Hannah Mary McKinnon's first newsletter!
WELCOME TO MY NEWSLETTER
Some of you subscribed to my newsletter in spring of 2021(!) Considering I write for a living, it shouldn't have taken me eons to this figure out, but here we are. I don't like spam, so I promise I'll only send a few of these a year. I hope you enjoy my musings. Let me know what you'd like me to include next time?
Until then, happy reading!
Hannah Mary x
BOOK NEWS
NEVER COMING HOME IS A BESTSELLER!
That was some cool news to wake up to the week after my latest thriller released. Never Coming Home is my sixth novel and a little different from my others as it's exclusively written from the villain's perspective. I had a blast thinking like a criminal! (Should I admit that...?)
In Never Coming Home, Lucas Forester pretends to be devastated while secretly jubilant. He knows his "missing" wife, Michelle, is never coming home because he hired a hitman on the dark web to get rid of her. She's very rich, you see, and in his defense, exceedingly annoying. He wants her cash. But somebody knows what he did. Now smart, sophisticated Lucas goes from hunter to prey. Uh-oh. Will he get away with his evil deeds? And will you want him to?
This is undoubtedly my darkest but also funniest book. I wrote and edited it entirely during the pandemic, and after my lovely mum passed away. What a horrible time! I needed a place where I could safely wreak havoc and have a laugh. Lucas, murderous ways and all, saved my sanity. I hope you enjoy his antics and he makes you chuckle, too. Pick up a copy of the book here.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW FUN
One of my favorite books so far this year is The New Neighbor by fellow crime author Carter Wilson. It has such a stunning premise - imagine winning millions in the Powerball jackpot the same day you bury your spouse. How do you deal with that? In Aiden Marlowe's case the answer is "not very well." It's such a compelling story!
Carter also has a fantastic podcast called Making It Up. I had the pleasure of chatting with him about books, writing, and navigating the publishing industry. At the end we made up a short story beginning with the first sentence from Carter's novel The Comfort of Black. Sure, we might *seem* nice, but things got dark real quick!
Watch the episode here, listen to the podcast here, and find out more about Carter's entertaining interview series here. For the details on a reading of The New Neighbor, see the section about First Chapter Fun a little farther down.
BRILLIANT BOOK, BRILLIANT AUTHOR
"There's a time and a place for erect nipples, but the back of a Seattle police car definitely isn't it."
Pretty sure that's a mic drop when it comes to opening lines. Jennifer Hillier is one of my absolute favorite authors (and a generous, kind, and wonderful human). Things We Do in the Dark is a cracking book that delves into twisted family dynamics, a secret identity, and a vicious murder (of course). Set in Seattle and Toronto, this book had me flipping the pages as fast as I could to find out what would happen to Paris Peralta when she was arrested for killing her celebrity husband. But did she really? Why can't she remember? And what's the deal with her mum, Ruby Reyes, aka the Ice Queen?
Do yourself a favor - read this book! Get your copy here: https://jenniferhillierbooks.com/
SURPRISE GIVEAWAY!
I have one Advanced Reader Copy of Things We Do in the Dark to give away! To enter, post the photo of Never Coming Home with the rubber duck (above) on Facebook, Instagram, and/or Twitter, asking people to subscribe to my newsletter on www.hannahmarymckinnon.com, and tag me. Giveaway closes on August 14. Winner will be notified thereafter. Open internationally.
Good luck!
AND...BREATHE!
After three long years, I finally made it back to Switzerland where I grew up, and which is probably my favorite place on earth. My gosh, I missed my family and the mountains. This photo was taken on the top of the Pilatus. Look closely and you'll see a cable car hanging to the left of the hut. Not for the faint of heart, trust me. I have a bit of phobia of heights, so I close my eyes when there's a huge drop. And this one is HUGE.
Have you been to the Swiss Alps? What's your favorite holiday destination? And are you traveling this year? We're off to New Brunswick soon. I can't wait to see the ocean and my in-laws. I'll share a picture in the next newsletter.