One of Us Is Lying

I think I went off on the wrong foot with this book; I wrongly and mistakenly assumed that this book wasn’t for me – boring, full of high school dramas and teenage angst which, to tell the truth, were not my thing at the moment.It indeed took a while for this book to grow on me. As I mentioned earlier, except for the first chapter where Simon, a notorious gossip mastermind of Bayview High, mysteriously died from a severe peanut allergy, I spent a huge chunk of the first half frustrated and feeling detached from the story. I knew the book was in the middle of build up, but what I thought endless, too detailed descriptions about the four suspects – the four students – and their backgrounds and emotional conflicts were a bit too much for me. I was expecting more of the mystery – whodunnit – elements (as this book is supposedly YA mystery), definitely NOT high school dramas involving drama kings and drama queens where they whine and go on and on about what they have done wrong. To be honest, I wasn’t remotely interested in such kind of stuff. It may sound harsh, but I was pretty close to giving up on this book.But I didn’t want to.So I tried to throw all my preconceived ideas about this book and start over with a clean slate, seeing this book as a mere YA contemporary rather than a YA mystery.And I’m glad to say, it worked. It actually took me another 20% of the book to get me fully invested in this book, it worked nonetheless. I think it was where a big secret of the Mr. Nice guy was finally out and how it leads to a debacle of his future, friendship and familial relationship. The grim undertone reeled me in the story in the true sense of the word – for the first time – and I realized this book might call for readers in the right frame of mind and being patient. Your opinions might differ from mine and you may have been hooked by this book straight away, but it wasn’t the case for me. It needed me to read this book with the same approach that I usually take when reading YA contemporary/romance.Anyways, from then onwards, I found this book pretty unputdownable; I enjoyed all the elements in this book. Friendship, budding romance, suspicion, and emotional struggles and guilt from what they have done. Such elements are really well-integrated and gelled with the main plot, and I definitely enjoyed the thrills and excitement as I was inching towards the end, as I got closer to the revelations to the whole plot.Although I might have made this book out to be devoid of the mystery elements earlier, it isn’t true. The disturbing and mysterious ‘Tumbler’ posts which were not ought to be published because of Simon’s death certainly got me curious to know who actually killed Simon. Was it either of the four students? Or is there an accomplice??The plot twist which I didn’t see it coming took me by surprise but this book doesn’t end there – there’s actually another important key to this murder case and I thought it was really well done. I read the last 30% in one sitting – I was kept on the edge of my seat, I couldn’t put it down.The characters, especially the main four characters are all well-fleshed out. Their issues, secrets and consternation from unexpectedly embroiled in the murder case are well delineated with the solid writing and alternating multiple POVs, getting me emotionally close to them. I especially enjoyed how the four characters begin to close ranks to get down to the bottom of the case, supporting each other despite the fact they were not really friends nor particularly close before it happened.When the story, or the situations surrounding the main character(s) spin out of control, multiple POV style works really well, giving readers enough glimpse of their emotional process and what is going on in their minds. It adds a lot of tension and intrigues, a sheer delight of reading. Karen M. McManus certainly pulled off in that regard.She’s also brilliant at messing with our emotions – getting our hopes up and then crushing them on the next second. I went through this agony especially in Bronwyn’s chapters. I personally Bronwyn and Cooper’s chapters are outstanding compared to the ones of the other two characters. I might be wrong, but I felt that way anyway.I appreciate this book ends on a light, hopeful note. The four characters have gone through their own nightmares and debacles, it has also made them stronger and be honest to themselves.This book left me with warm feelings, wondering what their future holds for them.Apart from the depictions of police procedural being pretty shoddy (I was like, ‘Come on, they couldn’t be this sloppy, could they?’), I am quite satisfied with this book.This is surprisingly emotionally charged, well-written book. I am glad I ended up liking this book in the end.Another lesson NOT to easily DNF a book; Story CAN pick up where you leave off.

One Of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManns is a multi-perspective book based on a mysterious death of a student during a detention. I found myself loving the way this book explored different points of view. It would often switch between different characters' perspectives. For someone who normally enjoys a movie or film adaptation rather than the book, the way that author uses these points of view makes me crave more. The perspectives are special as they give insight into each character and fully flesh them out. Instead of being presented with someone like a typical jock in most books, you end up learning their reasons for acting the way they do. On top of this, this book does a great job displaying social media's role in highschool life. It uses ideas like rumors to show the negative impact they truly have on the person involved. But the best part of this book is the main plot itself. The journey within the pages of this book holds many plot twists, suspenseful moments, and even some emotion. This aspect is a good contrast compared to most other mystery books.But although this book is amazing, it doesn’t come without its negatives. I believe the largest flaw of this book is becoming hard to follow. With the multi-perspective way of writing, it often becomes jumbled and makes me have to go back to figure out which character’s perspective I was in. To add to this, the way the author displays time made it hard to tell if it had been a day or a year. This would not have become an issue if the author did not struggle to set the scene. The story often jumps between different settings with no warning and leaves the reader to decide what is going on. Overall though, this book was a great read. I would recommend this to anybody who enjoys mystery books, or just loves a good plot twist.

One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus is an engaging, suspenseful mystery that keeps you hooked from the very first page. The story revolves around five high school students who walk into detention, but only four make it out alive. As the investigation unfolds, secrets start to emerge, and each character’s perspective adds depth and intrigue to the plot.I love how the author skillfully develops each of the main characters, making them feel real and relatable. The alternating points of view give readers insight into their thoughts and motivations, creating a complex web of suspense and drama. The book tackles important themes like bullying, secrets, and the pressure to conform, making it more than just a typical “whodunit” mystery.The twists and turns kept me guessing right until the end, and I enjoyed how the story combined elements of thriller, teen drama, and romance. If you’re a fan of fast-paced mysteries with great character development, One of Us Is Lying is definitely worth the read!

This was a very enjoyable and well plotted mystery. Four students are put in the public crosshairs when a fellow student dies in front of them during detention.Then an internet post takes credit for the death and things go from there. Its a wild ride as four very flawed teenagers with something to hide try to deal with everyone suspecting them of murder.