Paperbacks and Planners

Title: The Hand on the Wall (Truly Devious #3)
Author: Maureen Johnson
Genre: YA, Mystery
Edition/Pages: Hardcover, 384 pages
Goodreads page

This is the 3rd book in a series so my review may contain spoilers for the previous 2 books!

Summary

In the aftermath of a third death surrounding Stevie, she is certain they aren’t accidents. Especially since she actually solved the Truly Devious case. At least she thinks she has. But Stevie needs proof if she is going to share what she’s uncovered.

With a massive snowstorm approaching, Stevie must find a way to stay on the mountain and access the final clues she needs to prove her theory and catch the person behind the recent murders.

Overview

➸ Stevie Bell: Wants to be a detective, Obsessed with the Truly Devious cold case, Student at Ellingham Academy

➸ POV: This is told in third person, in dual timelines – today from Stevie’s POV and in the 1930’s from multiple POVs

➸ Content Warnings: Murder/Death, Anxiety, Panic Attacks

My Thoughts

This was such a fun trilogy. While this wasn’t my favorite conclusion ever, I thought this did an amazing job and tying up all the lose ends without everything feeling too perfect and convenient. This entire series gave me so many classic mystery vibes and I adored it.

Hands down, the best part of this trilogy, is the mystery aspect. Maureen Johnson weaves such an intriguing mystery in both the past and modern day. I was so invested in discovering not only what happened in 1930 but also who was behind deaths happening at the school in present day.

That being said, throughout the entire trilogy, I never really connected to or grew to care about the characters. I thought they were all interesting in their own rites, but I just never felt anything toward them the way I wanted to. When couples were struggling or fighting, I felt absolutely nothing. And when the reconciled.. still nothing. However, my interest and investment in the mystery aspect kept me engaged through all 3 books.

Overall, I think Maureen Johnson did an amazing job at writing a modern day, Agatha Christie-esque mystery that kept me flipping the page until the very end. While this won’t go down as my favorite mystery series of all time, it is definitely worth the read if you’re looking for a more modern, classic feeling mystery series that will keep you guessing!

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