One of Us Is Lying

The story begins when the five major characters — Bronwyn, Simon, Nate, Cooper, and Addy (Adelaide) — attend detention with teacher Mr. Avery after he found phones in each of their school bags, against the high school's no-phone policy. However, each of the students claims that the phones are not theirs, and that someone played a prank on them. They hear a collision coming from the school parking lot, and Mr. Avery leaves to see if he can help. Simon — creator of the 'About That' gossip app in which the personal lives of students at their high school, Bayview High, are posted for the rest of the school to see — begins a speech about the stereotypical personalities of the other four students and how he, through his app, is the omniscient narrator. He drinks water from a plastic cup and suffers a fatal allergic reaction (due to his peanut allergy). The others attempt to help but it is too late and Simon dies in the hospital.

Initially, the incident is considered an accident, but after a Tumblr post is shared, claiming that Simon's death was planned and the killer watched him die, the police begin to investigate and find an unpublished post by Simon that features the secrets of the other four students. Each of the secrets would affect the student's future: Bronwyn's cheating on a test could impact her college applications; Nate's repeated misdemeanour could send him to jail; Addy's infidelity might end her relationship; and the accusation of steroid-use could halt Cooper's potential baseball career. The four are initially suspicious of one another but begin to appreciate each other due to their shared situation.

The investigation receives media attention and the four are dubbed the 'Bayview four.' After Simon's funeral, his post is leaked and the rest of the school learn the four's secrets, triggering the consequences: Bronwyn's parents are disappointed; Nate's house is searched; Addy's relationship ends; and Cooper's performance is investigated. This prompts Maeve, Bronwyn's younger sister, to investigate Simon's online activity, which brings to light the encrypted original post about Cooper, and Simon's activity on massacre-worship forums, on which he mentions a similar desire.

Addy befriends Janae, Simon's friend. Bronwyn and Nate return to his home to avoid the media and find his mother, whom he claimed was dead. She claims to now be sober, and wishes to reconcile with her son and help. The encrypted file regarding Cooper is opened by the police, outing him as gay. This causes a rift between Cooper and his father, who is suggested to be homophobic. When Cooper is bullied verbally in the cafeteria after this news is leaked, Nate defends him, and the group sit together, demonstrating their new solidarity and friendship. Evidence is found tying Nate to the murder and he is arrested. Bronwyn contacts Eli Kleinfelter, a lawyer she saw on television defending the 'Bayview four', asking him to help.

Bronwyn believes the fender bender in the school parking lot that distracted the group was set up, so she asks Cooper to see if a friend of his can help find the red Camaro involved. When he does, Bronwyn confronts the driver who admits he and a friend were paid to stage the accident and the person who paid them was Simon. She suggests a meeting between the remaining three, and allies to their plight — Maeve, and Addy's sister Ashton. Cooper's partner, Kris, suggests that Simon may have committed suicide and framed the others for his death, and that Janae may know more.

Janae hasn't been seen in school for a week so Addy goes to her home, where Janae confesses that Simon had been frustrated and angry for years that he wasn't more important in high school, so he rigged the Junior prom to become King. Jake hears him bragging about the plan and Simon is afraid he will be outed, so he tells Jake he knows Addy and TJ hooked up and enlists Jake's help with his suicide plan, telling Jake he could get even with Addy as Simon's murderer. Janae was supposed to plant the evidence on Addy, but when she couldn't bring herself to do it, she planted it on Nate instead. Jake has been harassing Janae since for ruining the plan, and he arrives while Addy is still there. Addy attempts to record the conversation with Janae and Jake but he realizes she's there and tries to strangle her. Addy is saved by Cooper, who had accompanied her to the house and saw Jake arrive.

Jake is taken into custody and Nate is released, but is shaken from his time in the juvenile detention center, rejecting Bronwyn's concern and breaking off their relationship. Addy heals in the hospital and after, Ashton asks Addy to live with her, which Addy happily accepts. Cooper's college options begin to reappear and his relationship with his father starts to improve. Bronwyn applies to Yale and begins dating Evan Neiman, another student, though she does not consider it serious. She later finds Nate waiting for her after a piano recital, when he apologizes for dismissing her. The story ends as she accepts his offer to a movie as friends.

• Bronwyn Rojas: One of the four point-of-view characters; the 'brain'. Is an overachiever and Yale-hopeful from a well-to-do family who are also Ivy League graduates. She is a member, and often founder, of several after-school clubs. She has a good relationship with her younger sister, Maeve, and is protective of her. Her primary secret is she cheated on her chemistry test in order to maintain her straight-A status, which she fears will impact her college dreams. It is later revealed that she left a threatening message to Simon after he posted about her sister.
• Nate Macaulay: One of the four point-of-view characters; the 'criminal'. Is a 'bad boy' who is on probation for selling drugs. He lives with his alcoholic father after his unpredictable, drug-addicted mother left and supposedly died several years ago. Their primary source of income is from a disability allowance after his father's work injury, and is the reason Nate sells drugs. His primary secret is that he has been continuing to sell drugs. It is also later revealed that his mother is still alive. Nate has a lizard named Stan.
• Addy Prentiss: Also known as Adelaide, One of the four point-of-view characters; the 'princess'. Is one of the popular students at the school. She is besotted with her boyfriend, Jake, but her secret is that she cheated on him with another boy within their friendship group. She eventually confesses to Jake, who breaks up with her. She is comforted by her older sister, Ashton, who helps her through the break-up and with her self-discovery.
• Cooper Clay: One of the four point-of-view characters; the 'jock'. He is a promising baseball star who is accused of steroid use by Simon's post. It is later revealed that the original post was edited and his secret removed, but it eventually comes to light that he is gay.
• Simon Kelleher: Self-proclaimed omniscient narrator and creator of About That, the gossip app revolving around the students of the fictional American high school, Bayview High. He is noted to suffer from depression. His death acts as a catalyst for the events of the story, and the rumors and secrets told in his app are what implicate the others in detention as suspects for his murder.
• Maeve Rojas: Bronwyn's younger sister. She takes a proactive role alongside Bronwyn in trying to solve the murder. She has also been featured in a post by Simon.
• Jake Riordan: Addy's boyfriend and old friend of Simon's. He has a controlling nature, and when Addy's secret comes to light, he breaks up with her.
• Ashton Prentiss: Addy's older sister. She has a rocky relationship with her husband Charlie, so spends a lot of time at the family home. She dislikes Jake and the way he treats Addy.
• Janae: Janae is Simon's best friend. She plays a crucial role in the climax. She becomes friends with Addy. She is insecure.
• Eli Kleinfelter: Lawyer who works for the television news program, Until Proven. Bronwyn reaches out to him to defend Nate because he has no lawyer.
• Kris: He is Cooper's secret boyfriend and he's German. He helps to decode the mystery.

Reception of One of Us Is Lying has been mostly positive, receiving multiple awards and nominations, primarily within the Young Adult category. Reviewer Mary Cosola of Common Sense Media comments that the plot "raises lots of ethical questions" and "provides good discussion topics", receiving an overall rating of four-stars, with an age-rating of 14+.[4] Nivea Serrao of Entertainment Weekly praises the author for the nuanced characters and their development, and for challenging the initial stereotypes, but notes that the slow reveal of the secrets leaves the reader with less time to engage with the ending's more fully developed characters.[5] Kirkus Reviews acknowledges the "insights into common adolescent struggles" and "opportunities for self-reflection" for young readers, also rating the book for readers between 14-18, however criticizes that author's use of language and the plot, which they suggest "border on cliché". It also mentions how, although Bronwyn, Maeve, and their father's side of the family are Colombian, the cast is predominantly white.[6]

A review from Medium also references the development of the originally stereotypical main characters and how the topics raise thought-provoking discussions, and goes on to praise the inclusion of LGBTQIA characters, but comments on how, although depression and psychological issues are depicted within the story, they are not fully explored.[7] It has been described on several occasions as a cross between The Breakfast Club and Pretty Little Liars.[8][9][2]

A television series is in development in association with Universal Cable Productions, E!, and production company 5 More Minutes!.[22] In August 2020, it was announced that the production had been given a series order by Peacock.[23]

• Karen M. McManus Official Author Website