Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by nancymae_reads
One of Us Is Next by Karen M. McManus
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.75
I have no words. I truly thought I knew how this story would go, and I didn’t.
After reading the first book in this series last year, I soft dnf’d this book last year but thought this year was the time to try again. I enjoyed One of us is Lying, the plot twists in the first book I saw coming, as did I in this book, or so I thought.
The storyline follows Maeve (previous fmc Bronwyn’s sister) Knox and Phoebe and although loosely includes the Bayview Four from the previous book, it focuses solely on a new copycat of Simon. The Truth or Dare aspect of the book I loved, but thought that it became almost a secondary feature to the actual storyline and I would have loved to see this play out a bit more. The storyline arc of the secondary characters of Sean and Jules, to me, seemed to lack. Throughout the book it seemed that the author was writing these characters to reveal or throw off the scent of the actual plot twist, but it in fact, when the truth was revealed, the characters just seemed underdeveloped to me.
I had figured out about 150 pages from the end of the book that Emma (one of the fmc’s Phoebe’s sister) was involved in the murder. However the final chapter! The final 5 pages of the book threw me for a loop, and in the end is the reason why this review is higher than I thought it would be. For the author to make the sweetest most innocent character (Owen) become the person to truly be the villain was completely out of the left field for me. As soon as the reveal happened I had goosebumps and had to pause the book to process. The instant callback of the spelling mistake was incredible writing and truly shows why this author is so highly recommended and awarded.
A 3.75⭐️ for me. An enjoyable read.
After reading the first book in this series last year, I soft dnf’d this book last year but thought this year was the time to try again. I enjoyed One of us is Lying, the plot twists in the first book I saw coming, as did I in this book, or so I thought.
The storyline follows Maeve (previous fmc Bronwyn’s sister) Knox and Phoebe and although loosely includes the Bayview Four from the previous book, it focuses solely on a new copycat of Simon. The Truth or Dare aspect of the book I loved, but thought that it became almost a secondary feature to the actual storyline and I would have loved to see this play out a bit more. The storyline arc of the secondary characters of Sean and Jules, to me, seemed to lack. Throughout the book it seemed that the author was writing these characters to reveal or throw off the scent of the actual plot twist, but it in fact, when the truth was revealed, the characters just seemed underdeveloped to me.
I had figured out about 150 pages from the end of the book that Emma (one of the fmc’s Phoebe’s sister) was involved in the murder. However the final chapter! The final 5 pages of the book threw me for a loop, and in the end is the reason why this review is higher than I thought it would be. For the author to make the sweetest most innocent character (Owen) become the person to truly be the villain was completely out of the left field for me. As soon as the reveal happened I had goosebumps and had to pause the book to process. The instant callback of the spelling mistake was incredible writing and truly shows why this author is so highly recommended and awarded.
A 3.75⭐️ for me. An enjoyable read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail