fulltime_movieaddict's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Drug use, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
bookishgoob's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Murder
Minor: Car accident, Addiction, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Medical content
lilith_hmr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death of parent, Vomit, Murder, Mental illness, Car accident, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Stalking, Pedophilia, and Gun violence
Moderate: Gun violence, Alcohol, Grief, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Child death, Emotional abuse, and Vomit
Minor: Blood, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, and Alcohol
at806's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Death, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Bullying, Car accident, Murder, Infidelity, Stalking, and Violence
thenovelbookshelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
A prom queen goes missing in 1995, then a second get killed just 5yrs ago, now threats are being made against this year's prom queen in Echo Ridge. Can Ellery and Ezra figure out what happened to their missing aunt, and will Ellery be the next victim?
Minor: Alcohol, Car accident, Death, Bullying, Infidelity, Murder, and Violence
halfbloodprincess_hogwarts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Infidelity, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Death, Gun violence, Car accident, Alcohol, Body horror, Child death, Grief, Kidnapping, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Stalking, Vomit, and Sexism
veronica_angel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Car accident, Child death, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Drug use, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Stalking
thenonmouse's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Bullying, Car accident, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Misogyny, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Addiction, Gaslighting, and Infidelity
rorireads_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, and Blood
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Racism and Deadnaming
spearly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
“You might want to tell that sister of yours to lie low for a change. Doesn’t seem like a great year to be homecoming queen, does it?”
Someone in Echo Ridge has it out for prom queens. First, a girl named Sarah disappears on Homecoming night 20 years ago. Then, Queen Bee Lacey disappears 5 years ago. When Ellory and Ezra's mother - who also happens to be Sarah's twin - is admitted to rehab, they are shipped off to live with their Grandmother in Echo Ridge. That's when the threats start showing up; I'M BACK. PICK YOUR QUEEN, ECHO RIDGE. HAPPY HOMECOMING
Honestly... I've been spoiled. A Good Girl's Guide to Murderhas set the bar for YA mysteries, and unfortunately, Two Can Keep a Secret just fell short.
Told in dual POV, the story follows Ellory, whose aunt disappeared from town 20 years prior, and Marcus, the brother of the guy everyone thinks killed Lacey 5 years ago. Which is all fine and good, except their voices were so similar, I had trouble remembering whose chapter I was reading.
The side characters felt weak, indistinct, and honestly, kind of pointless. The only one who ended up mattering to the story was Officer Rodriguez. I was disappointed to see that even Ellory's twin Ezra was relegated to c-character status. You'd think he'd play a larger role, given that all that familial trauma (of not knowing their father, of losing their aunt, of their mother having a drug problem and needing to go to rehab) that affects Ellory on a daily basis should alsoaffect Ezra. And yet, we barely see him.
I had a large issue with pace, too. It's more than halfway through the book by the time any real investigating goes on. For a murder mystery, readers never really get that satisfaction of clues falling into place, of solving the crime alone with our MCs, of rushing to put the puzzle together before it's too late. Ellory is a self-declared true-crime aficionado, and yet we're barely following her and Malcom solve the mystery because every theory of theirs is wrong. The only real sleuthing they do is when
Spoiler
they dig through the recycling to find what Brooke was looking forThat aside, I still feel that One of Us Is Lying is the stronger mystery from McManus. More intrigue. More teen detective work. Better reveal. Better characters.
But credit where it's due. You seldom read a mystery where the antagonist doesn't spell everything out for the MCs in some forced villain speech (even A Good Girl's Guide to Murder does this), but that is not the case here. Our villain reveals very little, and readers don't find out the whole story until after the climax. Which is a nice reprieve from the expected.
Overall, not the best teen mystery I have ever read, but a quick, easy read that kept me turning the page nonetheless.
Graphic: Murder, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Child death, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Infidelity, Bullying, Car accident, and Blood
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Drug abuse, and Vomit