This YA mystery will please fans of the author, whose profile continues to rise, and this is timed well to coincide with the adaptation of the author's first book. It isn't necessarily anything new either for the genre or for the author, but it does tackle a timely issue in an ultimately interesting way.

I am almost always guaranteed to like whatever book Karen M. McManus puts out, and YOU'LL BE THE DEATH OF ME was no exception. The story is told through three different perspectives of three different protagonists. Ivy is the Type A personality who strives to be the best she can be, especially in light of her extremely gifted younger brother. Mateo is the quiet loner who is juggling two jobs to support his chronically ill mother and his cousin. Cal is the wise ass misfit who is head over heels in a new relationship. I loved how all of them interacted with each other, and how McManus really gave me the feeling of lost friendships not because of anything big, but because of growing up an apart. I also liked slowly revealing the secrets that they all have, and how said secrets tie into the larger mystery of who killed their classmate, a murder they witness of their spontaneous ditch day. The mystery was well written and executed, and had a lot of twists and turns that I didn't see coming. I also just had a fun time reading it, devouring it in one day.

Honestly, YOU'LL BE THE DEATH OF ME may be my favorite McManus thriller yet!

I read the author’s previous 3 novels and this one didn’t quite meet my expectations. The mystery didn’t fully pull me in because nothing really made me care much about it. As the book went on and the three teenagers suddenly became teen detectives (with secrets of their own of course), I began to care a bit more and wonder how it would all go down. I really enjoyed the reimagining of Frerris Buller’s Day off, but I was missing the suspense and drama she had in her other books.

Karen McManus is a fabulous writer, and the characters and dialogue in this book were of the exceptional YA-caliber that she always seems to deliver. Although nothing about this book could be described as shockingly new to the genre, it was a compelling and easy read full of some fun twists and turns.

The climax hit at about the 90% mark of the book, which meant that for something in the mystery and thriller genre, there was a very loooooong epilogue that -- timing-wise -- didn’t feel quite right to me. I just wanted it to wrap up.

Despite the long ending, this is a super-solid mystery that is an incredibly fun read, so I recommend it for McManus fans or anyone who loves a solid YA mystery.

This comes out Nov. 30!

Thank you Delacorte Press/Random House for the ARC!

As soon as I started reading this I was absolutely hooked!! I did not see the plot twists coming (especially the last one lol) and I enjoyed reading about the main characters :) Definitely recommend picking this up if you're looking for a fun and quick YA mystery/thriller.

Karen McManus has written another suspenseful book with twists and turns that keep you guessing until the end.

Another winner of a thriller by McManus! When four old friends ditch a day of school, they find themselves at the scene of a murder and trying to evade the police.

This book was fun, but I didn’t like it quite enough to write a review for The Wellesley News (I only write positive reviews on principle). The plot twists felt a little predictable, and the story was a bit tropey for my taste. Thank you to Delacorte for the opportunity to read and review!

Rating: 4.5 stars rounded up to 5

I love Karen McManus books and was so excited when I got accepted for this ARC! Really enjoyed this book. Throughout the book, there were multiple twists causing you to suspect different people. I never once suspected the person who was revealed to be the killer, and I couldn’t have predicted the ending! Another great book by Karen McManus. Thank you NetGalley and Random House Children’s for providing me with this arc. I look forward to future books by this author, and if this were to become a series like her One Of Us Is Lying book series, I would definitely read future related books.

3.5/5 stars.

You'll Be the Death of Me follows three former friends who decide to skip school and basically, chaos ensues. Ivy, Cal, and Mateo stumble upon a murder and find themselves closely connected to the victim. They spend the rest of the day trying to put together the pieces and solve the case of the murder, while also reflecting and attempt to repair they own former friendship.
This book is super fast paced and pretty entertaining. I wasn't totally blown away by the storyline but if you are looking for an easy whodunit read, this is a good one to pick up.

Eh. Wasn’t a big fan of this one. It was too unrealistic, and I wasn’t invested in the characters or plot.

Three teens used to be best friends, and they once skipped school together. High school took them into a different set of friends, and they drifted apart. On a day when separately they are already having a bad day, they encounter each other and decide to relive the fun they had had before. Unfortunately, this time they discover the murdered body of someone they know. An excellent mystery, and one I have ordered for my high school library.


Ramona Thompson

I love a Karen McManus mystery, since One of Us is Lying, I've been a big fan and this did not disappoint - I highly recommend for anyone looking for a great YA mystery.

You'll be the Death of Me is the story of Ivy, Mateo & Cal. They were friends growing up, but don't spend much time together now. They decide to have a redo on a skip day that they all took together from high school. Except that this skip day quickly becomes a disaster as they nearly witness the drug overdose of one of their classmates.

A little bit Ferris Beuller's Day off - this is a typical whodunnit. These three friends must work together to help figure out what happened to their classmate, lest they become the suspects themselves. I enjoyed the high school setting and the YA characters. I appreciate the raising of the issue of drug abuse.

My one negative of this book is that I feel that it glazes over the issue of drug abuse. I felt that the book could have gone into more depth about what is a major public health concern currently. I felt that something was lacking in the address of this topic.

Otherwise, I love Karen McManus' books and will continue to read all that she writes.

Ivy Sterling-Shepard, Cal O’Shea-Wallace, and Mateo Wojcik were inseparable in middle school after cementing their friendship on the Best Day Ever when they skipped out on a class field trip in Boston to have an adventure of their own. Now in their senior year of high school they barely speak; they all have bigger things to worry about.

Ivy has always been an overachiever. How else can she prove that she can keep up with her legit genius younger brother? How else can she recover from the fallout after his latest, brutal joke? Unfortunately, instead of pulling out a stunning victory at the student council election, Ivy loses. To the class clown. "Boney" Mahoney.

Mateo is too exhausted to worry about what's going on with his former friends. His family's business just failed. He's working two jobs to help out plus school. His mother is rationing her meds for her rheumatoid arthritis because the co-pay is so high. And his cousin Autumn is . . . not making good choices as she tries to help the family struggle along as best she can.

Cal is in love. But he's also lonely. He has been for a while, if he's being honest. And being stood up again doesn't help that at all.

When all three of them arrive at the school parking lot at the same time, late, it feels like a second chance. Maybe they can skip class and recapture whatever it is they lost along the way.

The trio's attempt to recreate the magic of the Best Day Ever quickly becomes the Worst Day Ever when they follow another classmate to a mysterious meeting. And witness his murder.

Worse, Ivy is soon the prime suspect. Mateo has a dangerous connection to their dead classmate. And Cal is hiding something from everyone--something that could have deadly consequences.

All of them have their own motives for staying together and figuring out what happened. Now they have to figure out if they also have their own motives for murder in You'll Be the Death of Me (2021) by Karen M. McManus.

Find it on Bookshop.

You'll Be the Death of Me is a perfectly paced mystery set primarily over the course of one frantic day. Chapters alternate between the three main characters Ivy who is white, Cal who is white and has two dads, and Mateo who is Puerto Rican and Polish. Mateo's cousin Autumn was orphaned as a child and lives with Mateo and his mother. Interludes from other characters add dimension to the story by providing different viewpoints this is otherwise closely focused story.

McManus packs a lot into this story as all three characters are hiding things from each other. These secrets are expertly teased out as the novel progresses and builds to its jaw dropping conclusion. None of the protagonists here are perfect--bad choices are made by all throughout the novel. Both their growth and the novel's intense readability are testaments to McManus' considerable talents as an author.

You'll Be the Death of Me is an utterly engrossing page turner filled with unexpected twists, humor, and unexpectedly compelling friendships (and even some romance). Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: Ace of Spades by Faridah Abike-Iyimide, They Wish They Were Us by Jessica Goodman, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson, The Best Lies by Sarah Lyu, People Like Us by Dana Mele, The Mary Shelley Club by Goldy Moldavsky, In the Hall With the Knife by Diana Peterfreund

*An advance copy of this title was provided by the publisher for review consideration*

This book was so twisty! I did not see the ending coming! There were so many people I suspected but it was never the actual person! I love a good thrilling mystery and this book ticked off all the boxes for me!

What would happen if Ferris Bueller's day off turned deadly? It would probably look a lot like You’ll be the Death of Me!

When three ex besties Mateo, Cal and Ivy decide to ditch school because like, why not? They end up smack dab in the middle of a crime scene and what’s worse, there are police sirens on the way and Ivy has passed out. So the three do what any other teenager who isn’t thinking straight would do, they high tail it out of there. Turns out Ivy had a reason to ditch school though and she’s about to start looking real suspicious.

I gave this book four starts mostly because it was easy and quick to read and did mostly keep my attention but to be honest, the middle of this book almost had no point. We do a lot of just following the three around with barely any “thrilling” scenes and just when I thought I was getting one, the scene ends on a good note which is mostly bad for a thriller *insert sweating emoji*.

Karen McManus is always one of my auto buy authors but her books are starting to all blend for me. We always get a group of teens who are all starkly different yet somehow end up together, someone dies and it’s all a bit dramatic and then ends neatly. McManus is definitely still an auto buy author for me because I always breeze through her books quickly and they at least remain entertaining.

So if you’re looking for a quick and easy thriller to fill up your Goodreads goal or just a fan of McManus in general, I do still recommend picking this up!

I can officially say I'll read and love anything this author writes. I've read all of her books and have enjoyed every single one! While this one did start out slower than her usual ones, I was still intrigued as to where the story was going. Once the pace quickens, it was twist after twist that kept me guessing until the end. I thoroughly enjoyed the big twist and the plot altogether.

It does read like your typical YA thriller, but McManus knows how to write a book that makes you want to continue reading.

If you're looking for a great YA thriller full of twists pick up this one and all of McManus' other books!

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Well, now that book was quite a ride. I don’t know if I just wasn’t paying enough attention or what, but there were some turns there that I didn’t quite see coming, and I loved it.

It was a bit slow to start, but when it did pick up, I had fun. My biggest issue was the cliffhanger ending, setting it up for a sequel. I hate going into a book thinking it’s a stand-alone, and then being faked out. Which is not to say that I won’t read a sequel. I ABSOLUTELY will. I just didn’t know to expect one.

The biggest thing I was reminded of while reading this book? POTENTIAL SPOILER: we need to pay teachers more.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for an early readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This book is full of plot-twists. I honestly didn't even know who the big bad was under they told me. Then I was like, oh dude duh. And then I asked myself why I was an idiot.

Anyway, Mateo, Ivy and Cal are three best friends from 8th grade that did everything together. After a weird situation, they haven't really talked for years. In an even weirder situation, they all end up skipping school together (which is weird) because they are all avoiding something. WHICH THEN leads them to a crime scene before the police get there.. which they flee.

This reads like a typical young-adult thriller, and honestly it felt like a palate cleanser for me. I was sucked in right when they reached the crime scene. The beginning felt weird to me because I, personally, would not skip school with someone I haven't talked to in years. Sounds like a bad idea to me. Which in this case, it was a bad idea (not because of the company but because of the situation they walked into.. you get it).

The way Ivy was written felt a lot like how my brain works. Rabbit holes, she always fell down them. Then Cal's insecurities when it comes to friends, I felt that too. And then Mateo's will to do anything to protect the people he cares about, reached down to my core. I wouldn't say this book has a lot of depth, but I will say this book is a fun ride and a quick read. I think you'll find yourself finishing before you look at the clock.