Reviews with content warning for Drug abuse - You'll Be the Death of Me

As always, McManus's books are phenomenal. Can always rely on them to pull me out of a reading slump. I adored the main trio of characters. Their struggles and secrets and character development made this story all the more interesting. The pacing of this was phenomenal (better than OoUiL, sorryyy), which explains why I finished this in mere hours. Ivy and her overachieving struggles, her fear of rejection really resonated with me. Also appreciate how the book touched upon the topic of female predators and how they are let off easier than their male counterparts. I am so glad that Cal is doing better by the end and is finally happy. Same goes for Mateo; his sense of duty, streak of stubbornness and fear of failure also struck a chord. Excellent book honestly.

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duckie619's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

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

2.25

Vibes: Ferris Bueller's Day Off crossbred with an episode of Law and Order: SVU (because they’re kids, not because of sex crimes).

Rating: 2.25 of 5

Recommend: Maybe, but it’s definitely the weakest offering by McManus

Favorite Character: The Charming and Totally Loveable Lacrosse Coach

Least Favorite Character: Cal

Favorite Scene: When the Big Reveal happens and the mystery comes together. It didn’t really make sense but at least it meant the book was almost finished.

Least Favorite Scene: When Ivy spills her dark and dirty secret to Mateo - really cemented this as a book written for fans of Riverdale who eat up absurd out-of-left-field type drama.

My take: I guess I am too old now to be the target audience of young adult mystery novels because this book was such a letdown. I’ve read everything else McManus has written and even though the reveals are always a little nutty, You’ll Be the Death of Me takes the cake. It seems like the author was more focused on the relationship between the 3 teens instead of building up the rest of the plot, so the reveal really didn’t make much sense to me and trying to tie all the different outside characters together in the end was a bit forced. The storyline was pulled in too many directions and ended up a scrambled mess, especially the ending, which was clearly a set up for a sequel.

I do think McManus is a good writer in the technical sense - the story is easy to read and flows well so it was a pretty quick read. But that’s really all it has going for it. The reveal of the student/teacher relationship was off putting and while it’s essential to the plot I just don’t think it was handled correctly. The darker elements of the story just get thrown at you which makes them more jarring than if there had been more of a build up.

Overall I don’t have much to say about it except that it was very meh. If you really like everything else she’s written then maybe you’ll like this too, but it’s definitely geared towards a teen audience in my opinion.

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froggybooks's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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rey_reads's review against another edition

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mysterious fast-paced

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

3.5

Very typical of the YA genre - the writing was good, but not outstanding. I tend to be drawn towards more poetic writing, or intricate, clever descriptions, and this book didn't really have that.
Interesting mystery and plot idea, but I didn't like any of the characters enough to really connect with it. Minor plot holes. Characters made bad/ ill thought-out decisions throughout, but I'm not convinced they showed any development.
Pacing towards the end was a bit odd and left me feeling unsatisfied.
I did enjoy parts of the book, and the plot was strong enough that it was an overall enjoyable and quick read, but ultimately the characters didn't feel realistic or compelling enough for me to really connect with the story.

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ladybug13's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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