Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson

18 reviews

cozylifewithabby's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Grief

Moderate: Child death, Panic attacks/disorders, Gore, Drug use, and Alcohol

rhguerrero's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Violence, Murder, Gun violence, Death, Cursing, Car accident, and Blood

stardustandrockets's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted mysterious tense medium-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? No

5.0

I don't know if I'm bad a guessing who dunnit in mystery novels or if Mauree Johnson is that good at keeping me guessing the entire time (probably the latter, but I may need to read more mysteries to find out), but I didn't see the murderer coming. I had zero ideas.

That being said, a few parts were a little choppy as far as how Stevie came up with her info and put everything together, but I felt that way with the other three books as well. I really enjoyed the summer camp vibe even though Stevie didn't partake in much of it (she was too busy trying to solve a murder). There was a lot less of the past POV entwined with the present, but that makes sense all things considered. I do hope we get more Stevie Bell mysteries (I enjoy the characters the most, especially David), but the ending was nice for this stand-alone book. No cliffhangers like the first two.

Highly recommend reading this one (and Truly Devious) if you're a mystery fan or trying to find your way into the mystery genre.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Car accident, Child death, and Violence

Minor: Homophobia, Gun violence, Grief, Medical content, and Suicide

Nazis, anxiety

junefish's review

adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Death, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Medical content, and Gun violence

Minor: Homophobia, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Infidelity

kayladaila's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated

4.0

Stevie Bell goes undercover as a camp counselor to solve a decades old murder. This was a laugh-out-loud funny little stand-alone mystery with almost all our favorite Truly Devious characters back! Maureen Johnson continues to write fairly accurate adolescent prodigies, as readers will see Stevie torn between solving the murders and pining for David. The story of this one was definitely riveting and I hope there are more stand-alone Stevie Bell mysteries!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Gun violence, Death of parent, Car accident, and Child death

Minor: Drug use, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Panic attacks/disorders

skudiklier's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Another amazing mystery with Stevie Bell! I've never thought of myself as a mystery fan by any means, but between the Truly Devious series and this new book, I'm wondering if I need to rethink that stance. This book just flies by in the best way. Everything about it is good, from the pacing to the characters to the conclusion. As long as Maureen Johnson writes books like these, I'll keep reading them. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Blood, and Death

Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual content, Medical content, Homophobia, Gun violence, Drug use, Child death, Car accident, and Alcohol

Non-spoiler version: holocaust mention Spoiler version (really don't read this if you don't want it ruined)::

the murderer is a literal nazi from WWII and hiding this is his primary motivation for the murders central to this book. It doesn't talk much about the specifics of the holocaust or anything though

bella_cavicchi's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-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

4.0

Returning to the Truly Devious world was an utter delight. Installment Four is a sharp and well-plotted summertime mystery -- perfect for someone (me) coming fresh off of a Mare of Easttown obsession! My main complaints lie in the ease of the discovery/reveal, but all in all, it remains a successful standalone addition to the series. Good stuff.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Medical content, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Drug use

Minor: Antisemitism

heytherekaity's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional informative inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Child death, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Gun violence, and Infidelity