One of Us is Next by Karen M. McManus

So as much as I loved One of Us is Lying, I was hesitant when I heard that a sequel was being written. For me, the first one ended just as it should have and did not leave room for a sequel. I mean, the mastermind was dead, and his accomplice was in prison. And also, how many things can happen at one school to one group of students. Reading comments on Twitter, and even conversations with friends, I am led to believe I was the only one surprised by the sequel. Nonetheless, I was going to read it. I loved the other book McManus has put out, Two Can Keep a Secret, so I had no reason not to dive into One of Us is Next.

(Source: Kelsey Darling)

It has been eighteen months since Simon's death and his revenge plot, and while some copycat gossip apps have appeared, they are all quickly taken down. Bayview does not play when it comes to gossip anymore. Bayview was not counting on someone, Unknown, starting a game though. The rules are simple: take the dare or have a secret revealed. And the secrets Unknown knows are nothing compared to what Simon spilled. Focused on three new characters with cameos from the Bayview Four, One of Us is Next has you guessing who Unknown is until the last page.

I actually did not read the synopsis for One of Us is Next until I had finished the book. I did not plan it that way, it just happened. I saw that a sequel was coming out so I pre-ordered it and marked it on Goodreads back in September, and then went back to whatever I was reading at the time. Because of this, I had no idea what I was in for, but I am really happy with how the book turned out.

"'Pay attention, Bayview High. I'm only going to explain the rules once,' I read. 'Here's how we play Truth or Dare. I'll send a prompt to one person only - and you can't tell ANYONE if it's you. Don't spoil the element of surprise. It makes me cranky, and I'm not nearly as nice when I'm cranky. You get 24 hours to text your choice back. Pick Truth, and I'll reveal one of your secrets. Pick Dare, and I'll give you a challenge. Either way, we'll have a little fun and relieve the monotony of our tedious existence.'" (p. 33)

(Source: Giphy)

My first fear was that the mastermind was dead, so who is the villain. Simple - someone more twisted than Simon who could build on his foundation. While Simon called himself the omniscient narrator, Unknown is more of a puppet master. While his dares start out tame, like putting the mascots head on the chicken of a local restaurant, they quickly turn deadly. While I knew someone's death was eminent, I was not sure whose. I actually thought that it was going to go more the lines of the book/movie Nerve, which starts out simple and grow in severity the longer you play. However, the game is pretty short lived once a Bayview student is killed, leaving people thinking that Unknown has stopped. 

My other fear would have been resolved slightly if I had read the synopsis. While I still have a hard time believing so much drama can happen at one school, at least it is different students, and the motive is not completely school related. Maeve, Bronwyn's sister, takes a central role in this book, which I love because I loved her in One of Us is Lying. Also, we have Knox, Maeve's best friend who was briefly mentioned in the first book at the end if you pay attention. And lastly there is Phoebe, the first target of Unknown. All of the Bayview Four make appearances, along with other characters from the first novel, like Luis, who plays a larger role and is really just amazing (I will take an entire book about him, please!), Kris, Cooper's boyfriend, and Ashton and Eli. The new set of characters with the mix of old prominent characters and old secondary characters really blends nicely to make the book stand on its own and it does not feel like it is piggy-backing on One of Us is Next, which is how some high school drama series end up feeling to me.

Unlike One of Us is Lying, I could not pinpoint who Unknown was until it was revealed. There were hints at to who was involved, and I picked up on those, along with other small clues that I have learned to look for in McManus's books. However, other clues that were dropped remained completely unnoticed by me until I was told to look at them, making me second guess my sleuth skills. Again, I do not believe that a series continuation is possible, but I was wrong before, so I do not know if there will be another book. I thoroughly enjoyed the ending and thought that it ended nicely; however, based off of a Twitter comment, not everyone is cool with the ending. But for those of us who need more McManus, she has a book called The Cousins coming out December 1. We can wait all year, right? We also have the One of Us is Lying TV show to look forward to!

(Source: Karen M. McManus Twitter)

Rating: 9/10
Author: Karen M. McManus
Series: Bayview High (Book 2 of 2)
Genres: Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller
Dates Read: January 12-14, 2020