Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - Truly, Devious

Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

Truly, Devious by Maureen Johnson, Maureen Johnson

125 reviews

verysillygoose's review against another edition

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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

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brookey8888's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed this. I do have to say the mystery doesn’t happen really until almost 250 pages in. Which I don’t mind because I was enjoying the characters in the relationships forming I’m excited to see where this goes. I will be continuing. I also really like Stevie as a main character and
I related to her a lot.

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books4em's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Loved Truly Devious! Yet another young adult cozy mystery that twists and turns, keeps you guessing till the last page, and makes you somehow love and hate the characters. Mental health is touched on in the first book, and I’m hoping it might be further discussed in the series. There’s also some queer side characters, including one who uses they/them pronouns! The relationships between the characters are constantly changing and interesting to see the typical high school dynamics here even though they’re at this special school. I would’ve loved to see more focus on the Ellingham kidnappings/murders -that’s why I didn’t give it 5 stars. But it’s like a typical mystery novel, many subplots and tie-ins. Can’t wait to pick up the rest of the series!

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stormzx's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

13+
more feet than there was murder

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puttingwingsonwords's review against another edition

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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.

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alliemikennareads's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

A mystery in a quirky boarding school in the middle of the woods? Sign me UP. Truly Devious was a really fun mystery that had me hooked and kept me guessing until the cliffhanger of an ending. I never know if YA mysteries are going to blow me away or leave me super underwhelmed with extreme improbability. I’m happy to report that Truly Devious was perfectly balanced with believable crime solving. I love the format of past and present storylines - they’re done in a way that’s easy to follow yet drives the story along.

I immediately grabbed book 2 and 3 after finishing so I could continue the mystery. I definitely would recommend this to mystery fans!

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veskumelooni's review against another edition

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adventurous 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? No

3.75

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betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I felt like this was a fun, engaging mystery with two different stories woven together. While Stevie's own mystery doesn't really happen until later in the book, I am interested in seeing how the two will eventually connect. The writing is easy to get pulled into and the characters are all interesting. The audiobook narrator is pretty good, too!

I will also say that I didn't necessarily believe the budding relationship that was happening. It felt like there was little build up and nothing was resolved. But we do have future books to hopefully do that, so fingers crossed!

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serena_hien's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

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laurenkristine's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

4.0

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