TITLE: Nothing More to Tell
AUTHOR: Karen M. McManus
PAGE COUNT: 356 pages
PUBLISHER: Penguin
PUBLICATION DATE: 1 September 2022
GENRE: Mystery, Thriller, Young Adult, Contemporary
SYNOPSIS: From the internationally bestselling author of Netflix’s hottest new show, One of Us is Lying, comes a new, page-turning thriller . . .
True crime can leave a false trail.
Four years ago, Brynn left Saint Ambrose School following the shocking murder of her favourite teacher. The case was never solved, but she’s sure that the three kids who found Mr. Larkin’s body know more than they’re telling, especially her ex-best friend Tripp Talbot. He’s definitely hiding something.
When Brynn gets an internship working on a popular true-crime show, she decides to investigate what really happened that day in the woods. But the further she dives into the past, the more secrets she finds.
Four years ago someone got away with murder. Now it’s time to uncover the truth . . .
‘Given that her high-school-based murder mysteries read like bingeworthy Netflix dramas, it’s easy to see why queen of teen crime Karen McManus is a bestseller on both sides of the Atlantic’ – Observer
Thank you to Penguin Random House South Africa for providing me with a free physical copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I always look forward to a new Karen M. McManus book, so I was happy to have received a copy to read and review. Nothing More to Tell was just as amazing as her previous releases, and I was captivated the entire time.
The story follows Brynn, who moved away from her small hometown shortly after the murder of her favourite teacher. Now, after four years, she is back and ready to discover what happened that day in the woods.
As Brynn searches for answers, she discovers more danger, sinister secrets and dark truths, and as she gets reconciles with her ex-best friend, Tripp, who was one of the three students who discovered Mr Larkin’s body, she realises that he is hiding something. The both of them work together to find all the missing pieces to the puzzle.
First of all, I really enjoyed the setting. The small hometown environment really played a big part in the cosy but also creepy vibe of the story. The fact that everybody knows everybody and that nothing stays a secret, except who murdered Mr Larkin, really adds to the dark feeling of this thriller.
I was on the edge of my seat and tried to play it all out in my head to solve the murder, but it all stayed a mystery until the end. There were a few plot twists, and I could never fully guess who the murderer was.
Brynn was a lovable character from the start, and despite the mysterious and suspicious characteristics of Tripp, I really liked him too. I think the building to his background helped the story unfold as it should have.
The only thing I wished differently was that more suspense could have been added to make the story a bit more creepy. A perfect thriller scares you a bit, and I feel like it could have been more scary to have really made it unable to be put down.
Overall, it was yet another great mystery from Karen M. McManus, and I cannot wait for the next one!
Click here to read my review of The Cousins by Karen M. McManus.
“Do you have a favorite crime?”
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
[…]
“A favorite what?” I ask.
“Crime,” she says, still smiling.
“Because you can make a real difference with every story, and give a voice to people who don’t have one,” I say instead.
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
When life hands you lemons, make lemon cake.
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
“That’s not the saying,” I told him, feeling a small thrill that I knew more than a teacher. “‘It’s make lemonade.’”
“Yeah, but I hate lemonade,” he said with a shrug. “And I love cake.”
“Your rules are not my rules, beloved uncle.”
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
“Then my coffee is not your coffee, cherished niece. Give it back.”
“Too late.” I pour a healthy dollop of cream into my coffee and hold it up. “This coffee is no longer lactose free.”
“You’re the worst,” he says with a long-suffering sigh…
He doesn’t realize how demoralizing it is to watch him dismiss someone who doesn’t have their entire life mapped out by the age of twenty-four.
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
It’s interesting, how you can just stop doing things and the world keeps right on going.
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
That’s the thing nobody ever tells you about being involved in a murder: it tends to keep you up at night.
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
“…You can tell me whatever you’re thinking, no matter how dark it is, because chances are, I’ve thought it too. Recently.”
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
“I don’t know much,” I say, “but here’s what I do know. I know that you weren’t just chasing a story, you were trying to help people who were hurting find peace. I know that secrets can eat you alive, and the truth can break your heart, and sometimes it’s hard to know which is worse.” […] “I know that you can have the best intentions and still get the worst results. And I know”—I pull her closer and rest my chin on the top of her head-“that you won’t always feel like this.”
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
“I deserve to feel like this,” she says.
“You don’t. I promise you don’t.”
“There’s more than one way to be awful.”
—Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
Karen M. McManus is a #1 New York Times and international bestselling author of young adult thrillers. Her books include the One of Us Is Lying series, which has been turned into a television show on Peacock and Netflix, as well as the standalone novels Two Can Keep a Secret, The Cousins, You’ll Be the Death of Me, and Nothing More to Tell. Karen’s critically acclaimed, award-winning work has been translated into more than 40 languages.
To learn more, visit www.karenmcmanus.com or @writerkmc on Twitter and Instagram.
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