Murder Between Friends by Liz Lawson is a really well-written mystery about three friends who have a whole lot of history and baggage between them. I really enjoyed the writing style and the twists and turns of this book.

I thought this book was a good little popcorn thriller! The story was entertaining and kept my interest. I feel like there was a LOT going on (high school drug ring, teacher murder unrelated) but, again, although it felt a little disjointed it kept me interested.

Thank you to Ms. Lawson's team for allowing me an arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Liz writes about a group of friends that are trying to completely exonerate Jake for the murder of a beloved teacher. The deeper they dig, the more secrets they find. As soon as you think you know 'whodunnit', no you don't .This was definitely a great and easy read and something that I would allow my teenager to read as well. Absolutely worth the read.

This was my first Liz Lawson book and I look forward to reading more. There was one twist that I had predicted and I wish it had been a touch more subtle but overall I really enjoyed this book. Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

I didn’t get a chance to listen to this audiobook before it was removed from my shelf. I look forward to reading it in the future!

This book deserves more than 5 stars!

From the start to the end, the story kept me hooked and I could not put it down. The plot was so well thought out and it was paced so well! I loved the character development between Grace, Ally, and Henry.

The ending was insanely shocking! I was so surprised when I found out that Lara was so involved in Applebaum's murder and she helped Evan cover it up. It was a twist I never saw coming.

I loved it so so much and I would definitely reread it again!

Oh, the twists and the turns! This was such a fantastic mystery. It reminded me of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder or Truly Devious, both books I love.

This one centers on three friends. Or used-to-be friends. After one of them (Grace) testifies against the brother of another and helps to get him put in jail for murder, things kind of fell apart.

But now that the brother is out of jail on a technicality, Grace isn't so sure anymore that she DID see him that night. So together the three ex-friends are trying to figure out what really happened.

There was a lot going on in this book and I had a lot of fun trying to figure out exactly what happened. Some things I guessed, and others completely shocked me.

I definitely recommend this one for any YA mystery lovers.

Tense, twisty true-crime dive - Murder Between Friends by Liz Lawson unpacks a shocking betrayal with sharp storytelling, vivid detail, and emotional insight. Lawson keeps you hooked till the final revelation.

Okay, so Murder Between Friends had all the right ingredients—twists, a small-town murder vibe, messy friendships, and secrets waiting to explode. And I was into it… at first.

The book starts strong. I liked the setup: three ex-besties forced to reconnect after a murder case gets flipped upside down. The tension? Juicy. The drama? Messy in a good way. It gave me that “read this in one sitting” energy… for like, the first third.

But here’s where it lost me a bit: the three POVs didn’t feel super distinct. I kept forgetting who was talking, which made it hard to really connect with any of them. And some of the twists felt a little too convenient. You know when things just fall into place too neatly? Yeah.

I will say this though—there were some solid emotional moments, especially around friendship, grief, and learning how to trust again. I just wish the pacing didn’t dip so much in the middle and that the character voices had a little more bite.

Overall: not a bad read at all, just didn’t fully blow me away. Worth checking out if you love small-town secrets and teen angst wrapped in a murder mystery.

Full of twists, this is a perfect choice for fans of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, April Henry books, or even The Naturals series.
Through three perspectives, readers get to know Henry, Ally, and Grace as they reunite to clear the name of Henry's brother (Jake) before his retrial in the murder of a high school English teacher. Grace gave testimony in the original trial which helped put Jake behind bars and severed her friendship with Henry and Ally. Messy, emotional friendships; plot twists to keep you guessing; must read for mystery fans.

Oh how I wish I could erase my memory of reading this book just so that I could read it again for the first time! I adored the captivating trio of main characters, whose dynamics are complex and add to the narrative's depth. They feel realistic both within the overarching mystery plot and as teens are who all struggling with conflicting emotions. There's such stellar pacing with perfectly timed increasing tension throughout. It's so engaging that it's genuinely difficult to put down right until the last pages.

2 ⭐️

Nearly 2 years after the murder of a beloved teacher, Ally, Henry, and Grace are navigating their senior year. Ally and Henry are each others’ only real friends after Grace previously testified to witnessing Henry’s brother entering their teachers’ house that fateful night 2 years ago. With the original conviction vacated and Henry’s brother being released, old emotions are being resurfaced and grace is starting to question if she remembered things correctly.

Though still at odds, the trio reluctantly regroup to try and uncover what really happened to their teacher and provide Henry’s brother’s innocence before his retrial.

It may be in part because I’ve read some really good YA stories lately, but this one just didn’t do it for me. I know these are teenagers but all three MCs were pretty insufferable and there was little to no character development for any of them. There were several plot holes and inconsistencies and some twists revealed that are just.. not really acknowledged.. <spoiler>like we’re just going to ignore the fact that Ally’s dad was actually murdered?! </spoiler>

I see several reviews likening this to A Good Girls Guide To Murder and in my opinion they don’t even come close. This story was a quick read, relatively fast paced and short chapters with some twists that weren’t entirely predictable but the overall quality of the story just didn’t cut it for me.

Thank you Random House Children's and Delacorte Press for an opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for this ARC. I loved how the book starts out after a murder has happened,. The brother of the accused is trying to clear his name, and you go on a twisty and an edge of your seat ride to find out who was the murderer in the story. This was a fun Y a thriller, and I enjoyed learning about all the different POV’s from each of the kids involved in the friend group. I felt like you were learning each different puzzle piece of each person involved in the group and then you were led to the conclusion of putting all those puzzle pieces together to find out what really happened . I would definitely recommend this book for YA readers who would enjoy engaging thriller books!

This murder mystery starts with the Jake, the boy that had been found guilty of murdering his high school teacher being, released on a technicality, and when Jake’s brother begins to try to clear his name, he finds himself in the middle of a dark secret.

A murdered teacher, best friends that end up turning on each her, and a web of lies we have to sift through to try to find out what happens is the basis of Murder Between Friends. This story is a dark thriller that takes you in a wild ride from the start. The different characters point of view and the jumping back and forth between timelines were done so well. One of our main characters, Grace, has to figure out if what she’s always believed is actually the truth and we can’t help but be just as confused yet eager to piece everything together as her. From beginning to end, this book goes full force, with all the twists and never a dull moment!

Liz Lawson you mastermind! I need all books to have rotating character chapters, this murder mystery invokes three best friends well ex best friends as they work together to discover the truth about the murder of Ms. Applebaum. This is scooby doo tied up with drug dealers, fraud, weddings and some romance. Overall I loved the book and I’ve been a fan since the Agatha’s. This author doesn’t disappoint, join the mystery today!

This one kept me on the edge of my seat as I read it! There were a lot of plot twists I didn't see coming, and just when I thought I knew what was happening, something else would pop up to change my mind. It was hard to put the book down, and I finished it in one sitting because I had to know how it ended.

This was a great YA thriller. I thought I knew what was going on so many times, but there are so many twists and turns!

We get POVs from all three people in this friend group. So we get all the information in pieces but not the bigger picture a lot of the time, because they don't always communicate.

It felt like a quick read because there was always new information coming in. I couldn't put it down.

Amazing from start to finish I completely flew through it in a day. Wasn’t expecting that ending I really enjoyed all the characters and the story line!

Murder Between Friends is a twisty murder mystery in which nothing is as it seems. The writing keeps you guessing who the actual killer is until the very end.