I haven't done a series review in some time, which might have something to do with the fact that I haven't binge-read a series in some time! That changed in the last two months when I sped through the Truly Devious books by Maureen Johnson. I enjoyed all the novels, which together create a series that is clever, fun, and engrossing.

I read Truly Devious when it first came out in 2018, then re-read it in December since I couldn't remember more than its very basic plot. The series opener introduces true crime aficionado Stephanie "Stevie" Bell, a 16-year-old from Pittsburgh. She is beginning her first year at Ellingham Academy, a boarding school for talented kids who are allowed to study their chosen subjects with no limitations, financial or otherwise. Built by an eccentric gazillionaire in the 1930s, the school is located on a remote mountaintop in Vermont and features a plethora of hidden rooms, secret tunnels, trapdoors, and other playful hideaways. Stevie, who applied on a whim, is shocked by her acceptance there. She's determined to prove her worth at Ellingham by finally getting to the bottom of the "unsolvable" crime that rocked the school when it first opened. Not only were the founder's wife and child kidnapped, but the former was murdered as was an Ellingham Academy student. Little Alice Ellingham's body has never been found. Although a man was convicted of the crimes, no one really believed he was guilty.

As Stevie studies the case on-site, strange things start happening on campus, things that mirror what occurred back in the 30s. When a student is murdered, it sends shockwaves through the place anew. Has the "Truly Devious" killer struck again? Or is someone playing a macabre game of copycat? Stevie vows to solve all the murders, past and present. Can she do it?

Spoiler alert: Yes, she can. 

The Vanishing Stair begins shortly after Stevie solves her classmate's murder. Even though the killer has been identified, they're in the wind. Convinced Ellingham Academy is not safe, Stevie's parents pull her out of school and make her come home, where she's miserable in her soul-sucking public school. A powerful figure intervenes, allowing her return to Ellingham. For a price. Stevie makes a deal with the devil that makes her very uncomfortable. Nevertheless, she's thrilled to return to the only place she's ever felt truly at home.

Stevie resumes her investigation into the murders that occurred at Ellingham in the 1930s. While doing so, she discovers the dead body of another classmate. Why were they killed? When another strange death happens in nearby Burlington, Stevie's certain they're connected—not just to each other but also to the Ellingham cold case. Can she get to the bottom of things before she loses someone else she cares about?

In the last book of the main trilogy—The Hand on the Wall—a series of disturbing events, plus the threat of an oncoming blizzard lead to the closure of Ellingham Academy. Despite the danger, Stevie and her friends do not want to leave. It's crazy to stay with a dangerous storm on the way not to mention a murderer running loose, but Stevie's convinced she can solve the Ellingham murders and figure out how everything that's happening in the present connects with them if only she can get a little more time. Hiding out so they don't have to leave, Stevie & Co. remain at Ellingham. As tension rises, putting them all at risk, Stevie pushes herself to puzzle out all the answers. Can she do it before they all run out of time?

Spoiler alert: Yes, she can.

After Stevie solves the Ellingham case, which has stumped investigators for decades, she becomes a bit of a sensation. In The Box in the Woods, she's home in Pittsburgh for the summer, prepared to die of boredom sans friends and without a puzzling case to keep her busy brain occupied. When she receives a tantalizing invitation to work at Camp Wonder Falls, she's immediately interested. It's not because she loves the outdoors (she doesn't), but because the rebranded summer camp was the site of a notorious quadruple murder back in the 1970s. The camp's new owner, an offbeat podcaster, wants Stevie to investigate the cold case so he can feature it on a show he's producing. Stevie's game.

Summoning her besties from Ellingham, Stevie and the reunited gang began their investigation. As they talk to residents of the nearby town who knew the victims, Stevie becomes more and more confused. Why would someone brutally kill four teenaged camp counselors? The kids weren't saints, but they hardly seem like the kind of people who would inspire the amount of rage that was unleashed on them. 

When one of the people helping Stevie dies in a suspicious accident, it becomes quickly apparent that someone knows what really happened the night the kids were killed and that they will do the unthinkable to make sure the truth never comes to light. If Stevie doesn't stop nosing into the past, she might be next. Can she solve the case before she becomes the next camp counselor to die? 

It's natural while reading a series to like some installments more than others. That's true of the Truly Devious books for me, but overall, it's a very well-crafted series. The characters are fresh and likable (my favorite is Nate, by the by), the mysteries are twisty and compelling, the boarding school setting is intriguing and appealing, and Johnson's prose is skilled and upbeat. I found all of the books engrossing, which explains why I buzzed through them so quickly. In every instance, I definitely wanted to know what was going to happen next. Johnson did not disappoint. 

I believe The Box in the Woods is the last book in the Truly Devious series. While it offers a satisfying conclusion to the series, it definitely leaves room for more installments. I am 100% up for that, although I'm still waiting for Johnson to finish the Shades of London series...

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Although the installments vary in content, if they were movies, all would be rated:

Idlewild Hall—"the boarding school of last resort ... where parents stashed their embarrassments, their failures, and their recalcitrant girls" (16)—is made for teens like Cece Frank, Roberta Greene, and Sonia Gallipeau.  Each hiding their own dark secret, the three become roommates in 1950 at the cold, isolated institution.  Although none of them are thrilled about being stuck in such a grim place, they find comfort in their newfound friendship.  Like hundreds of Idlewild girls before them, they swap shivery stories about Mary Hand, the veiled ghost whose unsettled spirit haunts the school garden where her baby is rumored to be buried.  None of them doubt her existence—they've all felt her dark, menacing presence.  When one of the roommates disappears without a trace, the others can't help but wonder if she's been a victim of an apparition hungry for revenge.

Forty-four years later, the body of 20-year-old Deb Sheridan is discovered on Idlewild's long-abandoned campus.  Her death by strangulation is clearly the work of human hands, most likely those of her boyfriend, who's convicted and imprisoned for the crime.  Despite getting closure, the tragedy breaks the Sheridan family.  Two decades later, Fiona still can't shake the feeling that something wasn't right about her sister's case.  When she learns that an anonymous benefactor is restoring Idlewild Hall, it stirs up her old feelings of unease.  Desperate to find out what really happened to Deb, Fiona launches her own investigation under the guise of writing a magazine article about the reopening of Idlewild Hall.  To find answers, she'll have to confront the school's many ghosts and battle the sinister forces that haunt not just Idlewild, but her own tortured past.

I have a long-standing rule about not reading creepy books while my husband is out of town.  So, even though I made the mistake of starting The Broken Girls by Simone St. James right before a planned trip, I promised myself I'd read something else until his return.  As much as I tried to distract myself with a lighter, less nightmare-inducing novel, though, I couldn't do it!  Scary dreams be darned, I could not look away from this gripping story about ghosts and girls and their ghoulish secrets.  Atmospheric and eerie, The Broken Girls is a tense, absorbing novel that will keep you guessing throughout.  Even though the ending felt a little rushed and anticlimactic to me, overall, I enjoyed this haunting—but ultimately hopeful—story about righting past wrongs.

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of books by Carol Goodman, especially The Ghost Orchid and Arcadia Falls)

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West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter, Gertie. Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister, Fawn. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that suddenly proves perilous when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished without a trace. Searching for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked deeper into the mystery of Sara's fate, she discovers that she's not the only person who's desperately looking for someone that they've lost. But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself.

I've probably mentioned this before, but Jennifer McMahon's novels creep me out.  From the freaky covers to the chilling plotlines to the haunting details—everything about them makes me want to dive into my bed, pull a blanket over my head, and chant, "It's not real. It's not real. It's not real." Seriously.  Every time I finish one of McMahon's books, I vow not to pick up another one.  Not to even look at another one.  Because if there's one thing I've learned about this author, it's that if I so much as glance at one of her books, I will pick it up, I will skim the first page, and I won't stop until I finish the story. Even though it will give me nightmares for a week. That's how compelling they are.