One Of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: YA Mystery/Thriller

Publication Date: 1st June 2017

Completely addictive and enjoyable read. I couldn’t resist reading almost straight away and once I started I couldn’t put it down.

Before I write anything else I should say that I’m a huge big massive fan of The Breakfast Club, it’s one of my all time favourite films. When I read the blurb for this my mind instantly thought “YES!!!!” it’s the Breakfast Club with a bit of murder mystery thrown in…. and it kind of is.

It begins with five teenagers, Addy, Nate, Bronwyn, Cooper and Simon ending up in detention together. Bronwyn is the nerdy one who gets good grades and never does anything wrong, Nate is the bad boy with a reputation for dealing drugs and the troubled home life, Cooper is the jock and Addy is the superficial popular girl. While they couldn’t be more different they all know where they fit in the school hierarchy and have their own friends, all except Simon. Simon’s the outsider who runs the school gossip app and knows everyone’s secrets. He’s more feared than popular. By the end of detention though, Simon’s dead and Addy, Nate, Bronwyn and Cooper are the main suspects.

I liked this story a lot. It has all of the elements of The Breakfast Club that I loved, the kids from different worlds and backgrounds being forced together and initially clashing before discovering that they might have more in common than they thought, but it brings it right up to date. Added to that it has a great murder mystery that keeps you guessing.

I have to admit I had an idea from the beginning who was behind it all but it was still a really enjoyable read that had enough twists and turns to keep me questioning my theory and turning those pages.

The characters are a little stereotyped but this is a deliberate part of the plot and I still found myself liking them a lot, particularly as they develop over the course of the story. Even those I wasn’t too sure about kind of grew on me by the end.

The narrative is told in alternating chapters from each of the four and it really gives you a great sense of them. I’m not always a fan of multiple pov’s but it works very well here although when you know each characters thoughts it does give an indication of who did what (or does it??).

The writing is excellent and for a debut novel it’s pretty impressive. The pacing is spot on and I loved the dialogue between the characters. The author also manages to sneak in some difficult teen issues but does it in a very natural way that gives positive messages in a non preachy way which is always good.

Overall, it’s a great story that I’d recommend and I’ll be looking forward to the authors next book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC. As always all views are my own. One of Us is Lying is due for publication on the 1st June.

OK I can’t resist a Breakfast Club gif