One of Us Is Next

Gah! That last line!
A great sequel to One of Us Is Lying, with familiar characters and setting, but an entirely new mystery. McManus writes teen dialogue really well, including romance that's sweet and not corny, mean-spirited gossip that has teeth but doesn't sound like she's trying too hard, and friendly banter that makes you want to join in. The mystery was well-plotted, with clues scattered throughout, but enough held back to make guessing hard. Satisfying.

This sequel picks up 18 months after the events in One of Us Is Lying. It takes a similar format, someone is sharing gossip about high school students and that leads to an unexpected death. It was fun to see how the characters from the first book were doing. It’s definitely more predictable than the first and pulls the major plot twist straight from a classic film, but it’s still entertaining. Recommended if you enjoyed the first book, but it’s not quite as good.

Bayview is one messed up place. I will just state the obvious right here and now. You would think that after the events of "One of Us is Lying" and the death of Simon......there would be more active security measures, the blocking of chats, etc. But instead, we get the worst game of Truth or Dare.

Ever.

The events of the last year hang over the heads of many. Maeve's sister and her sister's boyfriend (Bronwyn and Nate).....Phoebe's next door neighbor (Eli and Ashton and thus, by extension, Addy.) Luis (former catcher to Cooper's pitcher) works at his family's restaurant and is still around. And Knox (former boyfriend to Maeve) works for Eli (who was the lawyer involved the first time around).......

It's a rather large set of characters yet show more thankfully, in this book, they all are given their opportunity to shine. I appreciated many familiar ones being just as involved in "One of Us in Next" as they were in the book's predecessor. Instead of a death in juvenile detention class, we now have an ever evolving game of Truth or Dare that ends (or seems to end) with the school bully dying at a construction site.

Again, who would want this individual dead? Is it the girl whose "sleeping with her sister's ex-boyfriend" secret? Or is it the boy who has a secret about "not getting IT up." Is there a classmate who longs for the notoriety that Simon had not so long ago?

If someone were to ask me about which book I liked better, I would be torn. The new characters (many of the siblings or minor characters in "One of Us in Next") quickly became endearing to me. I was on the edge of my seat with the book just as I was before. I mean, obvious. I read both of them in a week. This one, however, is less "clean" than the first....and that one wasn't clean by any means.

For readers who are dying for an entertaining read this summer, I would recommend this duology. You really can read them independently which is great. But to get an accurate picture of one messed up high school, you have to read both.

Parents, use this book as an opportunity to talk with your kids about chat rooms and the danger they can pose....especially anonymous ones. Also.....know who you are talking with. It just might save your life! show less

I gave it 4 stars because it was a solid, twisty follow-up that kept me hooked from the start. It brings that same mysterious, high school drama vibe as the first book, but with a new crew and a fresh game that gets way out of hand. I loved that it still had that fast-paced, bingeable energy while diving into new secrets and drama.
The characters were fun to follow, and each of them had a different personality that made the story feel layered and interesting. I liked seeing how they dealt with the pressure and the chaos that came with this new twisted game. It felt like a mix of suspense, teen drama, and just enough emotion to make you care. And of course, I kept trying to guess what was going to happen next and was still surprised more show more than once.
Even though I liked the first book a little more, One of Us Is Next is still a really fun read. If you liked One of Us Is Lying, definitely give this one a shot. It brings that same vibe, just with new players and a whole new mystery. show less

Bayview High is still having problems. This time it is the younger students from One of Us is Lying. Simon's website if revive and so is the game Truth or Dare. Trouble and death ensue leading to a stunning conclusion that I did not see until the last two pages. I cannot wait for the last book of this trilogy.

I like these characters (well, the main ones at least.) The parents are a little more prevalent in this book but not intrusive. The kids still need to solve their problems on their own. I liked how the solution was found to the perpetrator but it was dangerous and I was on the edge of my seat. I also enjoyed watching new friendships form and hope a few go beyond just friends. Like I said I cannot wait to read book 3.

What a ridiculous ass book.

Okay. I am going to say something more substantial. I have eaten flavorless oatmeal that had more to it than this book. Character development is non-existent. You get to see characters from the previous book briefly, but we don't get to get into their heads. McManus decides to bring in a new crop of people for the most part that I didn't care about.

I saw the twist coming as soon as a certain scene happened. And then I saw the next twist after that. Nothing was a shock and the why behind this was not even believable.

I had a huge problem with her last book, "Two Can Keep a Secret" because she has young adults acting in ways that other teens would scoff at. The whole truth and dare game made zero sense. But how show more did no adults even hear about it? Seriously? Considering social media today no one talked about it for this to get discussed?

The jumping back and forth between 5 or I think 6 characters did not help matters either. There is zero tension going on. There was some tension in the first book because people were accusing teens of murdering their own. The murder in this book happens I think more than halfway through and I ended up loathing the characters so who cared in the end? Not me.

The romance between all of the leads were lame and I didn't care about who ended up with who even a little bit. I think McManus was trying for some epic romance up there with Logan and Veronica with two of the characters and I was over it. show less

Does a really good job of following on from One of Us is Lying. Not as strong, partly because it takes a very long time to set up the death that the reader knows is coming, while making things unpleasant for a lot of people, and I found that stressful.

Having said that, McManus does an amazing job at looking at how life has changed for the people, the school, and the community affected by the events in the first book. And creating a new lot of characters which are beautifully rounded for the reader to love, while allowing several of the existing ones smaller roles.

Content warning: extreme bullying, shaming people for both sexual activity and lack there of, possibly some body shaming