One of Us is Lying is a fast paced thriller that is perfect for your holiday reading! It completely hooked me, and I read it in two sittings (I was forced to take a break, meh) because I just couldn't wait to find out what had happened to Simon. I was pleasantly surprised by the ending as well, which always makes for a good thriller.
The book is told from the points of view of the characters who were in detention when Simon, the creator of the school's gossip site, died. They're all suspects, as it seems as though someone laced Simon's cup with something to kill him. Normally I struggle with books that have so many different points of view, but in this case it really worked. We got to read about all of the different characters from each point of view, and it was really interesting to see what others thought of them, as well as getting a glimpse into their heads and finding out the truth.
There were a lot of secrets to be uncovered here, and I really enjoyed the whole web of lies thing that McManus had going on. Every time I thought I had solved something, something else cropped up and I was forced to re-evaluate. Basically, never take anything at face value. You don't know what people are actually like.
Like I said, I was shocked by the reveal at the end. I think I clocked on about two pages before the characters did, so that wasn't my proudest moment. Normally I'm quite good at figuring out plot reveals and mysteries, probably because I spend so much time reading them and watching television, but in this case I couldn't figure it out until almost the last minute.
Pick up this debut if you're looking for a fast paced thriller that will keep you guessing!