A murder that tore a town apart, betrayal among friends, and layers of secrets all drive the pace and emotion of this thriller. When the case is reopened due to an overturned conviction, the trauma resurfaces at school, in the homes of the families, and the hearts and minds of the teens at the center of the novel. The characters are unique and engaging, especially Grace - who doubts her initial testimony, Ally - who cannot forgive Grace, and Henry - confused by his brother’s apparent apathy about having to go to trial again. Lawson has a grasp of the teen brain - impulsive, reflective, critical, unforgiving, longing, fearful, and hopeful - and uses that to craft complex characters who find themselves in seriously complicated and dangerous situations. I was hooked at the start and barely put the book down until I was finished.

Thank you to Random House Children's, Delacorte Press, Netgalley, and the author for early access to this complex thriller.

The premise is a strong one: 3 estranged friends—Grace, Ally, and Henry—reunite to investigate the long-unsolved murder of their high school teacher after the conviction of Henry’s brother, Jake, is overturned. As Grace begins to question the testimony she gave years earlier, the trio dives into a tangled web of past betrayals and buried secrets.

Despite the compelling setup, I found the book slow-moving, which made it difficult to stay fully engaged. The emotional depth and alternating perspectives add nuance, but the suspense never quite builds in a satisfying way. I saw the twist coming well before the reveal, which made the ending feel underwhelming.

That said, the novel thoughtfully explores themes like guilt, trust, and redemption. If you’re looking for a character-driven mystery with a gradual burn, this might still be worth a read—just don’t expect a high-stakes thriller.

<b> "Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow." </b>
The high school has been turned upside down when a teacher had been murdered and one of the students have been charged with the murder. Everyone thinks it is clear cut, but friends and brother of the charged seems to think differently. The main issue had been how their friendship has dissolved. They have to work together, somehow, and figure out if Jake actually did murder Ms. Applebaum.
*
Really enjoyed this YA mystery. It has murder, suspense, mistaken identity and grief. It also has many different POV which not only makes the story flow very well, but really aids in the mystery.
*
If you are a crime junkie that loves when internet sleuths take matters into their own hands, this book is for you!

3-Star

Murder Between Friends was an extremely bingeable read—I flew through the pages wanting to see how it all unfolded. That said, I had most of the plot twists figured out within the first few chapters, which took away some of the suspense for me. The twist at the end, which I didn’t see coming, did help redeem the story a bit and kept it from feeling too predictable. I think I would’ve rated it higher had the earlier reveals not felt so obvious. Still, it’s a quick, entertaining read if you’re in the mood for something fast-paced.

This was a really good YA thriller about finding out the truth about what really happened to their friend! This was twisty and left you wanting more!

Two years ago, their teacher was murdered, and Henry's older brother Jake was convicted of the murder. Henry's best friend and semi-girlfriend Grace testified that she saw Jake go into the house, blowing up their relationship both with each other and their third friend Ally. Now, Grace is questioning what she saw, and tries to help Ally and Henry prove that Jake is innocent.

Sounds like a great premise, right? I thought so too. But overall, I did not like this book. There were very few parts of good, mostly just in the fact that the author is clearly very good at suspense. It was established very early that everyone had secrets, and the way that the reveals were sprinkled throughout was clever.

However, the writing made it a struggle to read. A lot of perfectly normal conversations between characters take a hard turn into screaming matches. It's like interacting with a toxic family member and I hated it. And I get that they're kids, but these characters were bumbling around like idiots and had no subtlety when questioning people. I'm surprised anyone told them anything. It did kind of make me laugh every time one of the characters said that they were getting annoyed with each other, since I spent pretty much the whole book annoyed with them all. Everyone is selfish, superficial, and just plain sucks. Considering how mediocre I found the majority of the book, I should have expected the big reveal to be lackluster, but I actually thought it would be interesting, so I was disappointed when it all came out.

This could be because I was reading an ARC, but there were several continuity errors that took me out of the story.

I appreciate receiving this ARC from the publisher and NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to read for free. Review is my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the eARC.

This book was really enjoyable! It was fun and twisty and YA enough to be YA but not off putting to an adult reading. These teens are far smarter than me and I really found it fun to watch them outsmart the professionals! 3.75/5.

Two years have passed since Jake was placed in jail due to Grace testifying that he had killed their teacher. So, when Jake is released from prison and Grace starts to question what she really saw that night, she turns to her old friends Ally and Henry hoping they might be able to save Jake. This book is told from three different points of view that come together seamlessly to weave a tale that will sweep readers up in a world where lies come to the surface and everything you think you know gets turned on its head. I quite enjoyed this story and am excited to get it into readers’ hands.
Thank you to Random House Children’s and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

This was a pretty good young adult mystery/thriller book. Some parts were a little slow, but the ending was great and I didn't fully see it coming.

It's been two years since Jake went to prison for killing popular newspaper teacher Ms Applebaum. The tragic effects on the friendship of Ally, Grace and Jake's brother, Henry are laid bare when Jake is release on a technicality. Thrown together again by circumstances, the three begin an investigation to prove Jake's innocence. By seeking the truth, however, they risk more than their reputation. They risk their very lives. Told in a style reminiscent of Karen McManus' One of Us is Lying, we see events from each of the three's perspective. This book will keep you guessing until the end.

Short and Sweet Review

Grace, Ally, and Henry used to be best friends until Grace gives a witness testimony in court against Henry’s brother Jake saying he killed their teacher. It’s been two years since Jake was put away and now he’s getting out because of a mistrial. Henry knows his brother is innocent and Ally is by Henry’s side 100%. Grace is now unsure of what she actually saw that night and wants to make things right by helping Henry and Ally find new evidence before the date for the new trial is set but Henry is wary of her and Ally just doesn’t trust Grace at all.

I’ve read The Agatha’s series by Liz Lawson and Kathleen Glasgow, so I was excited to see that Lawson was writing another mystery. This book was so good, I loved it. Two years ago Jake was arrested for the murder of a beloved teacher and Grace’s testimony put him away. We get the POV of all of the characters and we see a lot of Grace and Henry but I will say Ally’s POV becomes more important towards the end of the book. Henry has gone through a hard time, they live in a small town and a majority of people in town believe Jake is guilty. Grace used to be friends with Henry and Ally but now she hangs out with kids who are more popular, she tries to do the right thing and we can see she tries to be the moral compass and be there for people she cares about. Ally is more rough around the edges but deep down she’s a softy, around the time of this book we see its the anniversary of her dad’s death. I think Ally is cold towards Grace because she feels like what she did was a betrayal and Grace was one of her best friends so it hurts. Henry was faster to forgive Grace and we can see that when they’re together it makes Ally feel like a third wheel but I liked the dynamic that each of the characters had whether it was when they were in pairs or all together. The mystery was good and I loved seeing these three find clues and interview different people. I’ve read a lot of mysteries so I was able to figure out who the actual murderer was but that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book.

Overall, definitely check this book out, it’s full of twists and turns and a trio of great characters. If you’ve read The Agathas and need a new mystery to scratch that itch Murder Between Friends is the book you need!

Thank you for advanced copy.

I believe this was a suspenseful, fast paced read that young adults will love. The characters were engaging and interesting. I mostly had the ending figured out but there was one twist that I didn’t see coming!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc and to PRH Audio for the alc.

This was a pretty decent ya thriller. One reason I am choosing to not rate this book 5 stars is because I found some parts of the story to be a bit slow. I also thought the story was slightly predictable. Overall, I thought it was a decent ya thriller, and I thought the three audioboook narrators did a good job. I may consider reading more by Liz Lawson in the future.

Thank you NetGalley for an aARC.
This was such a good suspense 'who done it' kind of book. I had no idea the ending was going to be what it was. It kept me on the edge of my seat and kept me wanting to read "just one more chapter" until the very last page. The book is a murder mystery and is told from the perspective of three different people. I definitely recommend this book. I love that the book explores different family and friends dynamics. I love the way the author did the multi-POV. I'll be honest, there is a part in the story where one of the MC's talks about how old and boring the book Frankenstein is and I almost cried at that- I absolutely LOVE Frankenstein. I don't know if this is how the author actually feels, or if it was just a dialogue for the teenage character in the story (because let's be real here, a lot of teenagers don't always love the required reading at schools). Regardless, the story was amazing. The characters were dynamic and you really felt for each one of them. I would read another book by this author for sure.

This was definitely a fun read. I really liked all the characters. Everything made sense- there were no loose ends or plotholes for the sake of throwing off the reader. I wish we got a little more of Jake somehow! This was a little slow for me personally for a while, which is why I took off one star, but it picks up and then doesn’t stop! This will definitely be a book that will fit into my classroom library.

Thank you for the ARC. I usually do not read young adult, but this book was surprising good. It kept me guessing until the end.

3.5 stars. This was an ARC from NetGalley. This is a highschool, YA, who-dun-it, with a group of used to be friends coming back together to try to clear the accused of a murder that took place several years ago, very reminiscent of a Karen McManus novel. Overall, I enjoyed this story. The characters were well developed and kept the story moving forward. I will say all the twists were a bit predictable and I had figured out in the first fourth of the book. The second half did get a bit slow, and felt like it could have been edited down. Quick, enjoyable read #netgalley #murderbetweenfriends #ya #whodunit #highschool #mystery

This was awesome! A story of murder, gripping suspense, DRAMAAAAAA, etc. I love how quickly the story develops and progresses. I found myself completely engrossed in each page.

4 stars

This book was really good. I liked 2 of the 3 main characters. Ally was problematic for me. I get that she was supposed to be loyal and determined but she came across as petulant towards Grace and and more than a little reckless when investigating. If this was my 17 year old, she would be grounded for life! I loved Henry and Grace together and apart. I was really surprised by the last twist in this one. Would have like to see a little more of an epilogue but it ended ok without. Can’t wait to see if this is a one-off by this author or she has more great stories to tell!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Jake is being released from prison and everyone is thinking about what happened two years ago. One of the reasons Jake was convicted was because Grace said she saw him near the scene, but now she wonders if she saw Jake or someone wearing Jake’s jacket. Grace, Ally, and Henry (Jake’s brother) decide to rekindle their friendship and look for evidence to prove his innocence. Did Jake kill his English teacher? If he didn’t, then who did?

Murder Between Friends is a stand-alone thriller that immediately grabbed my attention and kept me engaged the entire time. I was fully invested in the results of this investigation and waited for the conclusion as the pages almost turned themselves. Lawson created characters that were believable with an investigation that was just as plausible. Murder Between Friends would be a fun read for all thriller fans.