The One Remaining

A story of memory, endurance, loss and love

Hilary Mason is a successful novelist. In her fifties, she comes upon a stack of her old diaries, which document her difficult teenage years. She embarks on writing a memoir, Hilary’s Story, which will bring her face to face with the hidden backstory of her life.

The One Remaining is a captivating novel of overcoming loss, finding the courage to trust those who believe in us, and the self-healing power of writing our stories.

October 2025 Release
ISBN 9780646718279
Distributed by NewSouth Books

‘Paula McLean’s protagonist, a novelist writing a memoir, takes us to the heart of the matter: how we write and rewrite the stories of our lives, toggling between being vulnerable characters in a chaotic world, and authors in one we can control.’ – ANNA FUNDER, AUTHOR

‘The One Remaining is a wise, beautiful and moving novel. McLean shows us how surviving loss and trauma is not linear, but gives a depth and richness to life nonetheless.’ – SOPHIE GEE, THE SECRET LIFE OF BOOKS PODCAST

‘Warm, rich and vividly imagined. Women everywhere will recognise this story of love and loss, creation and coercion. McLean is an attentive writer whose warmth and clarity brings her characters to life.’ – ASHLEY HAY, AUTHOR

Paula McLean is Patron, NSW Ambassador and immediate past Deputy Chair of the Stella Prize; member of the She Gives Advisory Group (a national initiative to celebrate, connect and inspire women in their giving to accelerate positive social change); Board Member of Country Education Foundation; trustee of McLean Foundation; Patron of Pop In (a domestic violence centre in Moss Vale, NSW); founded the Nature Writing Prize (administered by The Nature Conservancy Australia); and awarded Philanthropy Australia’s 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award. The One Remaining is her debut novel.