You'll Be the Death of Me

September 15, 2021
Three estranged friends ditch school and end up involved in a murder. In sixth grade, Cal O'Shea-Wallace, Ivy Sterling-Shepard, and Mateo Wojcik skipped school, enjoying a day so fabulous that it sealed their friendship for the rest of middle school. Since entering Carlton High, the three have barely spoken to each other--until one particularly rough day during senior year when they run into each other and spontaneously decide to do it again. Overachiever Ivy just lost the student council election, Cal got stood up by his maybe-girlfriend, and Mateo is simply tired from working two jobs to help his family. A drive into Boston is just the thing. The adventure takes a turn for the worse, however, when they accidently find the body of Brian Mahoney, who ran against Ivy for class president and won, and the media targets her as the culprit. But the three former friends are keeping secrets from one another, and what appears to be simply bad luck is actually part of something larger and more dangerous. With its fast-paced, twisty narrative and McManus' hallmark perspective shifts between the three protagonists, this thriller is both a fun homage to Ferris Bueller's Day Off and an exploration of how secrets and bad choices can escalate and bring harmful consequences. Most characters are White; Mateo is Puerto Rican and Polish, and Cal has two dads. A master of the teen thriller delivers again. (Thriller. 14-18)

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October 4, 2021
McManus (The Cousins) once again creates a believable, pulse-pounding thriller, this time told through the alternating perspectives of three teens. Former best friends Ivy Sterling-Shepard, Cal O’Shea-Wallace (both white), and Mateo Wojcik (Puerto Rican and Polish) find themselves at the center of a murder investigation when they ditch school to re-create “the Greatest Day Ever”—the day they first became friends. But the reenactment quickly devolves when they stumble upon the corpse of Brian “Boney” Mahoney at the art studio of Cal’s love interest. Blonde Ivy, embarrassed by her loss of the school election to Boney, quickly becomes a prime suspect when school gossips connect her hair color to that of the murderer. Determined to clear her name, Ivy insists that the trio investigate. But as they follow the clues, the former friends’ secrets are revealed, some about the murder and others tied to their friendship, familial relationships, and misunderstandings that have resulted in long-lasting damage. McManus cleverly crafts a realistic crime story with plausible plot twists and characters who have plenty of depth. While the mystery of why Boney was murdered moves the story along, the relationship between Cal, Ivy, and Mateo will keep readers engaged. Ages 14–up. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio.

Starred review from December 1, 2021

Gr 9 Up-Ivy, Mateo, and Cal became best friends in middle school after skipping out on a school field trip and having the Best Day Ever. Now high school seniors, they don't talk with one another or move in the same circles. But all this changes the morning after Ivy loses the student council election to Boney Mahoney. The three end up in the parking lot together before school and decide it is a perfect day to skip. Cal is tired of being a loner and is uncertain about his new love interest. Mateo is worried about needing to work three jobs to help support his ailing mother and his cousin Amanda's latest money scheme to help support the family. Ivy is embarrassed to sit through Boney's acceptance speech. Even though they haven't spent time together in years, all three set out together to forget about what awaits them at school. In downtown Boston, they see Boney Mahoney has also skipped school, and they follow him to a vacant downtown building, where they find him murdered. The three become involved in investigating what happened to Boney on what soon becomes the Worst Day Ever as they realize they all have more in common with Boney and one another than they realized. VERDICT In her latest thriller, McManus draws readers in with her multiple voices (the narrative moves among Ivy, Mateo, and Cal) to bring readers a suspenseful day of murder and mayhem that will keep them guessing until the end.-Rebekah Buchanan, Western Illinois Univ., Macomb

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Starred review from September 1, 2021
Grades 8-12 *Starred Review* Friends Ivy and Calvin (both white) and Mateo (part Puerto Rican) attempt to recreate the events that first brought them together by skipping school and heading to Boston. They decide to check out the aquarium but soon end up at their art teacher's downtown studio, where Ivy unexpectedly comes across the dead body of another student. When a woman matching Ivy's description ends up as a suspect in the news, the trio works against the clock to unravel a convoluted tapestry of drug-dealing, death, and deception. Each character is multifaceted, driven by complex motivations, and held together by a tangled web of truth and lies. Each effort to find out what really happened seems to meet a dead end, forcing everyone to reveal deeper secrets that put more than just their friendship in danger. McManus (The Cousins, 2020) shows off her skill and dexterity throughout this narrative, again proving her status as a force to be reckoned with in the murder-mystery genre. With fast pacing and her signature flair for the dramatic, McManus weaves a masterful tale of secrets, lies, and twisted intentions that will be sure to keep readers guessing whodunit, from start to finish.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: It's an open and shut case that anything McManus will be extremely popular.

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