Reviews

It's OK...

absolutely insane. took until the last few chapters for me to guess the plot twist

the ending felt so out of character and was an extremely dumb move. the book also felt unnecessarily long… three hundred pages for a plot like this was not needed

It was a bit boring in some places, but the plot was intriguing. I liked the conflicts and the secrets. That plot twist… did not see that coming, honestly.

The book jumps between the past and the present. The chapters about the past were really long and the present chapters for me felt too short and it kind of killed the suspense for me.
This book had a few issues but the main issue for me was the ending. I HATED it. It came out of nowhere and it was so out of character. In one chapter I turned on two characters that I was okay with and one that I actually liked, and now I can't stand them. Honestly it ruined the book for me and it's why I gave it such a low rating.

i was not expecting that ending! that was a shock to me ngl. it was a quick read and i actually could not stand sasha like girll you need to chill. there are lot of bullying references and i was so angry because of sasha. so in conclusion if you want a quick mystery to read you can read this book!

*3.5

This book had one of the best plot twist I have ever read. Constantly changes made it hard to keep up, but all the more interesting. Highly recommend if you like murder, mystery, and fear based games. You will never guess who really caused all the problems and who’s behind the scheme. Left me shocked and staring my wall for a good 5 minutes just contemplating. 10/10 recommended!!!

Someone was reading their Agatha Christie.. The book is nothing special, the rating I would actually give it is a 2, 2.5. But , I appreciate the message behind it.

This book was amazing. The plot twists.....just wow. I really didn't like Sasha. She made me so mad at some point that n literally had to take a break from reading. But what happend with her in the end, wasn't supposed to happen. I loved that they told us what the person thought whill he/she planned this lock up thing. I thought at some point they weren't going to tell us what happend. Robbie also wasn't my favorite person but he wasn't so bad. I just thing they should have brought more of Diego and Amber in. This book show us just how far people can go because of being bullied. They show us the consequences and also the tipe of people who is usually the bully. They also showed us that we can't link the value of someone life with their prospects and future. Everyone deserves to live. This book was very nice and also recommended it for anyone who want a good brain wrecking mystery. It is similar to "One of us is lying " if you are searching from something like it.

4 stars only took one star away because it didn’t feel super realistic. i loved the characters though and realism doesn’t really bother me

5★ Initially, I read this because it reminded me of One of Us is Lying, but it turned out to be SO MUCH better than I ever could have expected. The timehop writing style normally doesn't work very well for me, but in this case, it was done so beautifully to where I was always so excited for the next chapter. The suspense that was constantly building up throughout the book was insane and when it finally got to the end the plot twist was UNREAL. I had a blast reading this, and was so into it that I need up pulling an all-nighter to finish the book. I was so pleasantly shocked and would recommend this book to literally anyone, even if they aren't an avid thriller reader. **ALSO!! ANGRY LOVE CONFESSION TROPE

Yeah this one is a big ol' no for me dawg. I'm reluctant to give it 1 star because the writing style was alright and the story itself was interesting enough at times. But there were a couple of really major issues. Like you don't get attached to any of the characters and the 'mean girl' was so over the top it was honestly shocking to me that it took the protagonist so long to realise what she was doing. Honestly so much of this book didn't make sense to me. Biggest gripe overall though is that ending. I can't actually find the words for that.

5 teenagers watch into a bar. Ha ha. Just kidding, these teens get trapped in a room at the back of a closed restaurant with a fake invitation, a syringe, and a bomb. That's right. A bomb. This whole concept was very ridiculous, but I was promised something likened to One of Us Is Lying, so I was willing to give it a try. But this book is like the kid sister of OoUiL; trying too hard to emulate their cool, popular older sis, and annoying af. I hated... all of the characters. Except maybe Priya, but even she was pretty unremarkable. I didn't like the dual timeline. Didn't like the writing style. The twist was fine (I can't think of any other way the book could have ended), but the build up was pretty ridiculous. The entire situation was ridiculous. I know it's a YA mystery, which definitely aren't known for their plausibility, but I think this book could have been stronger if the threats in the room weren't, you know, A BOMB. It made me laugh. The chapters would end on random sentences. There was never any... button, you know? I wanted to spend more time with our characters in the present, and not so much rehashing the last 2 years leading up to this epic night. I get the need for the backstory, but it was so extra. I will give props where it's do. I'm glad we ended on (view spoiler)[ our perp taking accountability (hide spoiler)]. All in all... not for me. Maybe for someone? If you're looking for a good YA thriller that ISN'T cheese af, I recommend A Good Girl's Guide to Murder instead.


never wrote a review for this but i was thoroughly disappointed. if you are planning to read this because you like one of us is lying, don't. it was honestly so dumb and such a let down.

I truly thought this book was a page turner towards the end but I wasn’t too big of a fan of the before chapters. I felt like the characters lacked a little bit of personality and I caught on to “who dunnit” just after the halfway mark. I’m a sucker for thrillers like this so I overall enjoyed the story but I was a little bit disappointed with the reveal. This book is definitely a good enough thriller to get out of a reading slump or to start really getting into reading!

3.45⭐ It was a good read. It was all about how high school bullying can take a toll on you and can push you to go to extreme levels. Also how you can end up trying to kill someone if it saves you....the ending didn't really sit right for me, I hope she atleast had a epilogue to set things straight..kind of felt unfinished to me. But she did a good job. If you want a light hearted thriller which is an easy read but also has the thrills, this one's for you. Also, it kind of felt like a rip off of one of us is lying so...there's that.

I read this in pretty much a day. It was a tad bit predictable but super enjoyable. I really appreciated the topics that were discussed by the end of it, the rise and fall of friendships, and that nothing really is what it seems. Shoutout to the author for putting help resources for those who suffer from suicidal thoughts and bullying at the end of the book, since those are heavy topics within the book itself.

I would give this book for review 3.75 stars. I actually enjoyed this read. I really did like the whole twisty mystery that was at the heart of this year. I def was suprised by the end and did not see it coming at all. I did like how the end occurred but still thought it was a bit of a open ending. It was a book that kept me guessing. I sometimes had a hard time keeping the characters in my head straight and wish the voices were clearer or we had been in their heads at moments. I did like the switching between and past and found it to be a fun read!

Read it, now. For comparison, one of us is lying but better

⭐️ 3 Stars ⭐️ The ending disappointment me so much. Most of the book felt like 3 stars, an average read that was okay to pass your time with (I listen to the audiobook). But I struggled, because I felt like everything was a little bit pointless, and painfully slow. All the intense moments I was waiting for in the closed room, were spaced out so much from each other and made me lose interest quickly. I do think that it had huge potential. The idea itself is so interesting, and something in the writing made me wish for more. I do want to check her future books. The end just… ruined everything. On one hand, it was so predicable. On the other hand, it was so not logical. Everything felt force and not in place, like the idea was just push to this plot. No early signs. Nothing that can prove it’s actually happened like this, and not something the author just thought about in the last chapter. Overall, pretty average. Too much school drama, not as much plot as I wanted. BUT I really recommend the audiobook. It made the characters feel more alive.

I loved Diego. I thought I would like Sasha but oh how wrong I was. This book defines page turner, it was so good and I was consistently guessing. Even when I thought the book ended it twisted (no pun intended) again. I also loved Amber. Diego and Amber deserved a better shot though - I wanted to see more of their romance. I don't know what I want to happen now - whether it should be left as an amazing stand alone or the relationships should be developed in a sequel. If Urban can do something similar to Holly Jackson with a good girls guide to murder following Amber try to grapple with grief and responsibility by helping someone save a mystery or something similar I would love that just to see more of Amber and Diego. Amazing debut, amazing story, great twists and turns. Like one of us is lying. it feels like what this lie will kill you was trying to do but this book was 1000x better!!! 100% recommend

AHHHHHHHHH
Highlights

The thing about being trapped in a room with five other people, a bomb, and a syringe of lethal poison is that at some point, shit’s going down. No matter how frantically you claw at rationality, how desperately you cling to common decency, you eventually give in to your basic instinct to survive.
This book had me on the tip of my chair. Just wow

Some people can’t see the light until you shutter them in darkness.

The thing about being trapped in a room with five other people, a bomb, and a syringe of lethal poison is that at some point, shit’s going down.