One of Us is Lying

One of Us is Lying is a 2017 young-adult thriller by Karen McManus that revolves around the suspicious death of Bayview High School senior Simon Kelleher, author of a gossip app called About That. The story is told from the alternating first person perspectives of four students who served detention with Simon when he died: Bronwyn, Cooper, Nate, and Addy. It explores themes about the corrosive impact of stereotyping and gossip, the value of empathy, and the impact of family relationships on adolescents coming of age. The novel received numerous awards and honors, including being a New York Public Library Best Book for Teens selection, and has achieved popularity on BookTok.

The novel is divided into three parts. Most chapters feature two narrators, and each narrative is date- and time-stamped. The first part, entitled “Simon Says,” begins with Bronwyn, Nate, Addy, and Cooper serving detention for bringing their phones to class. The students claim the phones are not theirs, but their teacher, Mr. Avery, ignores them. During detention, a car accident in the parking lot distracts the students. After Mr. Avery briefly leaves to investigate, Simon accuses the other four of being “walking teen-movie stereotypes”: the “brain” (Bronwyn), the “princess” (Addy), the “jock” (Cooper), and the “criminal” (Nate) (11). Bronwyn asks who Simon is, and he replies, “the omniscient narrator,” then downs a cup of water and collapses to the floor. Nate immediately determines he is having an allergic reaction but cannot find Simon’s EpiPen among his things. The emergency EpiPens at the nurse’s office are also missing. Paramedics arrive too late to save Simon.

Addy, Bronwyn, Nate, and Cooper become suspects after police discover Simon’s unpublished, final About That post, in which he reveals that Bronwyn cheated in chemistry, Cooper took steroids, Nate is dealing drugs, and Addy cheated on her controlling boyfriend, Jake. Part 1 delves into the family lives of each of the suspects. Addy’s mother encourages her to pay attention to her appearance and find a man who will take care of her. Nate’s drug-addicted mother disappeared three years earlier, and his father is an alcoholic. Bronwyn feels pressure to meet her successful parents’ high expectations and deflect attention away from her younger sister, Maeve, recently in remission after a lengthy cancer battle. Cooper’s father has been grooming him since childhood to become a star baseball player.

Relationships both flourish and end among the suspects and their disparate friends. Nate and Bronwyn grow closer, while Jake angrily breaks up with Addy, who is abandoned by their mutual friends. All four harbor secrets beyond those Simon revealed, and their evasive behavior in police interviews makes each appear potentially guilty. A series of Tumblr posts, purportedly written by Simon’s murderer, begin circulating.

In Part 2, called “Hide-and-Seek,” Cooper notes the hypocrisy of Addy’s friends judging her for behavior they have all engaged in themselves. Meanwhile, Addy’s sister, Ashton, helps her cope with her post-breakup insecurity and loss of identity. Nate challenges Bronwyn’s claim that she feels regret for having cheated, suggesting she is more concerned about appearances than of having cheated. Cooper, who has a girlfriend, has been exchanging romantic texts with a sender identified only as Kris.

Police discover that Bronwyn has been hiding having lashed out at Simon after he wrote a gossip piece about Maeve after she returned to school. A national crime show, Mikhail Powers Investigates, features Simon’s murder case. In addition to profiling the suspects, the host interviews a nonprofit defense attorney, Eli Kleinfelter, who criticizes the police for focusing their investigation too narrowly when Simon clearly had made many enemies.

Part 3, entitled “Truth or Dare,” brings the four suspects, who had been advised by their respective lawyers to keep their distance from each other, closer together. The police discover another About That post that outs Cooper as dating a male model. When his classmates taunt him at lunch, Nate defends him, and the four suspects sit together. Bronwyn suggests they get together outside of school to compare notes, and compiles all the information they have collected.

After Nate is unexpectedly arrested, Bronwyn convinces Eli Kleinfelter to defend him. She tracks down one of the drivers involved in the accident on campus that occurred during detention and discovers that Simon paid him to stage it. She gathers together Cooper, Kris, Addy, Ashton, and Maeve to redouble their efforts to solve the case. Kris points out that Simon was known to have been depressed and was poisoned during detention. Bronwyn recalls his last worlds—“I’m the omniscient narrator”—leading the group to conclude he committed suicide (11). Kris also points out that Simon’s one friend, Janae, has been growing increasingly distraught and suggests she may know something she has not yet revealed.

Addy, who has been making friendly overtures to Janae since being abandoned by Jake and her friends, visits her at home. Janae reveals that Simon concocted his plan out of bitterness at not being more popular and resentment at Cooper (for getting Simon disinvited to an after-prom party), Bronwyn (for cheating in chemistry and putting valedictorian out of Simon’s reach), and Nate (for hooking up with the girl Simon liked). Because Janae refused to help him by publishing the Tumblr posts he outlined before his death, Simon used his gossip on Addy to enlist Jake as his accomplice. Jake intended for Addy to be convicted of murdering Simon.

While Janae and Addy are talking, Jake arrives to confront Janae, finds Addy, and chases her into the woods. Janae follows them, but Jake punches her then begins strangling Addy. Cooper, who had been waiting for Addy outside Janae’s house, dials 911, then chases the others into the woods. He arrives in time to punch Jake and save Addy’s life. Nate is released but refuses to resume his relationship with Bronwyn, fearing he is not good enough for her.

In an epilogue set three months later, Bronwyn has moved on but still misses Nate. Addy, who has also struggled with feelings of inadequacy, has been helping Nate confront his fears, and he is able to approach Bronwyn, confess his feelings for her, and ask to spend time with her. Though wary, she agrees, and the novel ends with the two agreeing to get together soon.