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tangleroot_eli's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
I really like many things about this book. It's fast-paced and witty and acknowledges its sleuthing roots without being completely wedded to the genre's tropes.
That said, I felt annoyed or outright alarmed about several things in the book that made it harder to get through than I'd expected.
That said, I felt annoyed or outright alarmed about several things in the book that made it harder to get through than I'd expected.
- I know how pedantic this sounds, but the kidnapper is not called "Truly Devious." They're called "Devious." The "Truly" is the letter's closing, like "Love, Tipper," "Sincerely, Your Friends at State Farm," etc. And while I bought that Stevie, a 21st-century teenager who probably doesn't write many formal letters, wouldn't know this, the idea that the 1936 characters would look at a letter signed "Truly, Devious" and call that letter-writer "Truly Devious" was one of the least believable parts of the book.
- Relatively early in the book, Janelle tells Stevie that Vi uses they/them pronouns. Stevie proceeds to use she/her pronouns for Vi for the rest of the book. From this I have to conclude that either Stevie, Maureen Johnson, or the Katherine Tegen copyeditors don't care about respecting people's pronouns.
I did note the book's one solid clue as to Devious's identity before Stevie starts putting things together in the end. But it was so obvious and heavy-handed in an otherwise subtle book that I immediately dismissed it as a red herring. The fact that it genuinely is a clue? I'm still not sure if that's sloppy writing or sheer genius on Johnson's part. -
The book never points toward an adult as a possibility for Hayes's killer. I think this is Johnson's way of showing how little adults matter to Stevie: they're either obstacles to overcome, like her parents, or mentors to learn from, like Larry. But in a book about and allegedly for teenagers, I was disconcerted that the only suspects were teenagers. -
How do I loathe David? Let me count the ways. He's not funny. He's not charming. He's a classist, misogynist, douchey edgelord who thinks that being an ass to pretty much everyone he meets is the way to stick it to his morality- and propriety-obsessed father and doesn't realize or care that he's actually recapitulating his father's worst behaviors. The first time he and Stevie kissed, I groaned, "Noooo! Not this asshole!" The “if a boy is mean to you, that means he likes you, and you should totally go along with that” trope needs to die yesterday. After the scene where David wheedles his way into lunch with Stevie's parents, I was so livid I almost couldn't read on. This isn't my first teen sleuth rodeo. I understand that Johnson writes David this way so that when Stevie starts to suspect that Hayes' death was murder, readers immediately think of disdainful, deceitful David and share Stevie's panic: Is he a killer? Has she been making out with a killer? But this is done in such a clunky way that Johnson may as well put David in a T-shirt that says, This schmuck isn't the killer. But if he's not a killer, he's still a schmuck. I'll read to the end of the original trilogy, because I'm too interested in the Ellingham case and Hayes' death not to know how they resolve. But if David continues to be a major player and doesn't have a major character transformation, I'll not be reading the standalones, because no one needs that much schmuck.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Mental illness, Bullying, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
mcirish02's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The ending made me furious. The rest was decent. That's all I've got to say about that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Child abuse, and Murder
thebookpaiges's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Child death, Mental illness, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Kidnapping
whewtaewoon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Sexism
oceanwriter's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
When Stevie Bell is accepted into Ellingham Academy, a school for gifted students, she thinks it's the chance of a lifetime to solve the 'Truly Devious' murders. What she doesn't anticipate is a classmate turning up dead. Was it an accident, or has there been another murder on the property all these years later?
I ate up the setting of this book. Ellingham Academy would have been my dream school at this age and I loved all of the different personalities of the characters. It could be over the top at times, but that's to be expected in a YA book. That was part of the fun, too. It's also the definition of a page-turner. As soon as I got to the end I had to start The Vanishing Stair.
I ate up the setting of this book. Ellingham Academy would have been my dream school at this age and I loved all of the different personalities of the characters. It could be over the top at times, but that's to be expected in a YA book. That was part of the fun, too. It's also the definition of a page-turner. As soon as I got to the end I had to start The Vanishing Stair.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death
Moderate: Child death, Kidnapping, and Mental illness
laurenevlyn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I enjoyed this book reasonably well. It was very slow to pick up and I did manage to predict a good amount of the twists. Nevertheless, I’m excited to see what happens in the rest of the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Death, and Mental illness
Moderate: Child death, Kidnapping, Murder, Violence, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism
verysillygoose's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death
Moderate: Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Child death
puttingwingsonwords's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Truly Devious was a fun read, but I feel like it was more set-up for the series than its own story. In a mystery series I expect at least one mystery to get solved in each book, even if there are questions that run over into the next book. Here, there’s only a partial revelation at the end that just left me a bit disappointed. I am curious about the sequel(s) though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, Death, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Murder
Minor: Alcohol and Injury/Injury detail
binches's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I didn't expect to like this book so much. It has such a great story and the setting is absolutely fantastic.
Truly Devious tells the story of Stevie Bell, a girl with an obsession with true crime, as she gets the opportunity to live and study in an old school, ready to solve the murder that was committed there 70 years ago. Things change, however, when she is faced with the reality of what it means to be confronting death.
The book features a variety of characters, each of them likable and fleshed out in their own way. I loved how the story managed to shift the perception of a crime from something to just solve towards something that can be traumatic and horrifying. The writing, worldbuilding, characters, and dual timeline were done perfectly to tell an intriguing story about a girl who just wanted to find a dead body.
Truly Devious tells the story of Stevie Bell, a girl with an obsession with true crime, as she gets the opportunity to live and study in an old school, ready to solve the murder that was committed there 70 years ago. Things change, however, when she is faced with the reality of what it means to be confronting death.
The book features a variety of characters, each of them likable and fleshed out in their own way. I loved how the story managed to shift the perception of a crime from something to just solve towards something that can be traumatic and horrifying. The writing, worldbuilding, characters, and dual timeline were done perfectly to tell an intriguing story about a girl who just wanted to find a dead body.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Death
Moderate: Alcohol, Child death, and Cursing
Minor: Medical content, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Drug use
imnotvelinda's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
It was so good! The writing, the plottwist, the cliffhanger, the characters, everything was amazing. Can't wait to read the next!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness