loved the podcast element. The reveal was so unexpected in the best way and the ending was simply perfect! Stella was someone I was rooting for from the moment she was introduced, definitely someone you’d want to have in your corner!

A Killer Motive comes out Sept 9th - make sure to make your calendar!!!!

Thriller lovers, make sure to add this one to your TBR! There's a reason all of us at The Pulse have been so excited to read it!

I did not want to put this book down! It was so fast-paced and twisty and full of tension! I loved the cat-and-mouse game that went on between Stella and her anonymous tormenter. The end had my adrenaline pumping and will stick with me for a while!

Of the four books I've read by this author, this one is my favorite!

Thanks to The Pulse @thrillerbookloversthepulse, @Netgalley, and @htpbooks for the #gifted e-arc!

A Killer Motive, by @hannahmarymckinnon
Pub Date: September 9, 2025

Hannah Mary is one of my favourite auto-read authors! Every newly penned book becomes my new fave. She just gets better with each thriller!!

In a Killer Motive, siblings to a hyper-vigilant and anxious parent, Stella 22 and Max nearly 18, sneak out to an end-of-year beach party. It’s a rite of passage that goes terribly wrong. Six years later, Stella continues to struggle to make sense of her brother’s disappearance. Her crime podcast fueled by her passion to find Max has become a hit. Stella is stunned when an anonymous caller taunts her with new information about her brother. What comes next is a series of having to make difficult and conflicting choices; all include deceit & danger, and Stella’s fierce determination to do anything if it can lead her to Max.

A Killer Motive takes readers down a rabbit hole and turns our conceptualisations of villains on its head.

What are the myths?
Our presumptions of who a killer is and isn’t?
And, how does our need to understand “why” shape and distort our preconceived narratives?

Hannah Mary has created a villain who is dripping with measured poisonous temperance. A villain who is aided by the sheer volume of resources and technology and apps readily accessible.
Why is there so much tech like spyware, trackers, software that can be so easily curupted!!??!!

There is a calculated edge to Hannah Mary’s characters that are horrifically enticing, likely because they are relateable and likeable, and that’s just .. so .. deeply disturbing.
And, awesome!
((As a reader - not in real life!!!))

I’ve met and spent time with Hannah Mary and she is wonderful. Sweet. Her being so lovely in person and so wicked in her books It is a testament to her craftsmanship! She can go from giving the warmest of embraces whilst creating characters whose blood runs glacial!

P.S.:
Hannah Mary has chatted about her writing space - a neat and tidy desk. After reading A Killer Motive, I now envision her writing while maniacally cackling!
And, I LOVE IT!

Thanks to @harpercollinsca and @hannahmarymckinnon for my gifted advanced copy.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. When Stella’s brother goes missing after he sneaks out one night with her, she is haunted by his disappearance. I loved Stella and related to her so much as she was determined to figure out, years later, what happened. And now it’s all a big game where if she plays right, the answers will be revealed but she can’t tell a soul. I loved the true dedication of her as a sister as she did everything she could. There were lots of twists in this one which makes it a really entertaining and easy to follow read!

3.5 rounded up
This is a very well written thriller. The concept and story are very engaging and it was definitely one you wanted to keep reading.

Like all books in the genre sometimes the characters actions are a bit silly but that’s often necessary to keep the story moving.

I’m not sure that I found the ending satisfying and that may have impacted my final rating.

Overall, this story is well written and interesting. This is my first book by this author but I look forward to reading more of her work.

I’m a huge fan of Hannah’s work. This was my third book by her (I have more in my TBR) & I was completely blown away. I could not put this down!!!

The book begins with Stella making a terrible decision one night that ends with her brother, Max, vanishing. Fast forward to 6 years later, Stella has a podcast to help get answers for families of cold case victims. She receives an email out of nowhere asking why she hasn’t investigated her own brothers disappearance & that’s when you fall down the rabbit hole where you have to be reminded to come up for air!

The twists & turns in this one were one after another, leaving you white knuckling your kindle & hanging on for dear life. If Valium didn’t make me so sleepy-I would’ve taken one to calm my frantic nerves while I tried to piece together every shred of evidence Hannah leaves throughout this book….but there was no time to be sleepy. I needed to see how this was gonna end!

24 hours later I can tell you that everything you THOUGHT was gonna happen-did not. I mean mind blowing, didn’t see that one coming, “shut up-no way” out loud plot twist!

Synopsis:

When Stella Dixon takes her teenage brother, Max, out to a beach party, she thought it would be harmless fun—until he disappeared without a trace. Six years later, Stella’s family is still can’t let go of her guilt. The only thing that keeps her going is helping other families find closure through A Killer Motive, her true crime podcast.

When a mysterious caller invites her to play a game, with the promise that if Stella wins, she’ll get information about what happened to Max, she thinks it’s a sick joke…until Max’s best friend vanishes. And she’s given new instructions: tell nobody or people will die. Desperate and unable to trust anyone, Stella agrees. But beating a twisted, invisible enemy seems impossible when they make all the rules…

My Thoughts:

This is one fast paced action-packed thriller! It had me guessing throughout and the twists kept coming. It is so cleverly written and the short chapters made it so easy to read. If I had the time, I could have read it in one sitting. I was quickly turning pages trying to figure out who was behind the calls. I loved the podcasting and true crime elements and the back and forth between Stella and the sick twisted caller will keep you hooked!

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing and MIRA for a digital copy of this book. The opinions are my own and freely given.

Stella's teenage brother vanishes without a trace from a beach party one night. She, being the older sister, snuck him out of the house and took his while he was grounded. So the between her mother not talking to her and the guilt she feels is oppressive. Fast forward 6 years and Stella, with her best friend Vivian, have started a podcast, A Killer Motive. Now Stella is receiving odd emails and is being watched. She receive a burner cell from someone who calls themself "Anwir" and in playing a game with him, she will receive information on the disappearance of her brother.
This is a novel that shows what guilt can do to one's soul and how they can make a deal with a "devil". I loved this story

Whoa!!! A Killer Motive was a gripping, thrilling, suspenseful story that will have you at the edge of your seat!. I couldn't put this down and devoured this in a day!

Stella sneaks her younger brother, Max, out of their parents house for a night of partying on the beach. But after one too many drinks, Stella falls asleep and when she wakes up, Max is no where to be found. 6 years later, Stella has her own true crime podcast called A Killer Motive. She helps families find closure or bring attention to cases again. On an interview, Stella says that if she just had one clue, she'd find Max and bring justice to whoever hurt him. And someone took those words as a challenge. Now Stella finds herself caught in a killers web with time running out as Max's friend is now kidnapped and missing as well. She certain if she finds who took Max's friend is involved with Max's disappearance and she will stop at nothing to get the answers she needs about her brother!

This story was absolutely amazing. This has to be one of the best thrillers I've read this year. The psychological aspect of the story was great. But the tension, the build up, the suspense... everything, was just so good! I didn't see the twist coming and never suspected the person that was behind it all! I highly recommend giving this a read! You won't regret it!

𝑰𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒐 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆? 𝑯𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒔? 𝑹𝒆𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆? 𝑴𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒔? 𝑾𝒉𝒚, 𝒚𝒆𝒔, 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒂. 𝒀𝒆𝒔, 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝒊𝒕'𝒔 𝒔𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒇𝒖𝒏.

Hannah Mary McKinnon is back with her next thriller that pulls you immediately from the first chapter. This is a thriller that cuts deep as it explores the crushing weight of guilt and the burdens that come with carrying it.

Stella Dixon and her brother Max grew up with extremely strict parents. Stella is grown and out of her parents' house, and Max is on the cusp of leaving, about to enroll in college. When she and her boyfriend sneak Max out of their parents’ house for a beach party, it was supposed to be harmless fun--maybe a few too many beers being the biggest transgression, but Max disappears without a trace.

Six years have gone by, and Stella aches to find some sort of closure through 𝑨 𝑲𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒓 𝑴𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆, her true crime podcast. When the podcast begins to flounder, she's desperate to pick up sponsors, so she appears on a local radio show, making the bold claim that if she had just one clue about Max's disappearance, she'd bring whomever was responsible to justice.

Someone listening takes Stella at her word. Someone has been waiting to ensnare Stella into a twisted game that will have her questioning everyone and everything, even those closest to her. And when Max's best friend goes missing during her investigation, she knows she's running out of time.

The plot develops steadily at first then peaks to a near frenetic pace as more pieces fall into place. The character development was superb, down to the portrayal of Stella's parents and how one night of innocent fun changed their relationship forever.

Many thanks to NetGally, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse for this thrilling early copy. Look for this one September 9, 2025.

📚 E-ARC BOOK REVIEW 📚

A Killer Motive By Hannah Mary McKinnon
Publication Date: September 9, 2025
Publisher: Harlequin Trade Publishing | Mira

📚MY RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
(Rounded Up To 5⭐)

Thank you to Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse, Harlequin Trade Publishing, Mira, and NetGalley for this #gifted e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

📚MY REVIEW:

A Killer Motive is an unputdownable thriller filled with suspense and twists that will keep you guessing until the very end! With its short chapters and dual POVs, one of which is the creepy unknown killer, this fast-paced read is perfect for fans of true crime -- and it'll leave you absolutely speechless.

Six years ago, Stella helped her younger brother Max sneak out from their parents' home to go to a huge beach party with her -- and he never made it home. Committed to finding Max, Stella started a true crime podcast and has worked tirelessly to find Max and other missing persons. The police were never any help, and with the anniversary of Max's disappearance coming up, Stella agrees to a radio interview about the podcast. However, a stranger begins contacting Stella with claims that they know what happened to Max, and things been to take a scary turn when Max's former best friend goes missing. The stranger begins to harass and threaten Stella, convincing her to tell no one if she wants to save Max's best friend and learn what happened to her brother. Stella must prove to the stranger that she's willing to do ANYTHING to learn the truth about what happened to Max.

There were some elements to this storyline that seemed familiar: the true crime podcast, inept police, a missing loved one, a potentially unstable main character...However, McKinnon used these elements to craft an intriguing story that was SO compelling! The cat-and-mouse vibes between Stella and the killer were terrifyingly chilling at times, and I couldn't believe how wildly crazy things got -- in the best way!

McKinnon was brilliant with the red herrings in this story, and I think I fell for most of them. I "had it all figured out" about a third of the way in. Uh-huh, right. 🙄 McKinnon absolutely fooled me and -- and I didn't see the final twists coming AT ALL! In fact, I'm pretty sure there were audible thwacks when my jaw hit the floor with the revelation of a couple of these twists. If you love thrillers with true crime storylines, cat-and-mouse vibes, and jaw-dropping twists, you don't want to miss A Killer Motive. Coming September 2025!

#AKillerMotive #HannahMaryMcKinnon #HarlequinTradePublishing #Mira #thrillerbookloversthepulse #NetGalley #NetGalleyReviews #ARCs #thrillerbookloversthepulse #thrillerreads #thrilleraddict #thrillerlover #booklover #bookreviews #bookrecs #bookrecommendations

Be prepared to binge-read because this is one of those books you can’t put down. I was drawn in by Stella’s dark backstory and how it impacted her future behavior with hosting her podcast and trying to help others. Then the threats began, and Stella was pulled into an insane game. There are so many unpredictable twists and turns, and the ending was epic.

I was hooked from the first page. I love podcast storylines in thrillers, and this one did it so well. I really enjoyed reading the main character’s point of view as she tried to investigate everything and make sense of what was going on. The tension kept building and the twists were so good. I couldn’t stop turning the pages. If you like thrillers that pull you in and keep you guessing, this one is a must read.

3 stars. I wanted to find out whodunnit but overall the pace was relentless and the plot a bit bleak for me. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you ThrillerbookloversThePulse / HTP Books, #partner, for the advanced e-copy of A Killer Motive in exchange for my honest review.

All my friends over at @thrillerbookloversthepulse have been chatting this book up and for good reason. Hannah Mary McKinnon is a favorite and this one is not to be missed! ⁣
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I adore this author and this latest book just might be my new favorite of hers. It combines some of my favorite tropes in the thriller genre and kept me guessing all the way through. From a cold case to the podcast element to missing people to family dysfunction to secrets upon secrets, I was glued to the pages. ⁣
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This one is dark, and even had me flinching a time or two – maybe a first with HMM’s books – but I loved it all the same! Our main character, Stella, is such a layered character and I felt the anguish as she finds herself in such complicated situations. Yet it is her drive to seek answers that motivates her…and this comes across so clearly. ⁣Her opponent is evil, make no mistake about that and I suspected just about everyone at one point or another. And even getting anonymous chapters gave nothing away about this person’s actual identity other than adding more dread and tension to an already tense story. Well played, HMM, well played! ⁣
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There were quite a few twists that completely blindsided me and these coupled with the red herrings we get along the way really kept me on my toes. This is such a smartly plotted, uber-addictive read and I highly recommend picking it up when it comes out in September!

Thanks to @hannahmarymckinnon and @thrillerbookloversthepulse for an advance copy.
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“You never know who’s listening” and after reading this book, I might never speak freely again.
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Six years after her brother’s disappearance, Stella Dixon is still haunted by guilt, by grief, and now by the game. What starts as a desperate bid to keep her true crime podcast alive turns into a heart-pounding, mind-bending nightmare when someone dares her to play for real answers. And the price for losing? Everything.
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Twisty, emotional, and pulse-pounding (pun intended, The Pulse family - you’re gonna love this one), A Killer Motive explores how far we’ll go for truth and what happens when the past starts whispering back.
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McKinnon knows exactly how to keep you flipping pages long past your bedtime, and this book is proof. If you love layered characters, psychological cat-and-mouse, and stories that make your heart race, this one’s calling your name.

This book was hard to put down because I was so invested in the plot. Stella annoyed me at times because I felt like there were so many times she could've resolved the problem. I think she also wasn't confrontational enough for someone who desperately wanted to know what happened to her brother. Everyone in her life was suspicious, but she seemed to shy away from questioning them a lot. I didn't guess the ending, and I felt like there could've been more to tie up the story. The motive felt kind of rushed towards the ended.

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future.

Actual Rating: 4.5⭐

A Killer Motive is the first book I’ve read by this author, and after hearing so many great things from my friends over at Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse, I was super excited to dive in. And wow—it did not disappoint!

Short chapters, an easy-to-follow writing style, and fast pacing ? That combo is my sweet spot when it comes to thrillers, and this book nailed it!
I was hooked from the very first page and could’ve easily devoured it in one sitting.

Every twist, red herring, and buried secret kept me totally invested. I had so many wild theories about who the culprit could be, and the chapters from their POV added an extra layer of tension that I loved!

Then came the ending—and I was shook. I didn’t see that reveal coming at all, and several twists that followed caught me completely off guard (in the best way)!

All in all, this was one of the most entertaining, binge-worthy thrillers I’ve read this year.
It might be my first book by this author, but it definitely won’t be my last. I’ll be keeping an eye out for whatever the author write next!

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: confinement, kidnapping, psychological manipulation, grief