Book Review: One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. Mc Manus

 

About

Pay close attention and you might solve this.

On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention.

Bronwyn, the brain, is Yale-bound and never breaks a rule.

Addy, the beauty, is the picture-perfect homecoming princess.

Nate, the criminal, is already on probation for dealing.

Cooper, the athlete, is the all-star baseball pitcher.

And Simon, the outcast, is the creator of Bayview High's notorious gossip app.

Only, Simon never makes it out of that classroom. Before the end of detention Simon's dead. And according to investigators, his death wasn't an accident. On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he'd planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his high-profile classmates, which makes all four of them suspects in his murder. Or are they the perfect patsies for a killer who's still on the loose?

My Thoughts

This book has been on my TBR since it came out. I did not want to look at the TV series before I had an opportunity to read the novel. I am glad I read the book first though because I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

In One of Us Is Lying we meet Bronwyn, Addy, Cooper and Nate who together with the controversial blogger Simon at detention. This day would lead to a tragedy that will change the lives of four of these teenagers forever.

I loved the mystery, drama and the writing style in this book and I look forward to reading the others.

Book Review: People Person by Candice Carty Williams

 

About

Dimple Pennington knew of her half siblings, but she didn't really know them. Five people who don't have anything in common except for faint memories of being driven through Brixton in their dad's gold jeep, and some pretty complex abandonment issues. Dimple has bigger things to think about. She's thirty, and her life isn't really going anywhere. An aspiring lifestyle influencer with a terrible and wayward boyfriend, Dimple's life has shrunk to the size of a phone screen. And despite a small but loyal following, she's never felt more alone in her life. That is, until a dramatic event brings her half siblings Nikisha, Danny, Lizzie and Prynce crashing back into her life. And when they're all forced to reconnect with Cyril Pennington, the absent father they never really knew, things get even more complicated.

My Thoughts 

This book was on my TBR since it came out. After reading Queenie I was really excited for this release. Not sure why I took so long to get around to reading it, but I am glad that I did.

In People Person we meet Cyril, and his five kids by four different mothers. Cyril was your typical Caribbean charmer who broke many hearts in his days. In all of that his children grew up living very apart until a peculiar tragedy brings them all together, showing the reader that blood is thicker than water.

In the book though we follow Dimple (one of the daughters), it is Dimple's really messed up lifestyle which brings these siblings together. What was unique was that each sibling had such a distinct personality.

Very interesting story with even more interesting characters. If you haven't read this one, try it.

An Unusual Grief by Yewande Omotoso

 

About

How do you get to know your daughter when she is dead?

This is the question which takes a mother on an unusual journey of self-discovery, both mental and sexual. When her daughter Yinka dies, Mojisola is finally forced to stop running away from the difficulties in their relationship, and also come to terms with Yinka the woman.

Mojisola’s grief leads her on a journey of self-discovery, as she moves into her daughter’s apartment and begins to unearth the life Yinka had built for herself there, away from her family. Through stepping into Yinka’s shoes, Mojisola comes to a better understanding not only of her estranged daughter, but also herself, as she learns to carve a place for herself in the world beyond the labels of wife and mother.

A bold and unflinching tale of one women’s unconventional approach to life and loss.

My Thoughts 

This book explained the many layers to grief. Mojisola was a mother on a mission. The mission was to figure out why her daughter Yinka committed suicide. The relationship between mother and daughter was strained so it came as a shock to Mojisola why her daughter would kill herself.

In trying to piece together this loss Moji learned a lot about not only her daughter's life but herself as she immersed herself into Yinka's world.

This book was an interesting take on relationships and depression. The title was very suitable I think because Moji's way of dealing with grief was so unusual you definitely have to read the book to understand.