City News

Five students in the room. One of them is murdered. All the others claim innocence.

“One Of Us Is Lying” is a thrilling novel about four unsuspecting high school students who are

framed for the murder of high school gossip king Simon Kelleher. They all have motive, since

Simon had plans to expose all of their deepest secrets in his next post on his gossip app, About

That . The only thing is they all claim to be innocent. “Bad boy” Nate Macauley,

“goody-two-shoes” Bronwyn Rojas, “jock” Cooper Clay, and “pretty girl” Addy Prentiss, the four

suspects in question, band together to find who is really behind Simon’s death. But this mission

may hold more danger than they are led to believe.

Through each chapter, McManus takes the reader on a journey through each character’s

mind as she moves through their different points of view. Each chapter leads us behinds the

eyes of a single character, showing the reader that there is so much more to these students

than just the bad boy, the good girl, the pretty one, and the jock. By looking at the story through

the character’s eyes, the reader is able to relate to each and every characters and understand

their dire situations. From finding trust and intimacy, to defying the odds, the reader is

transported into the heart and mind of the character, their fates intertwined until the very last

page.

By placing these unlikely friends in trying situations, McManus presents the reader with

an unpredictable equation, and interesting relationship dynamics between the four students. The

reader is pushed to root for them, and feel for them, and love them. It is fascinating for the

reader to see the harsh social situations that the characters are put in, after such a massive

shock to their lives, and how the characters find themselves and find each other though such

trauma. Through this experience, the students learn to embrace who they are, and encourage

the reader to so the same.

So if you want a thrilling, sweet, engaging and surprisingly deep read, put this one in the

cue. I found “One Of Us Is Lying” to be one of the most engaging books I have read and I hope

you feel the same. Plus, there’s three more books in the series if you decide you were just as

happy with the first one as I was. And let me tell you - they are just as good as the first.

Check out One of Us is Lying from the Newport Beach Public Library!