From what I can dig up, it's a standalone novel. The author's previous series, like the 'One of Us Is Lying' books, have clear continuity with returning characters. 'Megaton' doesn't mention any of those folks or settings. It's a self-contained story about a town facing a disaster. That said, McManus does have a habit of dropping tiny, almost Easter egg-like references between her unrelated books—a news headline in the background, a mention of a company name. But nothing that makes 'Megaton' a required part of a sequence. You can pick it up without any prior knowledge and be totally fine.
Been slowly working my way through all of Karen McManus's stuff, and 'One of Us Is Lying' definitely started this whole connected universe trend for her. 'The Cousins' and 'One of Us Is Next' share that same prep-school-gone-wrong vibe, but 'Megaton' struck me as its own separate beast.
It has a completely different setting, for one. We're not at Bayview High anymore; it's all about a rural town grappling with this massive, looming industrial accident threat. The social dynamics feel less about a tight-knit group of suspects and more about community panic, family secrets, and corporate cover-ups. McManus's style is there in the multiple POVs and the secrets, but the core premise doesn't seem to tie back to the Murder Club mystery at all.
I'd say it's a standalone in terms of plot and characters. She's just exploring a different kind of thriller framework with this one, which I actually appreciated. It shows her range beyond the high school whodunit.
I saw some confusion online because the publisher's catalog sometimes lists it under "a new thriller from the author of..." which makes it sound like part of her existing series, but it's not. It's a standalone in the sense that it tells one story. However, you could argue that all her YA thrillers are part of a 'thematic series'—they all deal with secrets, lies, and ordinary people in extraordinary, dangerous situations. So while 'Megaton' isn't a direct sequel to anything, if you like her other books, you'll probably like this one too. It operates with the same mechanics, just a different backdrop.
Honestly, I read it and felt it was standalone. The plot resolves fully, no cliffhangers pointing to a sequel, and the characters' arcs are wrapped up by the end. It doesn't feel like Book 1 of anything; it feels like one big, complete story about a specific crisis. If a series was planned, I haven't seen any announcements for a follow-up, and it's been out for a bit.
Yeah, standalone. No series number on the cover, no 'Book One' subtitle, and the story begins and ends within those pages. The marketing treated it as a single, major release, not the start of a trilogy or duology. It's just its own thing, which is refreshing sometimes.
2026-07-19 22:07:37
22
View All Answers
Scan code to download App
Related Books
Savage Sons MC Books 1-5
Emma Mountford
9.5
33.5K
Savage Sons Mc books 1-5 is a collection of MC romance stories which revolve around five key characters and the women they fall for.
Havoc -
A sweet like honey accent and a pair of hips I couldn’t keep my eyes off.That’s how it started.Darcie Summers was playing the part of my old lady to keep herself safe but we both know it’s more than that.There’s something real between us.Something passionate and primal.Something my half brother’s stupidity will rip apart unless I can get to her in time.
Cyber - Everyone has that ONE person that got away, right?
The one who you wished you had treated differently.
For me, that girl has always been Iris.So when she turns up on Savage Sons territory needing help, I am the man for the job.
Every time I look at her I see the beautiful girl I left behind but Iris is no longer that girl.
What I put into motion years ago has shattered her into a million hard little pieces.
And if I’m not careful they will cut my heart out.
Fang-The first time I saw her, she was sat on the side of the road drinking whiskey straight from the bottle.
The second time was when I hit her dog.
I had promised myself never to get involved with another woman after the death of my wife.
But Gypsy was different.
Sweeter, kinder and with a mouth that could make a sailor blush.
She was also too good for me.
I am Fang, President of the Savage Sons. I am not a good man, I’ve taken more lives than I care to admit even to myself.
But I’m going to keep her anyway.
Natasha Reese believed love could survive the end of the world. She gave up everything for Josh — her dangerous past as a special forces operative, her freedom, and her deepest secrets — to build a safe home with the man she loved. But when his childhood friend Evelyn stepped into their lives, Natasha watched her marriage slowly crumble. Her husband grew distant. Her mother-in-law turned against her. And when her hidden truth was exposed, the man she adored cast her out into the dead world to die.
She should have died. Instead, Natasha rose stronger than ever, leading an elite strike team and carrying a power that could save what remains of humanity. The infected won’t touch her. The survivors look to her with hope. But when Josh returns, haunted by regret and desperate to win back the heart he broke, he finds Natasha in the arms of another man. Aaron Ross — powerful, dangerous, and willing to burn the world down for her. The only man who offers Natasha the kind of love and devotion Josh never could.
Now torn between the husband who betrayed her and the man who wants to claim her completely, Natasha must make a choice that will decide not only her heart… but the future of humanity itself.
In a bleak future, the man with everything wants one more thing. Her.
Tiernan is a man with everything, and he’s not used to being denied what he wants. When he sees Madison from a distance, he makes the arrogant decision to take her. Her family needs her, but she has little choice except to become the Commander’s new companion, albeit reluctantly. Life in the hub of power isn’t what she expects, and neither is Tiernan. He’s dark and demanding, but there are flashes of tenderness that have her falling for the man she glimpses inside the cold and exacting commander of their territory. Which Teirnan is the real one—the tyrant or the tender lover? At first, it seems impossible that she could ever be happy with the man who forced her to give up her life, but feelings grow between them. Their relationship reaches a fragile new level that could deepen to something neither expected, if betrayal and treason don’t separate the lovers.
The end of the world was upon us, but there weren't enough spots for evacuation.
The roars of the zombies echoed in my ears as my fiancé, Oliver, gritted his teeth and pulled me onto the rescue vehicle—securing the last available seat.
I arrived safely at the survivor base. Lina, his first love, did not. The zombies tore her apart.
Oliver still went through with our marriage, but I never expected that he had only done so to make me suffer.
In his eyes, I was the one who had killed Lina. If she had to endure such agony, then I should, too.
For five years, he hated me. My life was worse than that of a stray dog scavenging for food on the street.
On the day my divorce was finalized, he kidnapped me, dragged me into the wilderness, and wrapped his fingers around my throat. Then, he threw us both into the swarm of the undead.
When I opened my eyes again, I was somehow reborn on the day the apocalypse began.
The rescue team was shouting impatiently, "One more! We have room for one more—hurry!"
I turned to Oliver, watching his hesitation. Then, with a quiet smile, I took a step back and let someone else have the last seat.
In a post apocalyptic world, where staying alive is an impossibility, home is in the Compound, surrounded by prison cells and strangers that are family. Keeping them safe is my priority but its hard to keep my focus when she wont leave me alone. Shes too young, too innocent to be tainted by me and yet I cant keep my eyes off of her.
Things get really difficult the day we return from our latest mission, and now its impossible to ignore her, but I have to keep her alive if I want any chance of corrupting her.
For twins Ethel and Elise, the line between dream and nightmare was always thin—and on Paron Island, it has been completely erased.
Their idyllic gap year, a sun-soaked mosaic of beach bonfires and reckless abandon, is shattered in an instant. A "project," as the panicked news reports cryptically call it, has gone horrifically wrong, releasing a pathogen that reanimates the dead with a singular, gruesome purpose: to feed. The sisters' bond, once defined by shared secrets and sibling rivalry, is now their only anchor in a world drowning in blood.
Driven by a raw, primal instinct to protect each other, they join forces with a few other fortunate—or unfortunate—souls who survived the initial onslaught. Together, this makeshift family must navigate the ruins of their former paradise, where every shadow hides a potential threat and every human sound could be a lure. Ethel, the more cautious sister, finds a hidden strength in strategy, while Elise's impulsive nature becomes both a weapon and a liability.
But their fight against the decaying hordes is only the surface of the terror. Whispers of a coordinated presence, of supplies that go missing too conveniently, and of strangers who seem to know too much, point to a more insidious truth: the island's collapse was not a random tragedy. They are being hunted by something that thinks, that plans, that wears a human face. As their hope for rescue dwindles, Ethel and Elise are forced to confront the ultimate horror—that in the midst of an apocalypse, the most monstrous creatures of all are still human.
'Steel Waste' caught my attention. It's actually a standalone novel, but it has such a rich world that it feels like it could spawn a series. The author crafted a self-contained story with a satisfying arc, yet left enough unexplored corners of the wasteland to hint at potential spin-offs. The protagonist's journey wraps up neatly, but secondary characters have intriguing backstories that could carry their own books. I love how it balances closure with open-ended worldbuilding—it satisfies while leaving room for imagination to wander.
What makes 'Steel Waste' special is how it avoids classic series traps. No cliffhangers, no unresolved MacGuffins—just a gritty, complete tale of survival. The setting's depth comes from environmental storytelling rather than sequel bait. Fans of 'Mad Max' or 'The Road' would appreciate its standalone nature; sometimes one brutal, beautiful story is all you need. The author's decision to keep it solitary makes the stakes feel higher—every choice matters when there's no 'next book' to fix things.
focusing entirely on the protagonist's journey through a unique meteor-based magic system. Unlike series that tease future installments, this one feels complete from start to finish. The author's note at the end confirms they wrote it as a single epic rather than splitting it into parts. If you enjoy concise fantasy with innovative power systems like 'The Starless Sea', you'll appreciate how 'Meteosity' delivers everything in one package.
People asking if 'Megaton' has a sequel probably just finished the ending and are desperate for more—I get that. Honestly, I had to go digging because it's not super straightforward. There isn't a direct sequel or a traditional spin-off novel that continues the main plot with the same characters. I think the author, Ippei Terada, wrapped it up pretty conclusively with the whole Battle for Stellar City arc.
That said, there are some peripheral entries in the same universe. There was a manga adaptation that ran for a while, but I heard it ended up diverging quite a bit in the middle. There are also a few light novel side stories focusing on some of the side characters, like a short volume exploring the mercenary crew's backstory before they teamed up with Ken. They were published as bonuses with the manga volumes and are really hard to find in English unless you're scouring specific scanlation sites. It feels more like expanded universe material than a true sequel, and it doesn't really resolve any of the cliffhangers from the main novel's finale.
For me, the lack of a proper continuation kind of works. 'Megaton' was always a bit of a weird, self-contained spectacle—part serious mecha drama, part over-the-top parody of the genre. Trying to extend that might have diluted what made it fun. I'd recommend checking out Terada's other works, like 'Deployers', if you're craving that same mix of tactical combat and absurd humor. It's not the same, but it scratches a similar itch.