OH YOU GUYS. I had so much to say about this book and then Karen McManus kind of killed it dead. I had IDEAS. I had A THEORY. I was convinced I had the most bizarre idea known to man as to what had happened in that detention room AND NOW I CAN’T TELL YOU ABOUT IT BECAUSE I WAS BLOODY WELL RIGHT. There is immense satisfaction in guessing a plot twist less than 10% into a book. So may say it’s frustrating, but in this case I never, ever thought it would pan out in a million years so it was actually like WOAH, YOU WHAT. I felt like I was being Punk’d. That Karen McManus had a direct line into my thoughts and re-wrote the whole book just to screw with me. Maybe she did!

But this book though! It’s so incredibly compelling. I love stories like this, where something happens and you have to read the novel to figure it out, ESPECIALLY when the synopsis dares you to figure it out. “Pay close attention and you’ll solve this.” OH YAH. YOU DID NOT JUST GO THERE. But it had me worried that it would all go over my head (ha, not in the slightest), and I was just determined to BEAT THE BOOK. I loved the plot, that Bronwyn, Nate, Cooper and Addy were the most unlikely four people to be in detention, that they were determined it was some kind of mix-up/prank and then Simon goes and dies and you’re just like WHAT and WHO DID IT and WTF? So you’re reading and reading and reading because you just have to know what happened! You have to know who did it!

I loved the Pretty Little Liars/Gossip Girl aspect, where there’s this app that goes around spilling secrets (and I kinda agree with Addy’s boyfriend Jake in that if you don’t do secret stuff, that stuff won’t then get discovered and spread but that kinda also feels like victim shaming? So not really but it IS a valid point, imo) and I LOVED the fact it seemed like the murder group were being trolled, after Simon’s death, and it just seemed to cast more doubt and more suspicion. Surprisingly, I trusted Nate. Of all four, I trusted him the most. Bronwyn, too. It was Addy and Cooper I was iffy about – not for any particular reason, but it was clear Cooper was hiding something and Addy just seemed a bit off? Ha that’s so weird to say, because I don’t have solid proof, it was just a hunch.

I genuinely felt unsettled while I was reading One Of Us Is Lying. The clue is in the title! SOMEONE IS LYING. And it’s really weird to not know who. It’s not like Criminal Minds where you get to see the unsub, you suspect everyone and as more truths come out and new things emerge, you don’t know who you can trust any more. However, I liked that throughout it all, the murder group kinda became closer – they started out as strangers, who knew each other but not really, and through all the pressure and infamy and home truths dropped on them, they didn’t just turn on each other, and that is what made this book for me. It would have been so easy for one of them to turn, to save themselves, and I think it spoke about Bronwyn, Nate, Addy and Cooper as people that they didn’t do that, even right from the start, when they were strangers and this thing had happened that upended their lives, it really reminds you there is faith in humanity. What a ride, man!

Mystery isn’t my favourite YA genre (I’m a fantasy girl all the way) but occasionally I like to sink my claws into a story that will leave me at the edge of my seat with the WHO-DUNNIT element.
And that’s the sole reason why while One Of Us Is Lying was a GOOD book, it didn’t make me suspect the four teenagers in the room – NOT ONCE – making it seem slightly off. That vital blame game was missing and while I was curious to see who did it, I NEVER FELT THAT INTENSE NEED TO KNOW.
Thoughts:
1. THE PLOT OF THE BOOK WAS REALLY INTERESTING, and that’s the reason I requested it! Five teenagers locked in detention, a car crash to send the teacher out and the boy with a gossip website and a horrifying secret about everyone in that room dies from an allergic reaction. GREAT PLOT.

2. I also loved that the book was told from the viewpoints of all four potential murderers. It made you get to know them a lot more and piece together stories of the story.

3. While I liked the above point (^), it was also the reason the book didn’t have the who-dunnit element. NONE OF THE CHARACTERS HATED SIMON ENOUGH TO KILL HIM, and I fully believed that they didn’t making me uninterested in finding out which of them killed him. Honestly, I LIKED the characters too much to see them as murderers.

4. One of my favourite characters was Addison. I adored her character development in the book. She took huge steps to from a girl that made every decision based on her boyfriend’s whims and fancies to one who one who cut her hair and turned badass. I loved her spirit and I really liked how much she changed.

5. Honestly, I liked the book. The characters were well developed, the plot was definitely unique but I didn’t SUSPECT ANYONE. It didn’t make me blame anyone and I just accepted the ending as it came.

A very well constructed book with interesting characters that is definitely worth a read! 4 stars

Link to review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1966090211

All opinions are my own and do not represent the opinions of any organization I am affiliated with.

A mild psychological thriller. There is some intrigue of course, the affects the revelation of their darkest secrets on their lives. But I don't know that we ever truly suspect that one of the four is the murderer. My suspicion was on the teacher or on Simon himself. THe thriller aspect would be stronger if we genuinely suspected each of the four in turn. If there were real evidence rather than a complete lack of evidence. I'm also troubled by the lack of consequences for Bronwyn. I find it hard to believe that Yale would be that forgiving of a student who readily admits to extensive cheating.

I was really excited to get my hands on this book through NetGalley. Then I went through a reading dry spell where I just couldn't bring myself to read anything. This book was my second read back in the groove (the only reason it took me so long to read), and I have mixed feelings about it.
On the positive side, the tone of the writing is enjoyable. It's very easy to tell the different narrators apart, and their stories are interesting. I have to give extra pats on the back to the author for being able to successfully write a multi-narrator story. It has to be so difficult, but it was one of the best things about the book! There's a wonderful LGBTQIA+ element that I can't give many details on. (In my opinion, THE BEST part about the book.)
I simply couldn't get worked up about the book. This may have been due to my own reading slump. However, I found myself skimming rather than reading. I wasn't really invested in the characters or the story. Since I can't work out if it was the actual book or my own funk, I don't want you to give up on the idea of reading it.
Full of humor, cliches, and mystery, "One of us is lying" will likely sate the appetites of those who enjoyed "Without Malice" by Cook or "We were liars" by E. Lockhart.

This was a solid YA mystery, told from the perspective of 4 teens who find themselves in the wrong place at the right time, leading them all to be witnesses to and suspects in a murder. I guessed the killer fairly early, but not the accomplice(s), and either way it was fun getting to the resolution. Recommend for YA mystery lovers!

BIG thank you to netgalley and publishers for this ARC. I saw the premise and was desperate to get my hands on this!!! So to say my expectations were high is an understatement. A thriller twist on the breakfast club and it did not disappoint.

The characters were super fleshed out! I was worried that switch back and forth would throw off the story, but they all stood so well on there own that I couldn't stop reading AT ALL. I loved them all so much it is hard to choose! My favorite was Addy this girl grew leaps and bounds in front of our eyes and it was a fantastic transformation! Bad boy sexy pants Nate was everything I could hope for from the "criminal." Nerd extraordinaire Bronwyn being a girl was GREAT. Cooper my heart! Just everyone was great.

The plot was good. I was interested the whole way through and could not wait to finish the book. That being said the major plot point was very obvious to may pretty early in. I had a guess to what really happened and I was right. That all being said I still really enjoyed the book. The pacing, the writing, the characters, and of course the story. This is a damn good debut from Karen McManus. Please write us more books about anything! McManus is a new insta buy for me!

If you’re a sucker for true crime TV shows, this book will be your version of YA heaven.

Told from four alternating POVs (the murder suspects), One of Us Is Lying features fully fleshed out, complex, and interesting characters whose plots all stand on their own. So often when there are a number of characters, their stories tend to get a little lost, but this is certainly not the case here. Everything is suspect and because of that, every lie, every aspect of these four unlucky teens’ lives are sifted through and exploited. All of the characters are flawed and real. They’ve made mistakes and the worst (best?) part is that they might be paying for it. Seemingly small incidents become incendiary and inciting. The catty, pettiness of high school is on full display and motives are everywhere.

The premise is awesome. It’s simple, yet completely enthralling. You won’t stop until you know the truth.

There are tons of clues. And it’s the readers challenge to sort through and figure out what’s important. If you are even remotely into sleuthing, you’ll enjoy this story exponentially.

Twists, red herrings, romance, revenge. There’s a little bit of everything.

Because the characters are so real, it’s compelling to want to know about them. Everything from their heartaches, their fibs, their crimes, to what they’re hiding even from themselves. This unlikely foursome becomes something unexpected-friends-in the face of tragedy.

The mystery is a good one. Even if you make the right guess about what happened, odds are you’re missing some finer details that are totally unexpected and hit fast.

Occasionally, because the characters are so dimensional, the pacing is a little stunted and the story a tad sidetracked, but it always comes back around relatively quickly.

There were a handful of clichés that might bug the reader, like the catty cheerleader, the blatant sexism (at points this is called out though, which, thumbs up), but the other characters certainly redeemed themselves and the story.

The book was intriguing and the characters are well written. It is hard to put down.

I love mysteries, and thought One of Us Is Lying presented a fun locked room inspired puzzle. Five high school students are tricked into thinking they have afterschool detention. All five show up at the assigned detention room, full of questions. Before long, one of the five is dead. As questions swirl, they start banding together to try to figure out what happened and who was responsible for the murder. As the victim was a dirt-digging student blogger who knew secrets about each one of them, they all theoretically had a motive.

I had two theories about the killer, and one of them was correct. It was an ending I'd seen before, but I still found this an enjoyable and suspenseful read. I also liked the fact that none of the characters was quite what he or she seemed to be at the outset. As each character confronts the secret that the murder victim knew, he or she has to do some serious soul-searching about what will happen when the secret comes out.

This is a fun summer read, perfect for your beach or pool or airplane tote!

This wasn't even on my radar at first. I'm not sure why it wasn't since contemporary mysteries are my favorite books! But when I did find out about it, I couldn't stop thinking about it. I really wanted to get my hands on it. I was so happy when I did.
On a normal day, there's many different kids who have detention, but this particular day, most of them don't belong there. They include a criminal, a beauty queen, a smarty pants, an athlete, and an outcast. Unfortunately, not all of them make it out of the room. What happened in that short time, that caused Simon to die? Did it have anything to do with the fact that he planned to uunearth their darkest secrets the next day?!
I loved the writing style in this one. It was all over the place with the multiple POVs and it felt a bit clunky and disjointed. In a mystery, that makes the reader confused and causes them to miss out on guessing who the real person is. I also really enjoyed all the POVs she had. They were all different, but were all developed so they all had their own voice. As a character driven reader, I was impressed on all the ways she was able to tie things together.
But even with the great writing style, I wasn't really a fan of the plot. I called most of the plot twists throughout the story, which didn't make it really a "thriller" for me like I see some people shelving under. I was also able to call some of the "BIG" reveal at the end. Since I only got part of it right I won't take anything away from it, but still some parts of it were a bit obvious.
As for the characters, I didn't really connect to any of them. And that was extremely unfortunate because there were so many of them. But to be honest, I didn't really care for anyone in that book. Not the main characters ot any supporting ones. Maybe that's the way the author wanted the reader to feel, but as a character driven reader, I was not a fan. I got the point of why it was written that way, but it still wasn't my favorite. (If that makes sense.)
It was overall an addictive, murdery twist on The Breakfast Club and I really did like it. I can't wait to see what else McManus has in store!

Review will go live on June 1, 2017.

The blurb for this book nails the summary: One of Us is Lying really is a mashup of The Breakfast Club and Pretty Little Liars.

Thanks to a "technophobe" science teacher, five high school seniors wind up in detention one Monday afternoon. Each student reflects a different stereotype: Bronwyn is the brain, Cooper is the jock, Addy is the princess, Nate is a thug, and Simon is the social misfit. Before their hour is up, however, Simon is dead, and suspicion falls on the four who survive.

Using the mystery as the central focus of this story, Karen M. McManus focuses on the various stresses that befall teenagers. They face pressure from parents to meet certain standards, whether they be academic, athletic, or social. In Nate's case, the lack of those expectations cements him as a bad guy, when in fact what motivates him to commit the crimes he does is the same thing that motivates his peers: fear.

Bronwyn feels she must earn the highest grades, have the fullest résumé, and be so well-rounded that Yale could never reject her. Like Bronwyn, Cooper's parents have determined his fate. His baseball skills will land him at worst a college scholarship, although it would be pretty fabulous if he got drafted into the pros. Cooper and Bronwyn are so terrified of letting down their parents that neither takes the time to consider if these plans are what they want for themselves. Addy, on the other hand, appears to live the high school dream. She's dating Jake, a popular football player, and she's in with the popular crowd. But Addy is scared that she doesn't deserve any of this, and that fear leads to destructive insecurity.

McManus also shows the heartache of kids who have no one supporting them. For all of the pressure that her parents put on her, Bronwyn knows they care about her. She also has her younger sister Maeve on her side. Cooper's support system is found with his grandmother and a couple of friends, and Addy finds herself surprised that her older sister stands by her. Only Nate is left without anyone - at first, anyway. By the time people offer him ballast and aid, he's too leery to accept it. Nate is a guy accustomed to surviving on his own, yet he needs allies just as badly as Bronwyn, Cooper, and Addy.

As well-developed as those four are, Simon is left feeling flat. There were a few times when McManus attempted to fill him out, but they were short-lived. You get the feeling that Simon could be as compelling - if not more - than the four survivors, yet he is undeveloped.

McManus keeps up a steady pace for the most part, although the plot's denouement and resolution feel rushed. The epilogue, however, drags, and you find yourself wondering if it was necessary to include it.

This is a quick read, and it will be difficult for you to put down this book once you start it. You will have to know what happened to Simon. Was his death accidental? Was he murdered? And if that's the case, then who killed him? All along, you will enjoy getting to know Bronwyn, Nate, Cooper, and Addy, and you will dearly hope that none of them is the culprit.

For a more in-depth review watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvYxu...

I received an eARC of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Five students were sent to detention. They had no connections and they weren't friends. By the end of the day one of them is dead and the other four our suspects.

I was slightly disappointed by this book. The story is told through several different points of view but I didn't feel the narrative voice changed. I figured out the killer about a third of the way through but I didn't think that it was believable so I dismissed it. However, I was right. The story, the relationships and the character growth is completely expected. The book is a quick read however I didn't really care about the characters or the murder so it felt like it took a long time.

If books were judged on their premise alone, One Of Us Is Lying would be an instant success. It’s what got me hooked on this book in the first place. Five students walk into detention, only four come out alive. Pay close attention and you might solve the mystery. EEEEEEEK. Exciting!

It’s not a twisted sort of fate that brings Bronwyn, Addy, Nate and Cooper together in detention on the evening of Simon Kelleher’s death. They’ve been set up. Someone wanted them there. To witness or to draw suspicion, no one can tell for sure, but after that night they will never be the same again. Simon was murdered and someone in that classroom is responsible.
As people start pointing fingers, “the Bayview four” try to move on with their lives. Except Simon’s killer does not grant them much time to process. Harmful evidence against the four starts conveniently popping up – which begs the question, which one of them is lying? Who is digging graves for the others?

It was all extremely addictive. Not just the search for Simon’s killer, but also the gossip floating around and the connection between this particular set of characters. The writing was engaging and fast-paced. Exactly right for this kind of book. I couldn’t keep myself from reading once I had started.

To be fair, the unravelling of the story could have been more mind-blowing. I guessed early on who was responsible for Simon’s death and although there may have been moments where my confidence wavered the tiniest bit, in the end I had it right. It doesn’t matter too much. The book was still intriguing. But some things were a little too simple or needed just a tad more foundation. The story was definitely good, but it had the potential to be great. So despite my appreciation, I also felt like the book missed that ‘something’ that made it extraordinary.

The characters are introduced as your average high school stereotypes. The brain, the beauty, the athlete, the criminal and the outcast. I was surprisingly okay with it. Because they own their status. Each one of them feels safe within his/her group of people. But as secrets start coming out and they have to fall back on each other instead of their former safety net, the author takes them beyond their initial labels. I thought it was really well done. As the characters have to face the consequences of their actions, they can’t hide anymore, they have to show the world who they really are. Painfully, relatably human.

There is romance in the book, but in a good, low-key kind of way. It doesn’t take over the story or diverts the focus. There was chemistry and believable emotion. I think it served the story well. The boy was also really my type of guy, so that helps a lot of course.

I would definitely recommend this book. It’s a compelling read with likeable characters and an intriguing plot, helped along by good writing and a fast pacing. A decent young adult mystery for sure. I’ve seen the book being compared to Pretty Little Liars and I agree. It has the same vibe. A bunch of teenagers framed for murder who constantly feel like there’s a sword hanging above their heads. Sounds pretty similar to me.

This story turned out to surprise me as I didn't see the ending coming! I had no idea about any of the revelations until they were revealed and I love that in a mystery! Things that were seemingly not important actually were and I missed the clues but they are there! The book got better as it progressed and as we got to know the 4 teens and who they really were. I could relate to many of the problems they faced, Addy's mainly unfortunately. This book brought up some key issues of today and I loved how everything played out for the good in the end. There was a sweet romance as well.

I find myself reaching first for the mystery/thrillers in my YA queue, and this one's intriguing premise—a dead student, only four other students in the room—moved it to the top of the list. The priority treatment was justified: the four narrative viewpoints are distinctive and gripping. Each character reveals secrets that keep them on the reader's suspect list. Relationships are complicated, convincing, and even moving. A solidly satisfying mystery. Recommended.

If you're someone who is interested in thriller/mystery but is a scaredy cat or squeamish like me, this is the perfect read for you. The mystery was fun and there were some fun creepy moments, but nothing that will keep you up at night. I loved all of the four main characters. They each started out as stereotypes: Nate, the criminal; Cooper, the jock; Addy, the beauty; and Bronwyn, the brain...but they were all explored far beyond those parameters throughout the book. It was also surprising how much the idea of male privilege came into play here, and the narrative (while subtly) definitely spoke to its toxicity and danger, which was a smart move and much appreciated. There was also a nice smattering of romance, which kept things fun when the main mystery threatened to get a little bit repetetive. I will say that the ending erred a bit too much toward the contemporary once the murder had been solved, but because I was trash for that romance sub-plot anyway, it didn't bother me too much. This is the ideal YA summer beach read and I'm really looking forward to seeing what McManus does next.

Every once in a while a book that is a joy to read ends up in your hands. This was one of those books. Initially this book completely escaped my notice but then I started seeing some really great reviews for it from a lot of different people. I saw a bandwagon and decided to jump on. I am so glad that I did. This book was such a surprise for me. I hoped that I would like it but I never expected to love it. Once I got about midway through the book, I didn't put it down until I turned the last page.

The characters in this story are great. I had hoped that I would like the characters when I started reading this book. I never dreamed for a moment that I would love them. The four main characters at the heart of this book are all very different from each other and I really felt like I got to know them over the course of the book. There were times that I felt like the book was really focusing on one character more than the others but then the focus would move on to the next character for a while. I really enjoyed getting to know all four members of the group.

This book starts out in detention. Simon, Bronwyn, Addy, Cooper, and Nate are the only students in detention that day but after a terrifying emergency only four students ever get to leave. Simon is rushed to the hospital where he later dies. The authorities think that one or all of the other students might be responsible for his death since Simon was about to reveal big secrets about each person on his gossip blog.

The mystery in this book was really very well done. I had no idea what happened to Simon. I would come up with a theory only to realize that I had to be wrong soon after. I was literally guessing until the end of the book. I also really felt for each of the characters as their secrets were revealed. All four really go through a major life change during the course of this book.

I would highly recommend this book to others. This was a very smartly written story that was next to impossible to put down. I am very impressed by the fact that this is the first book written by Karen M. McManus. I look forward to reading more of her work in the future.

I received an advance reader edition of this book from Random House Children's - Delacorte Press via NetGalley.