Reviews with content warning for Blood - The Vanishing Stair

Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson

28 reviews

thepaperbackqueen's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

My favorite parts of the book were the beginning and the end. The beginning was so interesting. It introduced us to the 2 students who play a role in the Ellingham case and I really enjoyed their pov.

The past timeline still remains my favorite because it was more mysterious to me and watching snippets of the past play out left me with more questions than answers honestly but that's one of the things that made it a blast to read.

The middle component of the book was nice but not as fascinating or as mysterious as the beginning and the ending.

I also wish there was more detective work from Stevies side on trying to find out what happened to Hayes since I don't think it was an accident. And that's one of the reasons why the middle part of the book didn't really feel like a mystery to me.

(Sexual content: No sex detailed or described but there are some heavy make out sessions that are steamy
Profanity: Increased a bit in this book but it's sparse and sporadic)

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deanamethyst's review

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

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babsi_222's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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rylin_marie's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my goshhhhhhhhhhhh i’m speechless

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blewballoon's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

I guess I'm along for the ride and these mysteries and cliffhangers are working on me. It's like when you're watching a show and you don't think you love it, but you can't stop watching it. David is driving me nuts though, I'm in agreement with everyone from the first book who was tired of his shenanigans.

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itsheyfay's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

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books4em's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book made me remember why I love thrillers - but not just any thriller, those thriller series where you are left without the one last answer to the mystery. You have so many of the pieces fitting together, but then there's that one question that leaves you hanging. Add in a new cliffhanger, and you've got those specially amazing thrillers. That was The Vanishing Stair. I am about to immediately pick up the third book in the Truly Devious series because this was so good. Johnson really knows how to write a story that keeps you captivated. Reading the two timelines at the same time is a key aspect of this series and one I enjoy greatly. Combined with the fantastic descriptions of the setting of Burlington, Ellingham, and Vermont in general, it is truly amazing (pun intended). The whole subplot with Edward King I'm not a fan of, but I see its purpose. Same with the Dr. Fenton and Hunter subplot - not sure where that's going. As with Truly Devious, I appreciated the queer rep with the side characters (one of whom uses they/them pronouns and it's seamless) along with the mental health rep. I liked how these points continued from the first book. I also liked how this book focused more on solving the Ellingham case, not just the one in the current timeline. And by far, the best moment in this book is on page 348 where Stevie is talking through the murders with those involved in the cupola and the ghost of Dottie looks at George Marsh's ghost and turns to Stevie and nods and Stevie nods back. Yes!!! That moment of understanding and thanks from Dottie is insurmountable! But still, where is Alice and what's the secret surrounding her?! I need answers, so on to book 3!

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