‘One of us is back’ written by Karen M.Mcmaunas is the last book of the ‘one of us is lying’ trilogy . The plot follows the original characters from the first book and the characters from the second book, join forces as a new threat enters Bayview which turns into a game of death and more secrets being spilled as this threat also follows the release of Jake Riordan -Addy’s ex-boyfriend and the murderer of Simon Kelleher.
The book brings back many iconic and beloved characters such as the Bayview Four – Addy, Bronwyn, Nate and Cooper but also characters like Jake and his family make a return which I think brings more suspense to the plot as the writing makes it seem that Jake is the one behind the killings and bill-board sabotage when it was actually a minor character- Evie who is actually Chelsea Alton , daughter of Alexander Alton and sister of Jake Riordan who she ends up killing Jake as part of her revenge of what Jakes father did to hers .
One of the things which I love about Karen MacManus books is that the minor characters that don’t feel like they have any addition to the plot actually play a big part in the actual story as in this book Evie , one of Nates colleagues that works in Café Contigo is not actually Evie at all , rather her name is Chelsea Alton , Jake Riordan’s sister who kills Jake Riordon in the end as her plan was to get rid of him for what he has done to Bayview , Addy, Simon and the Bayview Crew.
Another thing which I liked about the book was its humour and the characters interactions with one another, since the book is targeted to young adults it feels as though the conversations that characters have would be something that would happen in real life, almost realistic. There have many authors who have done similar stories but have failed because the dialogue and chemistry between the characters don’t seem realistic but rather forced for the narrative to flow and you don’t feel an attachment to the characters. With ‘one of us is lying’, you have a strong feeling towards the characters from the very beginning as the writing doesn’t feel forced but rather realistic.
Overall , the book is a absolute pleasure to read as it puts the series to an end in a nice little bow in my eyes . All the characters get what they want or what they deserve if were talking about Jake or Chelsea and we also get a glimpse into the future of these characters lives as its confirmed at the end that Nate and Bronwyn will get married once Bronwyn finishes school and that Addy will have a niece named Iris . I really enjoyed this series as this was the first book series that got me into murder mysteries and thrillers so seeing this series come to an end is almost like saying goodbye to a person that you love .
