Posted on by hrchow12

Book Review – One of Us is Next

This is a sequel, so I’ll keep this review short, but while a pleasant enough YA suspense, I didn’t think this one was as good as One of Us is Lying.

One of Us Is Next follows three kids from Bayview high that are loosely related to the kids from the first book. Basically, someone starts mass texting the whole school in a weird truth or dare game that gets out of hand, and the three POVs are scrambling to find out who.

This book hits all the usual notes of a YA mystery, but it felt a little slower paced than McManus’ other books I’ve read. Maybe I came into this book with expectations high after the first one, but the suspense wasn’t as intense as the first book, the reveal seemed a bit expected, and the characters/romances fell a little flat for me. I got the audiobook from the library, and I thought the male voice was a little annoying, which might have contributed to the problem.

I’d probably still recommend this one if you’re a McManus fan, but if there’s a third entry in the series, I’m not sure I’d read it.

⭐⭐⭐¾ 

And don’t listen to weird texts from rando’s! 😆

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Book Review – Obsidio

Obsidio is the final book of a trilogy, so this review will be a little shorter. I *loved* the first two Illuminae books, so I was eager to dive into this one. Unfortunately, I do think this was the weakest of the trilogy. Asha and Rhys didn’t have a whole lot of chemistry to speak of, and I felt like Asha and her story just fell a little flat in general. I think the first half dragged a little, but the second half more than made up for it. I loved seeing the characters from the other books in action, and Aiden, to me, totally makes these books. For some reason, I can’t help but love our AI anti-hero.

In this book, we also find out who the analysts are that have been transcribing/narrating the videos… and weirdly it took me out of the story. I felt like the narrative of this book was less suited to the epistolary style. This book didn’t have the big mind-blowing twist of the other two, but it still made for a satisfying ending to the trilogy.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tula giving the Illuminae series her full attention.

Thanks for reading!