Not as exciting as the first two books in the series. Didn’t have me engaged or anticipating anything. It felt a bit anticlimactic.

Another satisfying read by Karen McManus and I am sure will appeal to her many fans. This novel sees the return of the original Bayview Crew - they are all moving on with their lives but have returned for the summer. It also links books 1 and 2 together well. There were some great moments that I didn't see coming, but the first novel in the trilogy, 'One of us is Lying', remains my favourite.

One of us is back

When I went to see Karen speak at an event in Newcastle, she said that this book was written in part because of a plot thread she had to take out of one of us is lying. I'm glad she wrote it because it definitely adds an extra layer to the first book and why certain people did things.

I really enjoyed reading about all the characters again and getting more of their interactions with each other. I especially loved that we got a lot more of addy and her relationship with her mother.

I did guess one part of the mystery early on, but there were still some twists I wasn't expecting. I do wonder if they were in the authors head when she wrote book 2 or if she decided on it later as I don't think we got any hints in the previous books about certain plot points.

All in all, I enjoyed it, I liked being reunited with the characters from the previous books, but the stakes felt a little lower for our core group at some points in this one compared to book 2. I've gone with 4 stars because I'm not a huge fan of phoebe. You definitely need her POV for part of this book, but I find her a tad annoying.

I received an advance review copy of this book, and this review represents my honest opinion. Thank you to netgalley, karen m mcmanus, and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

Review has been posted to goodreads, netgalley and storygraph

An absolutely cracking final installment in the trilogy. I am so sad there will be no more! I loved each book and I felt this ended the trilogy perfectly. I love the characters, old and new. Character development was fantastic. Once I picked this up I couldn't put it down. My only slight criticism is that there are a lot 9f characters to remember, as with the previous books in the series, so I found that quite difficult to remember everyone's back story etc however this didn't detract from the book at all, just confused my over worked brain lol. Bravo mcmanus!

“What is Bayview best known for? Revenge.”

One of Us is Back seriously wove the threads of the previous books in this satisfying way! 🙌 The characters from book one and two coming together? It's like getting that sweet dose of nostalgia while being shook by the intrigue!

The writing was hella engaging and KMM's talent in setting that eerie vibe with these well written characters was 🤯! Reading this book is like binge-watching a Netflix series you CAN'T stop 📺💥

Those flashback chapters from Jake and Simon? BRUH. Unsettling and had me on edge! 🕵️‍♂️💥 The final plot twist had me dead.

Low-key sad to say goodbye to the series, but this book? It's the PERFECT ending to the Bayview crew's journey! 😭✨

Thank you to penguin random house for the e-Arc

I picked this up as soon as I saw I got approved for it, I was an absolutely huge fan of the first two books of this series, Nate & Bronwyn had my heart and I was so excited to see how they were doing.
It was truly so nice to revisit familiar characters and settings, but of course things are never simple or easy for them.
I thought the idea and messages behind what was going on this time around was very clever, and a little spooky at times, it definitely took the story on a darker and deeper lever, there’s kidnappings, murders, drugs you name it so it definitely pushed the boundaries in that sense.
For me it was my least favourite book in the franchise so far, but that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy it as I really truly did, I think I just found it harder to become invested in this one and some of it became a little predictable for me personally
But being honest if this was a book about that characters all just sitting around chatting about life I’d still be dying to read it and for that I can never ever fault this authors work.
A very fun YA story that I’m super grateful to have had the opportunity to read.

I'm grateful I received an advanced reading copy of this book from netgalley.. after it had been published, better late than never though! (just glad I didn't have to buy the physical book that is tall and doesn't match the rest of the series or any of Karen M. McManus' other books?!?! Whoever decided to print it in that format should probably be fired)

Honestly, it's just book three of Bayview and its mediocre mystery with a collected jumble of characters from each of the previous books that weren't strong or particularly note-worthy to begin with.. *yawn* I'm bored of this fkn story.

I can appreciate some people might enjoy this series as it gives off pretty little liars vibes.. kinda but pll did the teenage murder mystery way better.. I think this book was just not for me. I'd rather agonisingly sit through all 7 seasons of pll than read another one of Miss McManus' books (and that's saying something cause that tv show dragged the fuck on)

One of Us is Back was such an explosive final book of the trilogy. I wasn’t sure on the direction the author was going to take this book, but I loved every second of reading it. I liked how this book revolved around the characters which we are familiar with because it made it easy for the reader to fall into the book. The book started off with a mysterious billboard claiming a new game is going to start. From then, things start to get darker.

The characters in this book are all so enjoyable to read about, from the Bayview Four to the new generation in the second book. Throughout the book I was wondering who was in charge of the new game and it was impossible for me to have guessed. When it was revealed, it was a shock. As things started to happen in relation to the new game, everyone was a target and it could have been anyone. There was many twists in this book and it led me to think of different scenarios and suspects, but I couldn’t tell who it was going to be.

The writing in this book and series are incredible. It all flowed so well and the book throws the reader straight into the plot. I liked how all the characters got their own chapters in the book and it was never confusing when the perspective changed. I found myself flying through the chapters to find out more about the plot, but I didn’t want the book to end.

This series gives me major pretty little liars and gossip girl vibes, it is also a similar genre to AGGGTM. A lot of things happen to these characters in these books and I thought this one was the most action packed. I read the first two books prior to reading this one so I could remember what happened, I am glad I done this so I could get the full experience of the series. If you haven’t already read this series, I highly recommend it!

Great concision (is it?!) to the series- character development, mystery, games and a familiar location.
It’s definitely worth reading all books in order - and maybe re read before commencing this one!

Karen McManus is back to Bayview, back where it all began. This is another fantastic thriller from the author who absolutely knows how to write a twisty and turny fast paced book. It’s been a while since I read the Bayview books, so to be quite honest I didn’t remember a huge amount of the plot. That didn’t matter all that much as the exposition in this novel definitely helped to catch me up to speed quickly enough that I didn’t lose any of the threads or find it hard to keep up.

The old crew are back and fans of the original Bayview books will be pleased to see old favourites making key returns in this tale including some less than savoury characters…no spoilers here. However, I will spoil that there were some great flashbacks to Simon and his point of view from prior to One of Us Is Lying that added some real depth to his story and the plot of the first book.

Full of secrets, blackmail, unexpected revelations…fans of One of Us Is Lying will not be disappointed by One of Us Is Back. 5 out of 5 stars.

I loved this book! It was so easy to jump back into the Bayview action. I was worried I wouldn’t remember everything from the previous books as it’s been a while since I read them. However, the beginning had little reminders without fully retelling the story.

The story brings back all the original characters and I felt it was so easy to read. It has suspense and twists and all the aspects of a good YA book.

The book brings the series to an end, but I would read more about the Bayview crew! I really enjoy Karen M McManus’ writing style.

Another excellent offering from Karen McManus. Twisty and turny, and a lovely way of wrapping up the trilogy.

I was in two minds to even request this, as I loved the original book 'One Of Us Is Lying' but between the Netflix adaption and 'One Of Us Is Next', I sort of got a bit of Bayview fatigue.
I'm pleased to say that I actually really enjoyed One Of Us Is Back and it really brought the whole saga full circle in a way that didn't feel forced or aimless.

I feel like we actually learn a lot more about Simon in this book, which is great but surprising it's taken this long since he was really the original catalyst for the games.

This was in danger of getting caught in the "gotcha" loop of things like Pretty Little Liars, but everything came together nicely for me. I would recommend going back and reading all three of the books back to back, I feel like the continuity of characters and over-arching story would benefit more that way.

I have been so excited to read this book for so long. The first two books of the Bayview series were both excellent and incredibly popular with the YA readers I know.

One Of Us Is Back does not disappoint. I loved the familiarity of the characters; all are so different yet perfectly formed. As a reader, each feels so familiar to me and they are built on further throughout this instalment.

Despite the familiarity of the characters and drawing on previous events, this is a brand new mystery and has so many twists and turns that keeps you guessing until the very end.

I’m sad that this is the last we’ll hear of these characters. Fingers crossed, the success of the books may lead to a further instalment as I can certainly see some avenues to further explore. My one disappointment is that Netflix’s adaptation of these books was so poor - I’d advise everyone to read all three of these books and ignore the series completely!

I really enjoyed One of Us Is Back. Like the previous two books, this one does not disappoint (though, it did take a while for the story to really pick up).

More secrets, more twists. We get new characters, old history, and explosive conclusions... The friendships in this book just made my heart so full. The Bayview Crew are friendship goals, who wouldn't want to be part of the Murder Club?!

I loved this book but the content is too mature for the children I teach. It's a great YA tale though, as with all of Karen M. McManus books. There were so many twists and the ending was not what I expected at all. I really enjoyed returning to the Bayview crew again and seeing how their lives had (or in some cases hadn't) moved forward. I don't want to say too much as I don't want to spoil but I definitely recommend this book! By the end, the characters seem to be in a very positive place, which is great in theory but I am secretly hoping for a little chaos so that there will be another book! I need to find out what happens next, especially with Nate!

I thoroughly enjoyed this final instalment of the one of us series, this one was even more angst and so full of twisty turns that kept me on the edge of my seat and devouring it in record time. I think this has become my favourite young adult series.
Once again, the multiple viewpoints made thus an interesting read, and each character's voice was distinct. I definitely recommend reading all three as close together as you can to get the full drama, suspense, and effect of the story. I loved how the characters developed from book one through the second and really matured and grew by book three.
I look forward to reading anything else Karen Mcmanus writes.

I've read and enjoyed all of McManus' books and was excited to find out how the One of Us Is Lying series would continue in a third book. Despite the start of the book providing some recap of the previous two books, having not read them recently, I spent a while confused about who was who and their back story. Once I got up to speed I was able to get fully into the book and enjoy the twists and turns McManus offers. If you've enjoyed the series so far, you' should pick this one up too!

Thank you to Karen McManus, NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers  ebook in exchange for an honest review.

My Year 8 (12-13 year old) form group were so excited when I told them that I had the ARC of this book - and proceeded to suggest all sorts of ways I could "accidentally" leave my kindle at school so they could read it.

I really don't want to spoil anyone, and I'm not sure I can talk about this book properly without risking that. In all seriousness, it's probably not going to change anyone's mind. If you're a fan of Karen M. McManus's YA thrillers, you'll love this (it is, in my opinion, one of her better ones). If you're not, then you probably won't, and that's ok.

Me? I loved it.

An easy 5 stars

I really enjoy this last book of the trilogy, at least I’m assuming it is. It still gripped me from the start and I’m glad it balanced the favourite characters from book one such as Addy, Vanessa and Jake with Phoebe and Owen from the sequel. Can’t say too much as it’ll give the game away but read on, enjoy the mystery and see if you spot one or two people who may be out to get the Bayview Crew……..