Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
Truly Devious
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson weaves a delicate tale of murder and mystery in the first book of a striking new series, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and E. Lockhart. Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early twentieth century tycoon, who wanted to make a wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. A place, he said, where learning is a game. Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym Truly, Devious. It became one of the great unsolved crimes of American history. True-crime aficionado Stevie Bell is set to begin her first year at Ellingham Academy, and she has an ambitious plan: She will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case when she gets a grip on her demanding new school life and her housemates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the jokester. But something strange is happening. Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits Ellingham Academy. The past has crawled out of its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder. The two interwoven mysteries of this first book in the Truly Devious series dovetail brilliantly, and Stevie Bell will continue her relentless quest for the murderers in books two and three.
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
blurb
Read4life
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

#middlegrademonday @Karisimo

Love this series. Middle grade mystery.

Want to play @IndoorDame @Kshakal

Karisimo Yes, this is a great series! Thanks for sharing! 2mo
43 likes2 stack adds1 comment
review
Creadnorthey
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

On the cobbles of the library returning the book…
A good true to form YA mystery. Lots of twisty turny (just a tad unbelievable in an after school special sort of way) plot maneuvers to keep me engaged- biggest problem is that it‘s not a stand alone.

review
Andrea4
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Bailedbailed

I feel like I'm in the minority here. This book returned automatically to the lib and I had maybe 20% left to go. I clearly did not care too much to finish and I'm not gonna check it out again. Definitely a YA so maybe that's why it just didn't hit me right but everyone else seemed to be loving it.
Most of the characters seemed like caricatures to me and the story line mostly didn't capture me.

ofclumsywords I 💯 agree! Maureen Johnson is one of my fav authors but for some reason I didn‘t connect with the characters at all. 5mo
dabbe #hailthebail! 🤩🤩🤩 5mo
Andrea4 @ofclumsywords well, then in fairness to Johnson I'll have to attempt another of hers because I do believe this was my first. 5mo
Andrea4 @dabbe 🤣 I don't do it often but I find myself willing to be more picky now with more on my plate and less time. 5mo
dabbe @Andrea4 Yes! Life's short, and there are so many other fabulous books out there! 🤩🤗😀 5mo
20 likes5 comments
review
bthegood
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

Stevie is excited to be attending Ellingham. She is a true crime enthusiast and wants to solve the mystery of 3 disappearances at the school in the 1930s. The founders wife and daughter were kidnapped, and never seen again, even after Ellingham paid the ransom. At the same time, a student Dottie, went missing. ⬇️

bthegood Then, in real time, Stevie‘s class mate Hayes dies while working on a school project. The story goes from past to present and back again. Overall, an engaging story, well written and ends on a cliffhanger – definitely reading the next book in this series.
1/5 #SeriesLove2024 @TheSpineView @Andrew65

Make a great day everyone 😊
8mo
TheSpineView Great job! Hate those cliff hangers! 8mo
bthegood @TheSpineView thx and I know! I've already started book 2😊 8mo
40 likes3 comments
blurb
bthegood
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Added two new series to my reading list - I enjoy getting to know the characters and setting on the level a series allows. Glad to have found a few good ones right now. Series are like several seasons of a good tv show.

Some stand- alones have done this for me ( usually Stephen Kings books) Stand-alones are like a good movie.

#SeriesLove2024 @TheSpineView @Andrew65 thanks for hosting.

Make a great day everyone 📚

TheSpineView Glad to have you. I loved the Maas series! 8mo
kwmg40 The Inspector Gamache series is one of my favourites! 8mo
bthegood @kwmg40 🙂 8mo
36 likes4 comments
review
Jen2
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

Good!

60 likes2 stack adds
blurb
Susanita
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

1. I want to learn to play piano.
2. Tagged!
#two4tuesday

TheSpineView ❤️🎹❤️ Thanks for playing! 11mo
wanderinglynn I love the piano! 🎹 11mo
23 likes2 comments
review
Ruthiella
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

Holy cliff hanger, Batman! 😂 This was my #CloakandDaggerChristmas book for “Santa Baby - a book w/ a child detective”. Stevie is a teenager who gets the opportunity to attend an ultra liberal and artsy private high school, much to her very conservative parents‘ chagrin. She wants to solve the original 80 year old kidnapping/murder case of the Ellington Academy. But a present day campus accident (or murder?) gets in the way of the cold case.

LiteraryinPA I love all 5 books in this series! 11mo
Ruthiella @LiteraryinLawrence Good to know, because clearly I need to read on! That ending! 😂 11mo
willaful Great series! I read four of them for the #Scarathlon, still need to read the fifth. 11mo
See All 6 Comments
Ruthiella @willaful Yes, I remember you wrote that one needed to make sure they had access to the second book because of the (non) ending. Luckily my library has them all. 😅 11mo
batsy Nice review! I've picked the next installment of the Flavia de Luce books where I left off for this prompt, but now I feel like switching to this book 😂 (this is why I didn't post my preliminary list lol) 11mo
Ruthiella @batsy Never fear! I also switched for this prompt. If it helps, the Flavia books are more charming. Stevie is a teen, so there‘s a fair amount of teenage angst in this series which as an old lady, I find challenging to read. 🙄😆 11mo
51 likes6 comments
blurb
willaful
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

A real page-turner and a @#$!#% cliff-hanger! Do not start this without the next book available.

#Scarathlon word search words: blood=13, killer=6, ghost=4, dark=67, spooky=3, evil=1, crime=37, trick=4, treat=1, costume=6, party=23

#CastTheDie #1

Third book finished during #20in4 . Correction - fifth! (But only 2 were started during it, and one was a short graphic novel.)

@Andrew65

PuddleJumper Amazing! 13mo
Andrew65 They all count, whenever you started them or whatever the size of books, so 5 it is. Brilliant 👏👏👏 13mo
20 likes2 comments
review
ncayea
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

I'm still reading it. I'm having a hard time following. I feel committed though, since i purchased the 2nd book in the series as well. I don't give up.

6 likes1 stack add
blurb
Bigfoot
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Re-read. This is one of my comfort books and this copy is super special

review
VictoriousReader_13
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

I liked this book a lot but I wish we had more of the side characters. Except for that everything else was amazing! 4.5/5⭐️

blurb
Susanita
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

I had a long lunch with some friends and then came home and took an unscheduled nap on the couch! So, better late than never…

1. Spanish
2. Tagged

#two4tuesday

TheSpineView Don't you just love those unscheduled naps! Thanks for playing 2y
25 likes1 comment
review
Blackink_WhitePaper
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

For sometime I was reading slump so I picked this YA mystery which is not my usual genre. But this is very good and interesting, I immediately started the next one in the series. If you like A good girl‘s guide to murder series I recommend this one too.Similar series recommendations are always welcome .😇🙏 #serieslove2023 #bookspinbingo #April 5🌟

36 likes1 stack add3 comments
blurb
Read4life
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

#AdventRecommends @emilyrose_x

Book 1 of the series. A great YA mystery. I loved the plot, writing and characters. The other books in the series have been just as enjoyable. Book 5 (Nine Liars) will be released later this month.

Slajaunie My daughter and I LOVE this series! 2y
41 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
Kylivi
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson

The mystery is intriguing, the setting is incredibly detailed, but the teenage characters are tedious and eye-roll-worthy. Is this how you know you've reached adulthood? It seems like every time I go for a YA, it's a tough slog.
That being said, I can absolutely see why people like the series. If the summary sounds interesting, it's probably worth a read. Be warned, I've heard the mystery doesn't wrap up in the first novel.

review
SheilaChew
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

These books were DELIGHTFUL. I found the series from a list of books to read if you like Only Murders in the Building. My husband and I are obsessed with Only Murders, so I gave this a try. Such a great series! Stevie is a complex young detective determined to solve a cold case - and deal with her extreme anxiety and her first boyfriend. Oh, and high school.

kspenmoll Stacked! 2y
Bookzombie I need to get to these books. I love Only Murders. I haven‘t started the new season, because I want to binge them. 🙂 2y
22 likes1 stack add2 comments
review
SheilaChew
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

This is the last five books I read. I‘m now ahead of my reading challenge schedule! Truly Devious was an excellent read! Mysterious events, shady characters, set at a boarding school. Cliffhanger ending - I immediately borrowed the next book in the series!

review
ulrichyumiodd
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

I got this for free from the Sync audiobook program - and picked it because I didn‘t know what to choose after all the series I had started recently. Little did I know that this would be a series too 🤦🏻‍♀️ This is not the book‘s fault, though. I truly enjoyed the story - the characters, the plot, the mystery. I‘m looking forward to reading the rest of the series… and seriously considering a new Audible subscription for all those sequels.

blurb
jackilynn
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Well teen book club was a bust again. At least Gordon and I were able to discuss the book 😂

blurb
jackilynn
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Teen book club meets this weekend so I guess I should actually start the book we will be discussing 😬🤦‍♀️🤓

LiteraryinPA Cool picture! I love seeing how artistic Littens are with their posts. Every one of mine is my book on a blanket with a cat. 😋 2y
21 likes1 comment
review
Dcueto
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

I may have been the only person on the planet that didn‘t realize this was a series, so that was fun. Nevertheless, enjoyed this YA mystery

blurb
BooksNBowls
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

I do not deserve to call this beautiful human my friend!! Y‘all, look at what she sent me! I‘m absolutely OVERJOYED!! Thank you so much, @KateReadsYA You‘re an absolute doll! I couldn‘t have asked to meet a sweeter soul on this app! Thank you, thank you, thank you! You‘ve reminded me what it means to have a friend and be a friend. ❤️

Linsy Amazing!!! And the best series! ❤️💙💚 2y
BooksNBowls @Linsy yes! She read my mind! I‘ve had my eye on this one for a while! 2y
KateReadsYA Yesss I'm so happy you got it finally. I loved that we did this swap and I'm so grateful to get to build a friendship with you. 🥰 2y
28 likes3 comments
review
crimeanddramabookaholic
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Really enjoyed this YA mystery. The characters, setting, the present day mystery mixed with the cold case mystery from the past, it all made for a great read. Onto the next book in the series 😁

review
MelKelsey
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

Book 43

Truly, Devious was a library summer reading program reward book and was incredibly engaging from the get-go. It's a double-mystery set in a boarding school--a mystery from the history of the school as well as one involving the current class. Unfortunately, the mysteries aren't resolved in this first book in the series (annoying), and the book doesn't maintain its compulsive readability. Still, I will read the next novel. 3.5 ⭐s

blurb
ReadingEnvy
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Reading Envy Podcast Episode 242:
Dark and Gloomy with Claire

I was happy to sit down and talk to Claire, a reader from the upcoming generation. She likes dark and gloomy books! Jenny also took the opportunity to read a few YA books she had not yet gotten to, and went dark and gloomy too.

What are your teens reading these days?

Listen and subscribe:
https://tinyurl.com/ReadingEnvy242

Lindy This conversation with a 13-year-old reader was charming. Wait Till Helen Comes brings back memories of my early days at the public library. That book was on the PNLA Young Readers Choice Award list that we were promoting with school visits. Some schools forbade us from booktalking it because of the ghost element. 3y
ReadingEnvy @Lindy both Claire's mother and I read it in elementary school. It's funny to see the same authors read now. And people dont seem worried about ghosts these days... 3y
Lindy @ReadingEnvy You read it in elementary school… now I feel old! 😂 3y
45 likes1 stack add3 comments
review
ReadingEnvy
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

I was in the mood for a good old boarding school mystery novel but nobody told me this was the start of a series and nothing resolves completely until the last book! But this was an engaging read I found in #hoopla.

LiteraryinPA I genuinely liked books 2 and 3 also so hopefully the series aspect ends up being a good thing! 3y
ReadingEnvy @LiteraryinLawrence that's good! I will definitely be reading them. 3y
BeththeBookDragon I loved these. And the next Stevie Bell too 3y
See All 6 Comments
Hooked_on_books Great character, great series. I tore through these! 3y
ReadingEnvy @Hooked_on_books the character is fun! 3y
ReadingEnvy @BeththeBookDragon a separate book with Stevie? or a new series? 3y
52 likes1 stack add6 comments
blurb
mylifeisbooks
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson

Hey guys! I was just thinking about all the books I read in 2021 that I would recommend, and this one immediately popped into my mind. It is a thrilling horror mystery, and I couldn't put it down. Definitely top of my recommendation list!!

3 likes2 stack adds
review
Katie.happens
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

This one was a low pick for me, but I bet that‘s just because I‘m not the prime audience. Had I read it in high school, I think I would have been obsessed. It‘s got Sherlock Homes meets Harry Potter energy. Truman approved. 🖤

blurb
PickettT
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

It's a bad idea to start a murder mystery before bed. 🙊

5 likes1 stack add
review
mschenk
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
Pickpick

8/10 I love a mystery. It ended kind of abruptly but that‘s okay because I already have the second book on hand!

review
TamTracy
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

I‘m a true crime junkie so I feel like that helped me love this book. It ended on a real cliffhanger so be ready to commit to the next one.

BookDragonNotWorm I loved this series! 3y
58 likes1 stack add1 comment
review
Veebee
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

First in the series, this YA mystery novel is set in the Ellingham Academy which takes only those students who have talent and passion for any particular field. The lead character, Stevie is admitted to the Academy for her bent for solving mysteries and particularly her interest in solving a cold case of the kidnapping and murder related to the founder of Ellingham Academy, many years back.
Atmospheric and fast paced with cliffhanger in the end.

blurb
Avanders
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Hey, it‘s still Tuesday!

1. The tagged, The Other Black Girl, and Seek You: A Journey through American Loneliness

2. The tagged I‘ve just started, but I‘m intrigued and it seems fun. The Other Black Girl I‘m listening to, and it‘s read *SO* well - the story is also very interesting and kind of bizarre and I can‘t wait to see where it‘s going. I‘m about 1/2 done. Seek You is kind of a coffee table read for me 😉

@TK421 @BethM @SamHeartCoffee

59 likes1 comment
review
mrp27
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

#falltreasures #schooltheme

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2 This was the perfect read to get me in the mood for fall. A murder mystery set at an elite private school in the secluded mountains of Vermont. Although I enjoyed the dual story lines I was expecting something more. Still, I‘ll read the next installment to see if I get any answers to the mystery.

Eggs I love fall school-themed mysteries-great choice🙌🏻🙌🏻 3y
29 likes1 comment
review
Traci1
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

Huh... Well, ok I liked this book a lot. But...that ending. Or lack of an ending. Crap. Now I have to find book two.

review
suvata
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

• Kindle e-book • Scribd audiobook

Stevie Bell has been invited to attend Ellingham Academy, a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. Stevie is a true-crime aficionado who starts putting her skills to task on some suspicious deaths that took place at the school — one a cold case from 1930s and one the current death of a classmate she was working on a project with.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

46 likes1 stack add
review
Crinoline_Laphroaig
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

My Blue Stack.

Dead Dead Girls isn't due until October so I'm concetrating on Last of #SummerReading2021.

The Indigo Spell I finished last week. LOVED IT! Can't wait to discuss with Fictional Hangover #VampireBookClub.

As for Truly Devious. My favorite parts are the mystery in the past. I like the main character but most of the modern day students are annoying, pretentious rich kids.

Cliffhanger ending. ⬇️

Crinoline_Laphroaig Enjoyable. And I want to know who did it. But not so invested that I just have start Book 2 immediately. Willing to wait for Library Hold. 3y
kspenmoll Pretty! 3y
rabbitprincess And the mug matches so well! Love this photo 😊 3y
See All 6 Comments
MaleficentBookDragon ❤️ the 🐸 pot! 3y
Crinoline_Laphroaig @MaleficentBookDragon the Frog hooks over the edge so you can move it from pot to pot. A gift from a gardening friend. 3y
37 likes6 comments
review
wirewrappedlily
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
Mehso-so

I will be continuing to the sequel, but this one was a bit of a slog until the last quarter or so. Not for someone as prone to secondhand embarrassment as I am.

review
kissmehardy
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

God, Maureen plots a tight mystery. Even when rereading, it stays intriguing. #yalit #murdermystery

blurb
Peddler410
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

This one has been sitting on my bookshelf, patiently awaiting its turn. That time has come, thanks to my husband who chose my next genre.

blurb
IhoardBOOKS
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

I found this to be a really fun book. Stevie is someone I found to be enjoyable and relatable and I loved her relationship with Nate, who was my favorite side character. He‘s just so grumpy ☺️

blurb
Lucy_Anywhere
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

#TBRPile 📚 “Fate came for Dottie Epstein a year earlier, in the form of a call to the principal‘s office.”

blurb
Booknerd222
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

blurb
Booknerd222
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Interesting so far. I know a ton of people love this series.

review
Emmybird01
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

5/5 for the first in this series. I loved this one. Stevie reminded me of a female Sherlock Holmes. The cliffhanger got me though! I need to read the next one right now.

Karisa That cliffhanger felt illegal! Not enough wrapping up for me. Of course, it worked, and I totally had the next book queued up right after… 😅 3y
4 likes1 comment
blurb
Booknerd222
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

review
Skygoddess1
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image
Pickpick

This was a fun read in so many ways, from the mention of a discussion about dachshunds, to the fact that Stevie reminds me of myself when I was young and obsessed with all things serial killers, mass murderers and being a profiler for the FBI (which did not happen), but love of/fascination for all things true crime still present. Plus I loved all the literary references. #BookspinBingo

MallenNC I liked this one too! When I was younger I read a lot of true crime and was fascinated by the FBI. I can‘t read real life scary stuff any more but I used to love it. 3y
LiteraryinPA I loved the 3 books in this series! And a fourth with the same characters comes out this month. 3y
Skygoddess1 @LiteraryinLititz I know, I actually received a finished copy of The Box in the Woods from the publisher for a book tour I‘m on 3y
See All 6 Comments
Skygoddess1 @MallenNC I still read a lot of true crime I‘m afraid 3y
MallenNC @Skygoddess1 I can‘t do it! At least not really scary ones. They were interesting though 3y
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 3y
18 likes6 comments
blurb
Skygoddess1
Truly Devious: A Mystery | Maureen Johnson
post image

Love me a week long readathon. This time around I‘m setting the goal of reading four books, specifically the Truly Devious series (Truly Devious, The Vanishing Stair, The Hand in the Wall, and The Box in the Woods). #JoysofJune

Andrew65 Great to have you with us, good luck 😊👍 3y
17 likes1 comment