Reviews with content warning for Death - Truly Devious

Reviews tagging 'Death'

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

156 reviews

patsonprozireads's review

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adventurous 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? No

4.0

CAWPILE rating: 7 out of 10 (nearing 3.75 stars)

5.5/10 for Characters because there were certain moments where it felt like the narrator's voice was more like the main character Stevie's voice instead. Stevie as a MC is okay, and I could identify and distinguish well the secondary characters closest to her. Some secondary characters I had to look back to the beginning to see who they were, but I guess it is understandable since there are a lot of names and characters. I did not care much about what happened to many of these secondary characters, though.
For example, Hayes' death did not matter to me.
8/10 for Atmosphere because the book was pretty immersive! I could picture in my head most scenes and settings. I did not give it 9 or 10 because that is reserved for books I feel like I could NOT put down. Also, some characters I could not really put a face to. An 8 is a pretty good rating tho :)
7.75/10 for Writing: the book was well-written, very readable, and very easy to follow. I liked the balance between descriptions and dialogue, and the letters and "documents" inserted in between here and there made the reading experience pleasant. I reserve 8-10 for books that are readable while also having beautiful prose.
7/10 for Plot: the plot felt entertaining and I did want to know what had happened and what will happen, and the pacing was good. Some things were not as realistic (or maybe felt a bit more "ridiculous"?
like the Truly Devious letter that is projected onto Stevie's bedroom
) but this was rare. A few things felt like they needed more explanation or background:
for some time i was a bit confused about Flora, Iris Ellingham's friend, and who she was, I pictured Alice as older than 2 years old, i was a bit confused when Ellie and David popped up and suddenly seemed important, i wanted more background on Janelle and Nate, i felt like i needed to know more about Albert Ellingham's fortune because of the fact that the school was completely free for students and also the mention of anarchists who hated him...
7/10 for Intrigue because, as mentioned, I did feel like I wanted to continue reading and find out what happened. The book was consistent in holding my attention but it did not deliver in some cases because the main mystery will probably be resolved in the second book.
6.5/10 for Logic: most things made sense, but I found some things that did not add up 100%.
why did police not question this famous girl that Hayes was photographed being affectionate with? I mean, I vaguely remember her being mentioned before, and I do not even remember her name and how she was firstly brought up, but what she said to Stevie was crucial in her finding out Hayes was not the one who accessed the workshop with Janelle's ID card to get the dry ice... I guess police not questioning her would not be the first time they are incompetent in researching murder cases, but still...
7.5/10 for Enjoyment: the vibes were good! I enjoyed reading it and the story was entertaining. It's not a higher rating because I wasn't stuck to the book.

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headinthepages's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

4.0

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rnewk's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-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? No

4.0

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chilivanilli28's review

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mysterious fast-paced

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

3.5

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some_random_person_hi's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

Great until the ending in the way that I can't believe the ending even counts as an ending.

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luminareads's review

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

3.75

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booklover26's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

3.5

I liked this book overall, but the first half was slow. The present was boring, while the past was interesting.

But after Hayes died, things started to ramp up and get interesting.

I read the majority of the second half in one day.

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mia_reads_books1119's review

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adventurous dark emotional 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

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samchase112's review

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adventurous mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.0

I'm not a mystery girl, but I figured I'd give this one a try after a recommendation from a coworker — and the season, of course! It was definitely fun, and I enjoyed the mysterious world it set up for sure. The characters were diverse and interesting, and there's a lot going on that I did enjoy. The only reason I'm not continuing the series is because I've heard the ending is disappointing, and I'm not interested in getting into another How I Met Your Mother situation — you know. A fun foray into YA mystery that I don't regret!

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blewballoon's review

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funny mysterious tense slow-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

3.5

I wasn't sure quite what to expect from this, I knew it was a popular YA thriller and I had been a little disappointed with The Inheritance Games and I thought this might be a little closer to what I wanted from that. I do think that's the case. Stevie is an interesting, flawed protagonist that is still charming and even funny. The cast of surrounding characters at the school provides camaraderie and intrigue. I enjoyed the chapters from the past about the original disappearances at the school as well. The romance felt a little strange and forced, but that's not unusual for YA.

The cliffhanger ending was frustrating, but I did know this was a series so I wasn't entirely unprepared for that.

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