Echoes of the Past
Mark Stevens turns a one-shot into a trilogy
For years, readers have enjoyed the way Mark Stevens builds tension without losing site of character.
And this April we are gifted with the return of No Lie Lasts Forever’s Flynn Martin, now a series character.
The real challenge in turning his one-shot into a trilogy was clear: How do you follow a villain such as PDQ without repeating yourself? How do you bring forward what worked so well in the first book, while still making room for something new — and just as compelling — in the second.
I recently chatted with Mark Stevens about his new novel, Two Truths and a Lie. He opened up about creating a copycat who feels entirely new, keeping Flynn Martin’s journey engaging, and why, in the end, it’s the emotional pull — not just the twisty plot — that keeps readers turning the pages.
Steve Weddle: PDQ was such an interesting, complex character in No Lie Lasts Forever. How does the “copycat” in this story build on that, and what challenges did you face in developing a similar, but different villain?
Mark Stevens: Oooof. That’s the sound I made when my fabulous editor Jessica Tribble Wells (Thomas & Mercer) suggested (and by “suggested,” I mean “told me”) that my precious standalone No Lie Lasts Forever would, in fact, be a trilogy. And I knew instantly that the biggest challenge would be this very issue you raise, because PDQ’s arc came to a clear and decisive conclusion in No Lie. I knew I needed a completely different motivation for the copycat, a whole new backstory that would (somehow) also be tangled up in the past of Flynn Martin. So the challenge was to write something that didn’t closely mimic No Lie but that set out for all new territory even as Flynn keeps getting pulled back into the old snarl with PDQ. In fact, I had to keep PDQ in the mix and create a reason for Flynn to require his guidance.
SW: The “institution with dark secrets” can be such a fun idea to explore in a thriller. What are some of the aspects of New Hope Church that will surprise veteran readers of thrillers?
MS: The idea for that storyline was inspired, in part, by a 60 Minutes story in 2023 about the Church of Latter Day Saints and an investment firm called Ensign Peak Advisors that had accumulated a massive, tax-exempt fortune. That particular church collects $7 billion a year in donations and feels the need to have a series of shell companies to manage its business holdings. The source of the information in the 60 Minutes story was the former “senior portfolio manager” for that investment firm and he said there was a $100 billion (billion!) being held. Last time I checked, that amount of money would do a lot of good in feeding the poor and healing the sick. Megachurches are enormous operations, with pastors worth hundreds of millions of dollars and still claiming tax exemptions for “parsonages” that are, by any standards, huge mansions. The church revenue (from the congregation’s donations) are one thing but in many cases these megachurches have sprawling business interests and do a very poor job of telling their constituents where the money goes. Secrets mean stories.
SW: Flynn Martin had quite a go of it. In No Lie Lasts Forever. How is she different when this book starts than at the start of that one?
MS: She’s trying to get her world back together. She’s trying to return to routine. She was taken off air from her longtime television news gig due to the events at the beginning of No Lie and she spent a long time out in the wilderness of career uncertainty. So I wanted to get her back on the bicycle, so to speak, and watch her report. She’s weighing a new love interest and guarding her son Wyatt with extreme care, given what happened to him in No Lie. But, at her core, she’s a tenacious and cynical reporter with a drive to not get beat. I think No Lie opened her eyes to pure darkness so, if it’s possible, she’s more jaded and wary than ever.
SW: You’ve had your own experience with journalism and have supplemented that in a number of ways, even shadowing a TV reporter in Denver. How essential is working with people as resources for your crime fiction rather than relying on old news clippings and websites?
MS: Invaluable. Priceless. It’s the difference between reading about a baby and holding one. It’s the difference between reading about life as an astronaut and climbing into the Orion spacecraft, strapping into the seat, and waiting for the rocket to fire. I’ve done the former, by the way, but not the latter. If you can at all arrange it, go. It’s three-dimensional. It’s real life. You’ll be surprised at the details that will come up that will give your story grounding. Those little details make a big difference. Final note--you’ll be surprised at the people who are willing to help. They’ve probably read a novel about someone in their profession (or situation) that got it wrong. And they will be eager to help someone who takes the time to get it right.
SW: There’s an idea that plot makes us pick up a novel, but emotion makes us keep coming back to it. Do you think we read for emotion or for a clever puzzle?
MS: Well, I definitely lean toward the emotional side of the equation. I think, as readers, our first question when we pick up a book is whether we are going to connect with the character, our tour guide to whatever darkness or troubles or monsters lie ahead. Whether we are interested in that person’s worldview. We want to see them struggle. Yes, we want to see our protagonists face a challenge. Shocker, I know. So a year later you might remember a few scenes and might recall that some aspect of the plot was clever or cunning but I think we want to hitch our wagon to an interesting person who has issues.
SW: What surprised you most about writing this story? Plot twist you didn’t see coming? Emotional backstory? Surprising dialogue that just kept going?
MS: There is one moment in Two Truths that took me by surprise. For some unknown, subconscious reason I took Flynn and the story out to a town called Kiowa. Farms, pastures, horses … rural. The town is 50 miles southeast of Denver. I don’t know exactly what drew me there, storywise. One night Flynn gets pulled over by a cop, very late at night, on a quiet country road for reasons I won’t go into here. As I was writing the scene, I looked back in No Lie Lasts Forever and did a quick search because for some reason I thought I might have mentioned Kiowa in that story. And, bingo. One of the victims of the serial killer who was the antagonist in No Lie was originally from Kiowa. Believe me, that was an unimportant detail in No Lie. But it gave me a chance to put a few human moments into an otherwise typical scene. It was one of those little moments when you find yourself giving a little fist pump before reaching for your next sip of coffee.
"A satisfyingly twisty psychological thriller with a never-say-die heroine, Two Truths and a Lie pulses with suspense - a winner."
- Meg Gardiner, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Shadowheart
These questions were fantastic!! Thank you, Steve.