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One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus

Detention took a turn when Simon Kelleher, an outcast student in Bayview High who runs an infamous gossip app called About That, dropped dead after taking a sip of water. One of Us is Lying is a gripping mystery young adult story about the four suspects of murder who made it out alive of the classroom, Adelaide Prentiss, the beauty, Bronwyn Rojas, the brain, Nate Macauley, the criminal and Cooper Clay, the athlete. Everyone has secrets, so how far would the four highschool students go to get the attention off themselves?

I liked this book because you can’t put the book down until you’re finished and makes you think about it after you’re done. Each character had their own chapters so readers can understand what they’re thinking about and what their relationship is between them, the victim and the other suspects. I couldn’t guess how the victim died but maybe some people can. I liked how smart but kinda dark this book was. I would recommend this book to people who like mystery in a regular teenage life setting.


Reviewed by C.B., Grade 8

Montrose Library

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Teen Speak said…
A group of stereotypical high schoolers are in detention. The brains, the brawn, the beauty, the bad-kid, and the gossiper. However, the gossiper dies before detention finishes, and it clearly shows that someone murdered him. After thorough investigation, it turns out there was life-changing dirt and information on all four students, making them all murder suspects. Seeing the story play out from all four characters' perspectives, is someone pinning them to take the fall of a sickening murder, or is one of them lying?

This book, in my opinion, was amazing. This is probably one of my favorites right now. The way the book is written is from a multiple-person perspective between the four characters, changing between each chapter. We get to see the characters' fears and their development grow throughout the story, as well the tension and the story slowly coming together. The best part was the unpredictable plot twists, I doubt someone could simply guess what really happened if they simply heard the main details on this. It was extremely unexpected for me, and there were also some little bits of romance and humor that just pulled it all together. One of the most amazing parts for me is when we see the characters slowly lose their stereotypes and grow as people. This book is probably great for teens who enjoy mystery and drama, or for someone who relates to any of the characters.

Reviewed by Julie S., Grade 9
Glendale Central Library
March 30, 2021 at 9:29 AM
Melissa said…
One Of Us Is Lying starts out with four kids–Bronwyn, Addy, Nate, and Cooper– being put in detention and witnessing Simon, another student in detention, die due to allergies and no Epi-Pens to be found. This particular victim however, has a blog that posts everyone’s secrets anonymously and lists their initials, making it somewhat obvious who’s secret it is. Just how far will these four witnesses go in preventing their secrets from spilling, and who will they be willing to throw under the bus?

To be completely honest, I only rated this book a 3/5. It didn’t have anything special about it; it was (in my opinion) a generic murder mystery that tries to have a good “plot twist”, but, unfortunately, not reaching that mark. It was a quick for me probably because I wanted to get done with it. I haven’t bought the second book and most likely won’t end up getting it because I can tell I will be bored with the writing (like I was with this book) and I wouldn’t enjoy the author’s version of supposed murder mystery. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the characters and the intricate relationships they had with one another, but I finished the book feeling empty and disappointed. If you are someone who doesn’t mind rather simple text structure, can handle many clichés, and wants to go through a story with a predictable ending, I’d recommend this book. :)

Reviewed by Anon, Grade 11
Montrose Library
August 2, 2022 at 11:49 AM
Melissa said…
One of Us Is Lying follows five teenagers, Bronwyn, Nate, Cooper, Addy, and Simon who all coincidentally end up in detention after school one day. The nerd, druggie, athlete, mean girl, and gossiper have nothing but one thing in common: they all have secrets. Simon leads an online blog exposing everyone at the high school secrets so when he spontaneously dies in the middle of detention, his classmates suddenly become the main suspects. Especially because right after his death, their personal secrets start being posted by an anonymous source on the website, making them look even guiltier. The four remaining students band together to uncover the secret behind Simon’s death, and to draw attention from themselves.

This novel was a very exciting read. The fact that the story is told from all four perspectives, neither one ever outright admitting whether they were responsible for Simon’s death or not increases the intrigue of the novel. The characters are diverse in their personalities and are all very enjoyable to read. The only underwhelming thing about the novel was that Simon’s cause of death was casually mentioned towards the end of the book, dismissed, and later brought back as the truth. I think that took some of the big-revealing effect at the end of the novel. Besides that one mishap, I enjoyed the novel very much, and the truth about Simon left me thinking about the novel for days afterwards.

Reviewed by Kristina K., Grade 11
Glendale Central Library
August 2, 2022 at 5:48 PM
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