One of Us Is Lying
by Karen McManus
Mystery
Realistic Fiction
Romance
Suspense
Thriller
Review #1
* * * * * Stars (Amazing!)
Browyn, Simon, Addie, Cooper, and Nate all go to detention. But by the time detention is over, Simon is dead, and the four of them are being blamed. After dozens of interrogations, endless media shame and fame, the four have become exhausted. Did one of them truly murder Simon or are they all prey for the real killer?
Review #2
* * * * * Stars (Amazing!)
Five students are sent to detention. The Brains, the Athlete, the Princess, the Criminal, and the Outcast. What happens when Five walk in and only Four walk out? This novel is a perfect mix of “The Breakfast Club” and “Pretty Little Liars.” You’ll never believe the ending!
Review #3
* * * * Stars (Great!)
“One of Us Is Lying” tells the story of five high school students: four alive, one dead. Simon ran a gossip app and just before he died, was about to publish about four other students. How far will someone go to protect their secret? Murder?
“One of Us Is Lying” is well-written, although it has minor unrealistic plot points and reactions by characters. While I appreciated the mystery, most of the legal handlings were unrealistic and took away from the plot.
Review #4
* * * * * Stars (Amazing!)
“One of Us Is Lying” is a thrilling and suspenseful book that follows the lives of 5 stereotypical teenagers at Bayview High School in California who are all at school for detention for the same reason. Cooper (the jock), Bronwyn (the nerd), Nate (the criminal), Simon (the weird kid), and Addy (the beauty) were all accused of having their phones in class even though they are all claiming to be innocent. Something seems fishy to them, as if they were framed and someone purposely had the intention to put them into detention together. All the theories seem to come together and resolve when one of the five kids has an allergic reaction and dies when the supervising teacher leaves the room. This student also had a gossip website where s/he would spill everyone’s secrets. All eyes fell onto the Bayview four in the detention room that night when it was found that the most recent gossip blog posts are about them and their scandals that could completely destroy their future. Now everyone has questions: Did they kill him for revenge? Was it a team effort or did one of them do it? Which one of them did it? Now the Bayview four must embark on the journey to prove themselves innocent while facing the obstacles of love, heartbreak, lying, cheating, and friendship. Who did it? Will they prove to be innocent? Read to find out!
This book was a great read and I kept thinking about it even after I finished it. This was because of the way Karen McManus incorporated the aspect of mystery and suspense by leaving the reader with cliffhangers after each chapter, making the reader want to read more. These cliffhangers made me read the whole book in a day! The only thing I disliked about it was even after I finished it, I still had so many questions that I wish were answered in the book. For middle and high school teens.
Review #5
* * * * * Stars (Amazing!)
This book starts with 5 students being in detention one September afternoon – Bronwyn, a Yale hopeful who has never broken a rule, sports star Cooper who is only aware of his surroundings on the baseball diamond, Nate who is close to going toward a life of crime, Addy who is a prom queen attempting to hold the cracks together in her perfect life, and Simon who is known for uncovering the secrets of the students at Bayview High. He uses a gossip app he created called “About That” to post secrets as well as rumors and nasty comments about his peers. They all find themselves in detention after being brought in by a teacher named Mr. Avery for having their phones in class. Each claims that someone planted the phones on them. A car crash occurs outside and Mr. Avery goes to check on it – leaving the students alone in detention. Simon takes a sip of water and collapses. The students search for an Epi-pen, and the paramedics are called. Later, Simon is pronounced dead – just 24 hours before he can post the students’ deepest and darkest secrets online. What were the students hiding? Will the real secret of how Simon died emerge?
This was an amazing read for me due solely to its ability to keep the reader guessing “whodunnit” until the big reveal! I love the suspense in this book and I really enjoyed how the characters are well drawn out. The plot allows the reader to pick up clues along the way until they unravel the mystery.
For middle and high school teens and adults.
