Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - One of Us Is Next

This is a great, albeit slightly far-fetched, second part of a fun series. I am realising that I really enjoy YA thrillers; there's often more of a funny streak running through them than in an adult thriller, which seems to make me plough through them so quickly. Here we see the next group of high school students after the original Bayview Four (who still have peripheral roles) have moved on.

It's hard not to compare this to the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series. Both have plucky, intelligent groups of students solving complex mysteries at an age where I could barely choose an outfit or hair colour. They also both contain enough characters that reading the second book took a bit of flicking back and forth through pages before I could really remember how everyone was connected. And both seem to invite an inordinate amount of death and drama to one small community.

But this is where I'm happy to suspend my disbelief. The plot of One Of Us Is Next is fun, cleverly connected and intriguing, so I can overlook how implausible it is that so much happens in one high school. The way so many sub-plots connect is really interesting, and I was a little blindsided (and upset) by the ending, which I didn't see coming at all.

I've just heard there's a third installment on the way, so I'm looking forward to where things go from here.

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violetbentbackwards1036's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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kat_rowlen's review

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Not quite as good as One of Us is Lying, but a twisty and gripping read nonetheless. I loved how the characters from the first book made appearances, and we could see there growth. The beginning and ending of this book felt disconnected to me. I wish the truth or dare aspect would’ve stretched through the entire story. I didn’t see the ending coming though!

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conspystery's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

The question I often find myself asking with sequels to mystery novels is, simply enough, why? Do we need to explore the lives of the characters from the first novel in the wake of whatever tragedy has befallen them, to examine that trauma? Are we seeing how a community heals and learning something new? Are we tying up loose ends, following threads intentionally left unresolved in the first book? One of Us is Next feels mostly like it is doing none of those things-- it might be trying, but in my opinion it is largely unsuccessful. I felt it was tacked on quite awkwardly to the first book, and didn’t do much to meaningfully develop on the existing narrative and characters.

Don’t get me wrong here: I liked getting to see the new cast. In particular, I really liked Phoebe, and I also enjoyed seeing more of Maeve-- I think from a writing standpoint, she’s the strongest character here. But once again, I have to ask why. Why these people, why this story? The connections to the first book feel contrived, almost silly. Set dressing. Why does the plot have to revolve around a copycat of Simon? It just seems to me this could’ve easily been its own story, unrelated to One of Us is Lying, with minimal changes. Ergo I feel like this book’s existence as a sequel is largely due to the fact that the previous book was pretty successful, and not because the story needed a follow up.

I understand that, though. I think that One of Us is Next does pretty well with what it’s given. Many of my problems with the last book revolved around weird tone shifts, and this book isn’t quite as bad in that regard-- it commits to its seriousness moreso than the last, as we can see in how Maeve’s leukemia storyline reflects the darker death threat plotline throughout the novel. I personally hated the romance subplot with Phoebe and Knox, but I thought Maeve’s was okay, and I liked the glimpses of Nate and Bronwyn we get to see. Their on-again-off-again thing feels realistic for their characters. Plus, I liked Nate’s limited interactions with Maeve a lot. Honestly, Nate was probably more of a favorite for me than Knox, one of the actual protagonists. Not a good sign. Of the Bayview Four, though, Addy and Cooper feel pretty detached, so once again: why these people, other than just for marketing purposes? I appreciate getting to see everybody again, but I just think this would’ve been a more interesting story on its own!

I also maintain my issues with predictability and questionable realism here, though I realize that probably wasn’t the goal-- like, not one student mentioned this to any authority at any point? How did phones NOT get banned from the school? And as surprising as I found the final plot twist to be, come on. Owen? Really? That is an entire child. I don’t know how much I believe it (even though I know this is fiction and that’s not the point.) I like its implications for the characters, though. Creates some interesting depth. Other than that, the rest of the plot was FAR more predictable than that of the first book, and, like most of the novel, feels contrived in its connection to the previous book.

Overall, this book was okay. I liked some of the characters, and some of the plot was interesting. But this was definitely not a standout to me, and I don’t think it’s an improvement on the first book. I generally don’t like sequels to mystery novels. I feel like they end up like this one more often than not: unnecessary and desperate to surprise while maintaining familiarity with the first book, which is a combination that leads to outlandish mystery/thriller aspects and contrived plot beats at once. I had the same issue with Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson. It might just be a staple of the genre. But I’m still a little disappointed.

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matidareads's review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.25

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leila_reads_too_much's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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abi4cardan_'s review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book was soooooo good, this book has such good foreshadowing which is so easily over-looked. The ending has me stunned and I can’t even begin to process what just happened!

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taque's review

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dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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