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headinthepages's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Grief, Mental illness, Alcohol, Death, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Cursing, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
jjames_mal's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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? No
4.0
This YA thriller follows Stevie, a girl who enrols in a school to solve the murders that occurred there decades before.
This one was kind of hard to review. As far as the plot goes, I really liked it, but I’m really struggling getting behind a book series of thrillers where there’s an overarching plot. I feel like you’ll only like this book if you don’t need closure at the end because there is none. That being said I’m interested in finding the answers so I will be picking up the next book in the series ASAP.
This one was kind of hard to review. As far as the plot goes, I really liked it, but I’m really struggling getting behind a book series of thrillers where there’s an overarching plot. I feel like you’ll only like this book if you don’t need closure at the end because there is none. That being said I’m interested in finding the answers so I will be picking up the next book in the series ASAP.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Minor: Death of parent, Alcoholism, and Toxic relationship
david_slack110507's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I will admit that I would have most likely gotten this finished a lot earlier if I hadn't gotten distracted with other books and other things happening in life as I left the book with about 40ish pages left for a while whilst finishing other books and doing other things in life.
The biggest strength of the book is that it is fast-paced, I got through most of the book very quickly and the condensed chapter length helped with this as they didn't drag on for too long. Another highlight of the book is that the dual timelines work very well with me sometimes preferring the past timeline over the present Ellingham one, but both were interesting, and their associated mysteries were good as well though in that regard I would say that the Truly Devious plotline from the past was a much more interesting mystery than the one in the present regarding the murder of Hayes.
My biggest issue with the book is that I found it very difficult to connect with the characters as with regards to the past timeline, the story is told factually that sometimes has some character moments that help develop the cast of characters for that timeline, but this doesn't happen often. The cast of characters for the present timeline wasn't also the easiest to connect as very few characters stood out to me apart from Nate and Stevie who I think had the most distinctive personalities/characters though I would be interested in seeing them develop, I just found that it was quite overwhelming with the number of characters introduced and then often left for extended periods of time before being reintroduced into the story.
The second half and near the end is definitely the strongest part of the book and I am very interested in seeing where both the Truly Devious and Hayes' murder throughout the series. I do hope that the series doesn't drag out the mystery, but I have a feeling that it will reach a satisfying conclusion. I would give this a 4 but I feel like a 3.5-star rating is much more appropriate as my main issues such as the lack of connectivity as well as Stevie and David's relationship kind of came out of nowhere. I feel like my experience with this book would have been much better if I had read it more consistently, so this is a fault on my part.
The biggest strength of the book is that it is fast-paced, I got through most of the book very quickly and the condensed chapter length helped with this as they didn't drag on for too long. Another highlight of the book is that the dual timelines work very well with me sometimes preferring the past timeline over the present Ellingham one, but both were interesting, and their associated mysteries were good as well though in that regard I would say that the Truly Devious plotline from the past was a much more interesting mystery than the one in the present regarding the murder of Hayes.
My biggest issue with the book is that I found it very difficult to connect with the characters as with regards to the past timeline, the story is told factually that sometimes has some character moments that help develop the cast of characters for that timeline, but this doesn't happen often. The cast of characters for the present timeline wasn't also the easiest to connect as very few characters stood out to me apart from Nate and Stevie who I think had the most distinctive personalities/characters though I would be interested in seeing them develop, I just found that it was quite overwhelming with the number of characters introduced and then often left for extended periods of time before being reintroduced into the story.
The second half and near the end is definitely the strongest part of the book and I am very interested in seeing where both the Truly Devious and Hayes' murder throughout the series. I do hope that the series doesn't drag out the mystery, but I have a feeling that it will reach a satisfying conclusion. I would give this a 4 but I feel like a 3.5-star rating is much more appropriate as my main issues such as the lack of connectivity as well as Stevie and David's relationship kind of came out of nowhere. I feel like my experience with this book would have been much better if I had read it more consistently, so this is a fault on my part.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, and Murder
Moderate: Violence and Grief
Minor: Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Cursing, Toxic friendship, and Sexual content
bee87's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Would’ve been five stars but….CLIFFHANGER?!!!!!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Child death, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
marioosa517's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Kidnapping
Moderate: Blood, Violence, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cursing and Alcohol
z_thatsit's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Gun violence, Grief, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, and Mental illness
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Cursing, and Fire/Fire injury
readerette's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.0
So I'll read the next in the series to see if this plot can keep its footing, because it has potential. Stevie is relatable in her anxiety and hobbies. Her friends and schoolmates are not always relatable, but certainly intriguing (in a mystery book sort of way, since we see them through Stevie's true-crime-loving eyes). Harry Potter vibes without the magic, original Nancy Drew vibes including the recklessness of the heroine, and Agatha Christie vibes with just a little off-kilter application of drama (too much at the wrong times).
The characters are not excessively whiny or inept, which is a pleasant change for me in my experience with YA. However, the relationship between David and Stevie is borderline alarmingly toxic for a YA novel. It's not abusive or anything, but as you find out more about him it can't really be a healthy relationship.
I don't think this needed to be a multi-book series, and if the author had kept it to only one or two books, I imagine I would have been more inclined to rate at a 5 because it would have been more concise and well-paced without so much meandering in the plot or in Stevie's mind and relationships. Instead this is going to be drawn out, and I can only hope Stevie remains believable and that this doesn't become a case of drawing out a plot for the sake of book sales.
The characters are not excessively whiny or inept, which is a pleasant change for me in my experience with YA. However, the relationship between David and Stevie is borderline alarmingly toxic for a YA novel. It's not abusive or anything, but as you find out more about him it can't really be a healthy relationship.
I don't think this needed to be a multi-book series, and if the author had kept it to only one or two books, I imagine I would have been more inclined to rate at a 5 because it would have been more concise and well-paced without so much meandering in the plot or in Stevie's mind and relationships. Instead this is going to be drawn out, and I can only hope Stevie remains believable and that this doesn't become a case of drawing out a plot for the sake of book sales.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Death, and Murder
Minor: Infidelity, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Sexism, and Injury/Injury detail
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