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readingwithreagan's review against another edition
4.0
Really hooked on this one. The writing is a tad bit conventional and unskilled at times, telling a lot rather than showing, but these books are fun!
maic's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
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
3.75
kiannew's review against another edition
Good start but I just had no desire to finish it
heidikundin's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars, rounded up for potential.
Ugh, that ending. I don't even think that qualifies as a cliffhanger since the book abruptly ends with a situation that is not (at least as far as we know) even related to either of the two murders. Nothing gets wrapped up in this book at all, and there are SO many loose ends that I certainly hope will be addressed VERY early on in book #2. I don't mind a cliffhanger when it's well done, but this one was just poorly executed and ended up making me feel super annoyed rather than wanting to pick up the next book.
The rest of the book is interesting enough to warrant a 3-4 star rating, and I think it will resonate even better with younger readers. I wish we had gotten to delve even deeper into the background of the Ellingham case and the quirks and secrets of the academy buildings themselves, but I suppose that's still to come. Fingers crossed that the second book steps up to the potential that this one had!
Ugh, that ending. I don't even think that qualifies as a cliffhanger since the book abruptly ends with a situation that is not (at least as far as we know) even related to either of the two murders. Nothing gets wrapped up in this book at all, and there are SO many loose ends that I certainly hope will be addressed VERY early on in book #2. I don't mind a cliffhanger when it's well done, but this one was just poorly executed and ended up making me feel super annoyed rather than wanting to pick up the next book.
The rest of the book is interesting enough to warrant a 3-4 star rating, and I think it will resonate even better with younger readers. I wish we had gotten to delve even deeper into the background of the Ellingham case and the quirks and secrets of the academy buildings themselves, but I suppose that's still to come. Fingers crossed that the second book steps up to the potential that this one had!
inesd's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
emilyfh027's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
3.25
I think overall this was a good book so don’t let me rating scare you but I just have some problems with it that are hard to overlook. I did like the mostly diverse cast of characters, the setting, the overall dark academia vibes, and the mystery aspect. Unfortunately I didn’t love the romance subplot (shocking), the pacing, and the ending. The romance wasn’t bad but it just wasn’t enough to keep me entertained when the plot was moving slowly. And the ending pissed me off because I didn’t know I signed up for a cliffhanger and the whole thing honestly felt very anticlimactic. Stevies entire goal was to solve the murder case and she just doesn’t?? Ik it’s a series so I can’t really complains but I just didn’t like it. OH ITS ALSO IN THIRD PERSON. Almost forgot to mention that. Really it’s more like a 3.5 or even 3.75 but third person is disgusting and should be a felony as far as I’m concerned so I had to deduct points.
eilidhforrest's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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? No
4.75
sophieguillas's review
3.0
I really enjoyed the mystery plots (particularly the 1930s side of it) through the story but I had trouble with the characters. All the students felt very flat which made it hard to care when Stevie was putting the pieces together. I wasn't invested enough in them or their relationships for the thought of one of them being a killer to be really shocking for me. The old school mystery and puzzles were the highlight for me, I think it had a bit of an Agatha Christie flavour there. The ending lost me again, the last 10% or so had so much information being added while the central mystery was still so unclear, I think I'll come back to the sequels just to see the full conclusion.
astraios's review
4.0
It took me maybe 80% of the book for me to see Stevie as a 16yo and not some really smart 8yo (not in a bad way, I was just picturing her that way and it made so much sense to me that I had to remind myself that she was a teenager every 10 pages).
I have so many suspicions has to who's Truly Devious, I can't wait to read the next volume, my only regret is that it was sometimes a bit slow for the investigations to actually start or move or just do anything, but the whole is smart and leading.
I have so many suspicions has to who's Truly Devious, I can't wait to read the next volume, my only regret is that it was sometimes a bit slow for the investigations to actually start or move or just do anything, but the whole is smart and leading.
sheinmiller's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-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? It's complicated
3.5