Scan barcode
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This book is very slow for the first 60%. There is a lot of focus on drama unrelated to the underlying mystery and characters that don't matter past the initial burst of drama. There is somehow not enough focus on any of these characters to pull off a red herring maneuver. You can basically figure out the plot by the 70% mark aside from a few details that were mishandled, in my opinion. There is also a romance between a 17 year old and someone who is old enough to have graduated college. There is a character blatantly introduced at the 90% mark. He is mentioned two to four times throughout the book but only in passing as the "intense guy." To no one's surprise he is one of the three culprits and not at all a red herring. There are three culprits: Emma, Owen, Jared Jackson. Jared Jackson made a deal with Emma in a revenge board. Emma did this through the use of her sister's phone as she had conveniently lost hers. Emma admits this all from the hospital bed where she is suffering from the effects of alcohol poisoning. When Emma backs out by ghosting on Jared, Owen (the little brother) steps in, steals the pseudonym, and pursues revenge against Brandon for the death of his father. Emma and Phoebe agree to act like Jared fabricated Owen's messages to protect him. The reveal right at the end of the book is a very cheap gimmick and though it was executed properly, it feels unrealistic to how someone of that age demographic would respond to the info they'd acquired.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Bullying, Violence, Blood, Sexual assault, Death, Alcoholism, Murder, Vomit, Child death, Chronic illness, and Cancer
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Child death, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, and Stalking
Minor: Suicide, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Death, Homophobia, and Racism
There is a subplot of a bomb but only one person is injured and they survive but will have scars. There was also a subplot of a corrupt police officer who framed and blackmailed someone for drugs.markitherainbowreader's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
The story is pretty scattered and I wasn't sure what and who to pay attention to.
The tension/mystery aspect felt super inconsistent. There was a "countdown" dowards someone dying and then we find out it was the asshole who made like a single appearance being abusive. Not really a shocker and not a pity. Phoebe as a POV character was absolutely forgettable to me. But. I love Knox. I love Maeve and I cared about their storylines a lot. I liked the cameos by the heroes from the first book. And it all came together in the end. And somehow it still managed to keep me glued to the pages and elicit feels in me. So 4*
The tension/mystery aspect felt super inconsistent.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Vomit, Cancer, and Alcoholism
sarahro's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Great sequel that picks up 18 months after book 1 and thankfully still includes the original Bayview Four as minor characters. I wouldn't have enjoyed the novel as much as I did without the Nate/Bronwyn snippets here and there.
But I have to admit that Maeve was a perfect mc and even though I struggled with Phoebe and Knox in the beginning I liked their character development throughout the story. My favourite character turned out to be Luis, which was completely unexpected since I didn't even know he played a role in the sequel.
The mystery was okay but not as thrilling as Simon's ploy in book 1. The ending felt a bit rushed and I think the very last chapter was not as satisfying as it could have been.
Still, I flew through the pages and feel at home in Bayview, despite its dark side and revenge forums. I am looking forward to part 3 this year!
But I have to admit that Maeve was a perfect mc and even though I struggled with Phoebe and Knox in the beginning I liked their character development throughout the story. My favourite character turned out to be Luis, which was completely unexpected since I didn't even know he played a role in the sequel.
The mystery was okay but not as thrilling as Simon's ploy in book 1. The ending felt a bit rushed and I think the very last chapter was not as satisfying as it could have been.
Still, I flew through the pages and feel at home in Bayview, despite its dark side and revenge forums. I am looking forward to part 3 this year!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit and Alcoholism
Moderate: Stalking and Cancer
Minor: Suicide, Sexual assault, and Death of parent
steffi_lag's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts
sophiabooks6's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This book was very entertaining and I loved reading it! While the first book, One of us is Lying is better, I found myself very interested in the characters and trying to guess what would happen next. The ending is a bit confusing but it's still very much worth the read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Toxic relationship, and Cancer
Moderate: Sexual assault
taelights's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
Personally I didn't like this one as much as the first book until the very end because I just disliked all the characters so I just couldn't get into it. I think this author is just not for me and I should just stick the the tv adaption but i will be giving the next book a read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Bullying, Medical trauma, Terminal illness, Vomit, Cancer, Gaslighting, Grief, Infidelity, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Chronic illness, Medical content, Murder, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
deadgirlwalking23's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Cancer, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Bullying
Minor: Suicide and Vomit
graceev's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Bullying, Cancer, Alcoholism, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Medical content, Death of parent, Death, and Infidelity
tsnhjhn's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I was not expecting to like the sequel (or more of a spinoff, since this book focuses on a different cast of characters related to the Bayview four) as much as I did.
18 months after the events of the original story, comes a knockoff Truth or Dare game inspired by Simon's page. I was initially disappointed that the sequel wouldn't be focused on the original loveable cast, but I quickly grew to love this new cast: Maeve (Bronwyn's younger sister), Knox (Maeve's ex and best friend), and Phoebe. All of the cameos from the other four were super satisfying.
Bronwyn is at Yale and she and Nate are now in an on-and-off relationshipbut they are endgame omg so so good , Cooper is amazing at college baseball and is still with Kris, and Addy is still in town and her sister, Ashton, and Eli (the lawyer from Until Proven) are getting married!!
The mystery part was, admittedly, not as thrilling as the first book because we spend time just catching up with old characters and reading all the drama play out between the new ones, but I honestly didn't mind at all. McManus is GOOD at fleshing out characters and making you root for them, and there was no shortage of character flaws here (Addy and Phoebe are foils to each other in their questionable actions), but the character and relationship development (not just romantic, but platonic ones--Phoebe and Maeve, Maeve and Knox, etc,--and familial ones--Phoebe and Emma, Knox and his dad--were done so well).
This book was also just a step up from the last one in terms of humor and writing; there were some moments in the last one that just felt slightly dated and cringe, but this book was not like that at all.
Now for the actual mystery plot twist oh boy:Jared being the one sending Eli death threats but also being Unknown and Intense Guy was just wow. I admit, I kinda didn't like that he wasn't a Bayview student bc I was like what is the point then, but his motives made sense, and Emma kinda satisfied that itch of having a traitor in the midst. And the brief moment where everyone was like oh no is Phoebe really the one is she not who we thought she was--THAT got me I absolutely did not want that to be true and I'm glad it wasn't. BUT OMG WHO saw the Owen thing coming?? The whole bizarre/bazaar thing--my jaw dropped when I saw that, now THAT was an amazing plot twist and one that needed few words (only a single one) to reveal who continued where Emma left off. I am just so so sad for their father that was a tragedy that never should have happened and tbh? Brandon's death felt like an eye for an eye and a part of me felt satisfied. But Phoebe is way more mature than me when she was like no that wasn't right. The other thing is that these kids are really emotionally mature for their age regardless of the mistakes they make at the beginning, and it's nice to read.
Honestly, I just really appreciate all the full circle moments McManus adds to tie up every loose plot thread because she never adds a single little scene without it having some greater significance later on (e.g. endgame, bazaar).
Can't wait for Book 3!!
18 months after the events of the original story, comes a knockoff Truth or Dare game inspired by Simon's page. I was initially disappointed that the sequel wouldn't be focused on the original loveable cast, but I quickly grew to love this new cast: Maeve (Bronwyn's younger sister), Knox (Maeve's ex and best friend), and Phoebe. All of the cameos from the other four were super satisfying.
Bronwyn is at Yale and she and Nate are now in an on-and-off relationship
The mystery part was, admittedly, not as thrilling as the first book because we spend time just catching up with old characters and reading all the drama play out between the new ones, but I honestly didn't mind at all. McManus is GOOD at fleshing out characters and making you root for them, and there was no shortage of character flaws here (Addy and Phoebe are foils to each other in their questionable actions), but the character and relationship development (not just romantic, but platonic ones--Phoebe and Maeve, Maeve and Knox, etc,--and familial ones--Phoebe and Emma, Knox and his dad--were done so well).
This book was also just a step up from the last one in terms of humor and writing; there were some moments in the last one that just felt slightly dated and cringe, but this book was not like that at all.
Now for the actual mystery plot twist oh boy:
Honestly, I just really appreciate all the full circle moments McManus adds to tie up every loose plot thread because she never adds a single little scene without it having some greater significance later on (e.g. endgame, bazaar).
Can't wait for Book 3!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, and Alcoholism
luxxltyd's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Cancer, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Sexual assault