Truly Devious (Spoiler Free Review)

Rating: 89% ⭐⭐⭐⭐       Pages: 416

Author: Maureen Johnson    Publisher: HarperCollins

Genre: Mystery                       Release Date: Jan. 16, 2018

I loved starting the year off reading again! As a Junior in high school, it's pretty difficult to find the time to read, as I can hardly find enough time to do the things I HAVE to do. Right now, I have a DBQ (basically this history essay that I have to practice writing in 60 minutes for the AP test. Lots of fun!) and a Spanish speaking test to study for if I want to be officially biliterate. I've never been much of a procrastinator, but look at me now: this test is tomorrow. Huh. How did that happen?

Those of you in high school know what I mean. The balance is nearly impossible, but when you find a good book, you pull the minutes and seconds out of your day to read it. Truly Devious pulled me inside Ellingham Academy, pulled me out of reality, to which I say "thank you," and truly (ha) gave me a thrill. It was such a great way to start off my year and a really nice entrance into a genre I don't normally turn to.

Our main character Stevie has been accepted to the isolated but prestigious Ellingham Academy, where talented young minds go to mesh school with their passions. For Stevie, studying crime brings her to Ellingham Academy, but not just any crime. In the 1930s, the daughter and wife of the founder were kidnapped. The daughter has not been seen since. Attempting to solve the cold case, Stevie stumbles into another murder mystery: one of her classmates. It becomes clear that whatever the murderer, Truly Devious, had started in the past is now returning to the school, and Stevie might be the only one brave enough to stop it.

“You have to take things as they are, not how you hear they're supposed to be.”

So, let me preface my review saying that high school dramas are some of the most entertaining types of stories. High School Musical, Glee, and Greenhouse Academy (it's a good show, don't fight me on this) are some of our most favorite stories, so the intrigue of Ellingham Academy and its secrets automatically drew me in. I'm not into spooky stuff, but Ellingham Academy in its secluded mountain home was just the right amount of spooky for me to feel like I could explore its grounds, hear the noises, and walk through its tunnels. 

I guess the only reason why I couldn't give this book five stars was the characters. All of them were really unique, but none really had me rooting for them. You never really spent too much time with any one of them except for Nate, who I really enjoyed. I can tell his character will develop so much within the trilogy. Other than that, I didn't really have a deep connection to any one of the characters. I did like Stevie, but I wasn't always rooting for her. I question some of her decisions, but in the end she's strong and brave. She's unafraid to be who she is, and she is learning to gradually open up to people. I'm excited to see where her character goes.

I also could not get on board with the romance in the story. It just did not click for me. I feel like there could've been more development, or at least a slower pacing to it. 

Probably my favorite part of the story was the dual-storyline. The story constantly switches between the events in the 1930s, which aren't all revealed to you right away, and Stevie's story in present day. I think you can see Maureen Johnson's skill as a writer in the way she makes the storylines parallel to each other and, better yet, makes them both worth reading. There are so many times where I want to get back to one storyline because it is more intense than the other, but I felt that way consistently with both the past and present storylines. The way the clues matched up with what was revealed to us in the flashbacks was incredible, and I aspire to have that skill in my stories someday.

“There is nothing so serious as a game.”

Overall, I really enjoyed Truly Devious, and I loved the mystery aspect of it. I'm so glad I read it at the time that I did, since the second book is out soon. I'm so happy that we can have these good ol' mysteries that aren't centered around supernatural events, which frankly scare me to death. I much rather prefer the suspenseful yet real-world atmosphere of Truly Devious.



Lots of love, 

                      Ellie



*Quotes (in italics) are from Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson, and they belong to the author

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