Maureen Johnson, a New York Times bestselling author, weaves a sensitive story of murder and mystery in the first book of a stunning new series, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and E. Lockhart.
The Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early 20th-century entrepreneur, who wanted to create a wonderful place full of riddles, winding paths, 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 straightforward riddle listing murder methods, signed with the terrifying pseudonym "Truly, Devious." This case became one of the greatest unsolved crimes in American history.
Stevie Bell, a lover of true crime, is about to start her first year at Ellingham Academy and has an ambitious plan: she will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case once she adjusts to her new school life and her classmates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the boundless humorist.
But something strange is happening. Truly Devious unexpectedly returns, and death revisits Ellingham Academy. The past has emerged from its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder.
The two intertwining mysterious plots of this first book in the Truly Devious series blend in an extraordinary way, and Stevie Bell will continue her relentless search for the murderers in books two and three.
Pages: 448, Dimensions: 13.5x13.5cm
