One of Us Is Lying is a suspense novel written by American author Karen M. McManus. She made her debut in the world of professional writing with this book. Even though it was her first piece of work, it ended up receiving several accolades including a 166-week run on the New York Times best-seller list.
It proves that she has a knack for writing and will have a successful career ahead. The author has a way in which she portrays her characters, they have depth and even if you and the characters have different personalities, you will still end up relating to them.
The plot revolves around how five people were held in detention but only four made it out alive. One of Us Is Lying is a murder mystery set in a high school. Four teenagers are under suspicion surrounding the death of one of their classmates.
Characters
There is no one protagonist here but there are four and their growth as the story evolves is tremendous and remarkable. Bronwyn is a nerd. She always makes her presence felt at school events and is always seen taking charge of things. She is the perfect child that all parents yearn for. She is the one who would accomplish their dream of qualifying for Yale.
Cooper is your stereotypical jock. You will always find him on the field practicing. He is his father’s pride. Addy is shown as a girl who is perfect and is living a perfect life. Nate is a carefree guy who doesn’t care about the world.
He is always drowning in alcohol and his life is a mess. The arrow of suspicion points at everyone. All four of them are under the scanner. It constantly makes us question why this and why that? And if these four are not the culprit, then it has to be someone from outside. Then who is it?
Everyone seems to have a past with Simon. Some of the scenes will transport you back to your teenage years. You will start feeling the same emotions you felt as a young adult. The characters are so raw and come across as so real that you end up feeling that you actually know them or know someone like them.
My Personal Verdict
I was completely glued from start to finish. I had to physically put the book down for a few minutes in order to process all the developments before I could continue reading it further. For readers who love mysteries, this piece of work is going to be a pure treat, because you get to be the detective.
The clues circling the death are laid before the reader in a creative manner. I liked this book because it specifically delved into the personalities and thoughts of each suspect to keep the reader guessing who did it.
One of Us is Lying is a teenage take on dark themes such as mental health issues and murder. It is a play of characters, a roller coaster of emotions.
It is about friendship, love, fame, acceptance, who to trust and who not to, it’s about being in power and giving importance to your mental health. This book is perfect for people like me who love drowning in mysteries.
It is full of cliffhangers and keeps you guessing until the very end. The write-up is so powerful that you will definitely end up reading this book at least four to five times.
My rating: 4 on 5
Written by: Varima Tandon
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