Reviews

Cordialmente Cruel by Maureen Johnson

wytte's review against another edition

4.0

  ☆☆☆☆ stars

THIS BOOK! If you are looking for something to read on a rainy day. PICK UP THIS BOOK. This is a perfect read for rainy days.

This book follows a true crime junkie, Stevie and she is determined to slove the case that happended like 100 years ago at the Ellingham Academy. I really enjoyed this, the pace is very slow but i love reading about this Ellingham Academy. And the last 10% was so good. So i highly recommend this if you haven't read it.

Characters 
Stevie is our main character, she is a mystery lover, true crime junkie. And really smart. To be honest, i don't really like Stevie. She is okay i guess. Janelle, one of Stevie's friends is a likeable character, i really like her. There is this one line in the book where Stevie is describing Janelle and that line is enough for you to get to know her.
 " Stevie knew all of Janelle's likes : making machines and gadgets, soldering and welding, curating her Pinterest boards of organizational and techniques, girls with glasses, YA novels, coffee, cats and pretty much any television show."

Then there is Ellie, she is what you would call a "hot mess", she likes making art. Hayes is a famous internet star who has lots of sercets. And there is my favorite character in this book, Nate! He is a writer who is currently in a creative slump. He is such a good friend to Stevie. Even tho he's underdeveloped, I LOVE HIM SO MUCH.
Lastly there's the love interest, David. I don't think i have seen anyone who likes David in the goodreads reviews. I don't like him either. YOU KNOW WHAT? I HATE HIM. God he is one of the worst love interests. I am going put him next to Mal from the shadow and bone books(not the show, since he is pretty likeable in the show).

Comparisons
This part isn't needed but i am going to add this anyways because people recommend this series if you like a good girl's guide to murder series. I HAVE A GOOD REASON OKAY??
Plot
Both the main characters are trying to slove a cold case. But i think Stevie's case is more diffcult to slove because it happend like 100 years ago. Good girl's guide to murder is very fast paced. Truly devious is very slow. Almost nothing happend in the first 200 pages. If you are in a slump, don't read truly devious. Read a good girl's guide to murder instead.

The Main character - Stevie And Pip
I really like Pip, she is a very loveable character. On the other hand, there is Stevie. She is like Pip. But for some reasons, i don't like her. I don't hate her. She is in the middle i guess.

The love interest - David and Ravi
IT'S A CRIME TO COMPARE RAVI WITH DAVID. I LOVE RAVI. Ravi is a cinnamon roll who we should protect. He is such a sweetheart so i can understand why Pip likes him. He was there when Pip needs him. SOBS I LOVE RAVI SO MUCH.
But David. Meh. I hate him with all my heart. He is such a bad character. I don't understand why Stevie likes him besides his good looks. Really there's nothing to be like about him. I haven't read the rest of the books in the series yet, but i hope David dies lol. While reading this, i just want the love interest to be another character so bad. Literally any other character would work. I am pretty sure David will have a sad backstory. But you know what? I DON'T GIVE A FUCK.

Side characters
I would say truly devious wins this time. I don't really care about the side characters in agggtm. But in truly devious? I love the side characters so much xx


Final thoughts
--------------------------
Overall this was a very enjoyable book. I would enjoy this book more if David is not in this. I will continue the rest of the series tho :)

lin20_'s review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

britters68's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective fast-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

4.5

mayomaple's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

alexxshum's review against another edition

mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

jasanais's review against another edition

3.0

Although I think I’m over the age for the target audience for this book, I did find it an interesting enough read though I’m not sure I’m invested enough to read the rest of the series. I would’ve been obsessed with this when I was 13/14 though

leonieparamor's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad 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

4.25

jenhurst's review against another edition

4.0

This is a thriller so I don't really want to spoil it. Basically Stevie goes to a prestigious boarding school that involves an infamous case o the owner going missing. Stevie wants to figure out whodunit.

It's a YA thriller so I was intrigued but expecting the worse. It was certainly a fun read, I love boarding school stories and the Agatha Christie references were fun. Stevie wasn't my favourite narrator though and I wasn't too excited when it finished without a resolution. I prefer my mysteries to wrap up in that novel. It felt like a lot of exposition to drag it out into more novels at time.

3.5/5 stars.
If you really like Agatha Christie or mysteries definitely check out. It is a really fun read.

heatherchrisman's review against another edition

challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

3.5

bibliobrandie's review against another edition

5.0

This was such a fun mystery! I am hooked and need number 2 ASAP. It really is like reading two mysteries unfolding at once. I loved Stevie, the main character. I liked the story set in 1936 (reminded my of the Lindbergh case). The conversations are fun and witty. There's just the right amount of romance. It's just a solid book (and now I finally have a suggestion for students looking for something like One of Us is Lying and The Inheritance Games).