Book Review :: You’ll Be the Death of Me by Karen M McManus

You'll Be the Death of Me by Karen M. McManus
ISBN: 0241473667
Published by Penguin Publishing Group, Penguin Books
on 2021-12-02
Genres: Mystery, Young Adult
Pages: 400
Source: Penguin Books NZ
Find at Penguin Books NZ
Goodreads

Ivy, Mateo, and Cal used to be close. Back in middle school they were best friends. So, when Cal pulls into campus late for class, and runs into Ivy and Mateo, it seems like the perfect opportunity to turn a bad day around. They'll ditch school and go into the city. Just the three of them, like old times. Why did they stop hanging out, anyway?

As soon as they pull out of the parking lot Cal knows why. Ivy's already freaking out about missing class, and heartthrob Mateo is asleep in the backseat, too cool to even pretend like he wants to be there. The truth is they have nothing in common anymore.

At least they don't until they run into the fourth student ditching school that day. Brian "Boney" Mahoney is supposed to be accepting his newly won office of class president. Which is why Ivy follows him into an empty building, only to walk into the middle of a murder scene. Cal, Ivy, and Mateo all know the person lying on the ground of that building, and now they need to come clean. They're all hiding something. And maybe their chance reconnection wasn't by chance after all.

Last updated on 13 February 2023

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The Story

Karen M McManus (author of One of Us is Lying, One of Us is Next and The Cousins) strikes again with her latest Young Adult mystery novel, You’ll Be the Death of Me. 

As Ivy, Mateo and Cal are in the wrong place at the wrong time, they’re first on the scene of the murder of their classmate. To make matters worse for them, they shouldn’t have been skipping school in the first place, they shouldn’t have been at the art studio, and they sure as heck shouldn’t have run at the sound of sirens.

You’ll be the Death of Me follows the three teenagers as they try to piece together how their classmate (also skipping school) died, and how to avoid incrimination. With secrets of their own clutched tightly to their chests, questionable classmates, drug dealers, mysterious initials and journalists trying to question them, Ivy, Mateo and Cal are thrown into a world they were not prepared for.

My thoughts on You’ll Be the Death of Me

The first half of You’ll Be the Death of Me was a lot slower than some of her other books, and things didn’t ramp up until the second half of the book. When the story eventually picks up and pulls you along with it, despite some predictability, it still surprises on occasion and still keeps you reading until the very last page.

“Silence falls as we get lost in our own regrets.”

Like any Karen M McManus book, there are a lot of stereotypes in this story, and a lot of character types we’ve seen in some of her other novels. Ivy is the classic top-of-the-class student and running for student council (and losing to the class clown, as the description says). Mateo is working multiple jobs to keep his mum and cousin afloat. Cal is a bit of an outsider with a secret that he doesn’t want to get out, at any cost. Classic YA mystery, classic McManus characters.

In some ways, it was lovely to have a bit of similarity to her other books; in other ways, I was a little bit tired of the same-same.

That being said! I did enjoy my read of You’ll Be the Death of Me and it was great to be able to read another YA mystery from McManus. There’s friendship, romance, family drama, secrets, lies, and a lot of ‘teenagers where they shouldn’t be’. If you’ve read any of McManus’ other stories, then I recommend picking up this one, too!

Have you read any of Karen M McManu’s books? Which ones? What did you think? 

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Thank you to Penguin Books NZ and NetGalley for this review copy. This does not affect my thoughts and all opinions are my own.