You'll Be the Death of Me

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-7

Chapters 8-15

Chapters 16-26

Chapters 27-36

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Themes

The Rewards and Risks of Trusting Instinct

In You’ll Be the Death of Me, McManus embraces the classic mystery novel structure in which solving the mystery of Boney’s death becomes the engine that drives the plot forward. All three protagonists rely on instinct as an important tool to supplement the scarce clues available. The novel explores the rewards that come when an instinct pays off as well as the serious risks involved in acting without evidence. McManus builds dramatic tension as the protagonists’ instincts lead them to conclusions that are alternately correct, leading them to the next clue, or dramatically incorrect, placing them in danger.

Mateo’s instinctual distrust of his cousin Autumn’s boyfriend, Gabe, ultimately proves key to unraveling the entire mystery. Although Autumn complains about Mateo’s “irrational dislike” (14) of Gabe, Mateo maintains his stance on “Loser Gabe,” a nickname he uses multiple times throughout the novel (80, 123, 163, 204). Mateo’s distrust of Gabe gives his mission to understand what Autumn is caught up in a clear direction. Even when it’s clouded by Ivy and Cal’s obsession with Lara Jamison and Dominick Payne, Mateo visualizes his instinct as a thread running through the mystery: “not a common thread, exactly, but a loose one. It keeps dangling right outside [Mateo’s] line of vision, taunting [him] with the fact that if [he] only knew where to tug, [he] could start to unravel everything” (237). The reveal that Gabe is Tom Kendall’s enforcer at Carlton High validates Mateo’s instinct and proves essential to solving the mystery of Boney’s murder. This validation of Mateo’s instincts—which he employs primarily to protect the people he loves—also informs his character, underscoring his insight and dependability. Ivy’s discovery that Mateo followed up on their previous kiss rather than ignoring her as she previously believed also reinforces this characterization.

In contrast, McManus frames Cal’s instincts as products of his insecurities and paranoia, which often put him and his friends in greater peril. Cal’s instinctual distrust of Lara and his jealousy of the men in her life lead him to falsely identify Dominick Payne, who shares studio space with Lara, as the drug dealer who killed Boney. Like Mateo, Cal also visualizes his instinct, describing how it presses “against the edge of [his] subconscious, whispering that [he] already know[s] the answer” (125). Cal’s anxiety about Dominick and desire to exonerate Lara from blame lead him and Ivy to follow this instinct as far as they possibly can, breaking into Lara’s classroom and placing them directly in the path of the true perpetrator. As with Mateo, McManus uses Cal’s instincts to reveal elements of his character that connect his past actions to the present. The insecurity and need to belong that motivate his jealousy echoes his fear that Ivy and Mateo would leave him behind if they became romantically involved.

Ethical Problems With True Crime Media

In You’ll Be the Death of Me, Karen M. McManus offers a striking criticism of true crime-focused media. Her depiction of characters like reporter Dale Hawkins and teenage YouTubers Ishaan and Zack suggests that true crime media sensationalizes tragedies for profit, dehumanizing victims. The novel’s exploration of ethics in true crime reporting involves both professional newscasters and high school amateurs, indicating foundational ethical questions inherent in true crime media.

McManus frames Dale as an unreliable reporter from his very first introduction, signaling ethical problems with true crime media that the novel will ultimately explore. Ivy’s father calls Dale’s show “sensationalized infotainment” in which “there’s never any nuance” and claims Dale “goes for cheap sentiment every time” (72). The fact that Dale—an adult man—chases Ivy—a high school student—through the streets of Boston implies a ruthless willingness to push ethical boundaries in order to get his story. The narrative implies that if Dale actually believed Ivy killed a fellow student, the ethical choice would be to report her location to the nearby police and help them apprehend her, not chase her with a camera to get an interview. By prioritizing drama and views over truth and justice, Dale embodies the ethical problems within the institution of true crime media.

The example of Ishaan and Zack offers a darkly satirical look at the profits available in true crime media. After appearing on Dale’s show, Ishaan and Zack become celebrities within the true crime media space on YouTube, complete with “paid sponsors” (292). Ivy explicitly accuses Ishaan and Zack of “milking” (292) their connection to Boney and the murder trial, which they analyze in publicly posted videos for weeks. Ivy’s best friend Emily appears on the show “for a hefty fee” (292), indicating that the show has quickly become a money-making operation and pointing to the ways in which profit complicates truth. Ishaan and Zack’s viral fame demonstrates the commercial value of true crime media and the ways in which a changing media landscape provides platforms on which popularity can obscure expertise.

The novel also provides a critique that the popularity of true crime media dehumanizes victims, sensationalizing their experiences for profit. In one scene, Mateo watches as a girl getting her picture taken tells her friend to “make sure you hashtag it RIP Boney” (252). The casual use of Boney’s name as a hashtag suggests that his classmates have stopped thinking of him as a human and started seeing him as a victim in a story removed from their own experience. McManus attributes this dehumanization to the popularity of true crime media, which can present victims as one-dimensional characters.

Tensions Inherent in Parent-Teen Relationships

As a young adult novel, You’ll Be the Death of Me explores a central coming-of-age trope—parent-teen relationships—through the protagonists’ varied experiences. Both Ivy and Cal live in two-parent households, while Mateo lives with his single mother. The fact that Ivy and Mateo are both desperate to impress their parents despite the differences in their households suggests that family relationships of all types hold tension.

Ivy’s relationship with her high-achieving, perfectionist mother allows McManus to explore the tension inherent in discovering one’s own path independent of their parent’s expectations. The novel’s opening chapter focuses on Ivy’s desperation to impress her mother, who is arriving back into town just in time to receive a prestigious award. Despite her demanding school schedule and recent election loss, Ivy “insist[s] on handling every aspect of the award ceremony” (3) because she’s “afraid if [she doesn’t], [her] mother [will] realize she’d made a mistake by asking [Ivy] to introduce her” (3). Ivy’s need to impress her mother drives her actions throughout the novel. Part of the reason she works so hard to clear her name is that she “desperately” needs to believe that she “can still pull off a perfect night for [her] mother” (186). Ivy’s fear of disappointing her mother colors her perception of their relationship: When Ivy looks into her mother’s eyes at the beginning of the novel, they are “wide and worried—like they’re reflecting all of my recent failures” (11). The tension between Ivy and her mother drives Ivy’s character arc, moving her from a desperate need to prove herself to an acceptance of herself as her own person—an acceptance that’s ultimately embraced by her mother as well.

Like Ivy, Mateo is desperate to prove himself to his mother. However, while Ivy tries to reflect the perfection she sees in her mother, Mateo works hard to provide for his family because his mother can no longer do so. Mateo does not resent this work, but feels his mother’s pain deeply, saying that “every single day it’s like getting slammed in the head with a two-by-four to see [his] mother […] strain to make it from the living room to the kitchen” (16). As a result, both Mateo and his cousin Autumn make decisions motivated by a need to survive, even if it means engaging in illegal activities. Notably, both Matteo and Autumn maintain ethical boundaries even as they blur the lines of legality, underscoring the values Mateo’s mother instilled in them. When she learns that Autumn sells drugs to pay for her medication, Mateo’s mother insists that they stop taking financial responsibility for the household, saying that “supporting this family is not in [their] job description” (302). Mateo’s relationship with his mother demonstrates the tensions that exist even in supportive relationships.