One Of Us Is Lying: 9 Things From The Books The Show Changed

Peacock’s One of Us is Lying is the latest in a long list of YA novels adapted for the screen. The teen mystery/thriller series follows the book of the same name by Karen McManus and while there are a lot of similarities between the two, there are quite a number of differences as well. For the most part, the series was a faithful adaptation of the book as far as the main plot is concerned. In both, Simon’s death一later confirmed to be a homicide一kicks off the story, leaving Bronwyn, Nate, Addy, and Cooper as the key suspects of the crime.

From there, things begin to spiral as the four of them look guiltier with each clue that’s uncovered一some more than others. With each episode, the series diverges more and more from the books with minor adjustments at first and bigger plot changes at the end.

9 Mr. Avery Versus Ms. Avery

The book alternates POVs among the Bayview Four, starting off with Bronwyn as the narrator during detention. In the scene, she complains to Mr. Avery, that she was wrongfully detained because of a cellphone he found in her bag, which wasn’t actually hers. The TV show starts similarly, showing each of the four preparing for their first day back at school and eventually winding up in detention together.

However, instead of Mr. Avery, the series has Ms. Avery as their teacher. The gender swap wasn’t a very big change from the book, but she’s certainly a toned-down version of her book counterpart who had an intense hatred of technology and social media.

8 The Diversion

During detention in the pilot, Ms. Avery was assigning the students some work when eggs were thrown at their window. She left the room to deal with the commotion outside. It was later discovered that Simon had paid for the diversion so the police would believe one of the students had taken it as an opportunity to posion him.

The books had a similar diversion with a slight difference. Two cars got into a fender bender instead, right outside the building. Mr. Avery left the room to help, which was when Simon drank the poisoned water and went into anaphylactic shock. In the show, when the troublemakers got away, Simon used them as an opportunity to justify his version of justice, which helped provide some insight into his character.

7 The Reason They Were In Detention

In the pilot, Bronwyn makes a notable fuss of being wrongfully detained because of a phone that rang in her bag, yet hers was in her locker. Addy later revealed that she got detention because of an alarm she didn’t set going off on her phone. Cooper was detained for being late to class because he couldn’t find his phone, and Nate got detention for being late as well because his locker was jammed shut一which Brownwyn found suspicious.

The book had all the students sent to detention because they had phones in their bags when they weren’t supposed to. All of them said the phones didn’t belong to them and Simon even pointed fingers at Nate as the one responsible for framing them. This version was simpler but the TV alternate added an extra element of mystery, which ended up being a big clue pointing to Jake as the person behind it all.

6 What Janae Knew

As Simon’s best friend, Janae was distraught when he died and she believed that the Bayview Four were responsible. In the episode, “One of Us Is Cracking,” Addy figured out Janae published the drafts Simon had written of their secrets to expose them. She eventually joined their investigation until they finally discovered it was Jake all along.

The book version had a different story as Janae actually knew Simon’s entire plan to take the peanut oil and frame the Bayview Four. He approached her to help him but she refused and he found someone else to assist him with his plan. Changing this gave one of the best characters of One Of Us Is Lying a bigger role without revealing the entire plot too early.

5 Maeve’s Relationship With Simon and Janae

Despite Bronwyn’s best efforts to keep her sister out of their investigation, Maeve got involved and as one of the smartest characters in One Of Us Is Lying, proved to be valuable. Bronwyn was also surprised to find that at one time, Maeve, Simon, and Janae had hung out and she’d sent some risque photos to him too.

This relationship didn’t exist in the book and Maeve had a much smaller role until the sequel. While the show hasn’t been confirmed for a second season, the cliffhanger ending of the first sets up a continuation that might involve Maeve as well. Hence, establishing her as a prominent character right from the onset was a good move to help the audience be more invested in her story going forward.

4 The Reason Bronwyn Confronted Simon

As the murder investigation continued in the show, new details emerged such as the security camera footage of Bronwyn shoving Simon when she confronted him over the pictures Maeve sent, which she worried he would post.

The series adaptation of Bronwyn might not have been 100% accurate, but this protective side of hers was present in both versions, and in the books, she went after Simon as well, in defense of her sister. Instead of their confrontation being over pictures Maeve willingly sent, Bronwyn was upset because Simon posted pictures of Maeve when she was drunk at a party. Although Simon was the least likable character in One Of Us Is Lying, the series version of this argument made him seem like less of a jerk.

3 Nate & Bronwyn’s Relationship

Nate and Bronwyn’s love story brewed in the background of the investigation. With only eight episodes in the season, there wasn’t room to show every step towards them getting closer. For a while, it seemed they would be a couple, especially after Brownyn’s confession of her feelings and their kiss. However, in the end, Nate told her they were not each other’s normal and couldn’t be together.

The book version of this teen romance was intriguing, especially since readers had insight into both their feelings from the characters’ individual POVs. Nate and Bronwyn grew closer over their amateur murder investigation and virtual horror movie watch-dates and by the end of the book, they were officially a couple. Since the series left the characters with a shared secret, the two of them might cross paths again in a sequel, so there’s still hope for the young couple.

2 The Who Dunnit

Simon’s murder was solved in the finale through flashbacks of the plan to frame the Bayview Four. Upon a dare from Jake, he planned to take the peanut oil and once his detention mates saved him with an EpiPen, they would be key suspects in the attempt on his life. Jake betrayed Simon instead and made sure there were no EpiPens available, thus guaranteeing Simon’s death.

The book had a much darker plot as Simon came up with the plan himself to frame the Bayview Four for his murder. Jake was only roped into the plan when Janae refused to help him, and Simon left him in charge of About That. Both plots are equally fascinating, but the mellower version from show is less tragic, especially considering Simon’s ideas stemmed from his fascination with school shootings.

1 Jake’s Fate

Once the Bayview Four discovered Jake’s secret, he chased them with a gun and during a scuffle in the woods, he was shot dead. Although they weren’t shown getting rid of the body, they definitely kept his death a secret. The evidence needed to exonerate them was found in Jake’s room and the police believed he fled to Mexico to avoid capture.

The book tied things up a little neater with Jake getting arrested, leaving the Bayview Four in the clear. The show ends on a cliffhanger as they all receive mysterious messages indicating someone outside their group knows their secret, thus setting up a second season.

About The Author

Tricia Mawire
(172 Articles Published)

Tricia is a List Writer for Screen Rant with a background in creative writing and a love for all things film and TV. She fell in love with reading at the age of 10 after discovering that her favorite movie, Matilda, was based on a novel. That led to her first in-depth analysis of literary work to her mom and anyone who’d listen. If she’s not reading or writing stories with crazy plot twists, she’s bingeing a new series and ranting about character arcs and plot holes. Or she’s eating French fries.

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