--- product_id: 104410223 title: "Truly Devious" price: "VT5863" currency: VUV in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.vu/products/104410223-truly-devious store_origin: VU region: Vanuatu --- # Truly Devious **Price:** VT5863 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Truly Devious - **How much does it cost?** VT5863 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.vu](https://www.desertcart.vu/products/104410223-truly-devious) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Review: Absolutely bewildering! - As I start to write this, in my head I am falling short of words. My mind is blown away and my heart is trembling with excitement, anxiety and curiosity. The plot of Truly Devious is spread between two timeliness, one is the present where a bunch of students come to this elite-free-of-cost school, and the other is past when a crime had actually happened that leads to our present. Meticulously written and strung together Truly Devious is a rollercoaster ride! nothing short of amusement. You straight up get invested in the characters and you care about them. The unraveling of events is the best part. Piece by piece author Maureen Joshson let's you into this world of her, her Ellingham Academy. The time period when the first crime has actually happened was the best part, until this book's and the present time period's climax. Things pace up and you are left with questions and a hunger to know more. I could not keep this book down, I was trying to read the end slowly because I don't have the second part yet and God, oh God! I am hooked. I want to stay in this world, with these characters and witness how the mystery unfolds. Review: A delightful page-turner! - Agatha Christie is my all-time favourite author. The only problem with Agatha Christie is that once you read dozen or so murder mysteries revolving around iconic Hercule Poirot character you seem to get disappointed by other authors writing a murder mystery. However, Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious the first novel in a murder-mystery trilogy was an exception to that theory. The story runs parallel in two eras, the 1930’s and present era at the Ellingham Academy founded by an ultra-rich businessman – Albert Ellingham for the special and most talented students. He has a unique affinity towards riddle and games, so much so that he has made it compulsory for all students to participate in games such as Monopoly. Since he is one of the most well-known tycoons of the country he is accustomed to regular life threats. In the month of April 1936, one peculiar threat comes along in the form of mocking riddle listing down methods of murder, signed with a pseudonym – Truly Devious. A week later, Albert’s wife Iris & daughter Alice gets kidnapped. Despite paying demanded ransom, kidnappers do not release his family. Their disappearance becomes one of the greatest unsolved crime. Many years later, Sherlock fan & crime aficionado Stevie Bell gets admission at the Ellingham Academy. She has already researched the case and she is determined to solve this mystery. At the academy, she meets five friends with a unique background such as a YouTube star, a novelist, an artist etc. During her first year at the academy she makes an attempt to solve the murder, however, the past crawls out and results into the death of one of her housemate. Was it an accident? Was it a murder? Does eighty-year-old past of Ellingham academy come back to haunt current students? Does Stevie get close to solving the case? These answers and much more is revealed by Maureen in her wonderfully crafted novel Truly Devious. What I admire about Maureen’s writing style is her impeccable ability to parallelly run stories in both eras, as an author it is easy to lose track of one of the plot while shifting focus, but Maureen makes sure that a reader remains glued to her story. There are patches in the book, where because of a number of the side-characters the story loses its pace. However, her character development of the central character – Stevie brings stability to the plot. The author has effortlessly set up Vermont of the early twentieth century. Truly Devious is a delightful page-turner for all murder mystery lovers. Maureen has ended her first novel of the trilogy on a cliffhanger leaving (or rather forcing) readers to go on her second one without a shadow of a doubt. Let’s see what is in store with The Vanishing Stairs the second part of the trilogy. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #4,449 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #1 in Historical Mysteries & Thrillers for Young Adults #1 in Young Adult Nonfiction LGBTQ+ Issues #1 in Modern & Contemporary Historical Fiction for Young Adults | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 7,689 Reviews | ## Images ![Truly Devious - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/812Jq7SJ3GL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Absolutely bewildering! *by S***A on 30 August 2020* As I start to write this, in my head I am falling short of words. My mind is blown away and my heart is trembling with excitement, anxiety and curiosity. The plot of Truly Devious is spread between two timeliness, one is the present where a bunch of students come to this elite-free-of-cost school, and the other is past when a crime had actually happened that leads to our present. Meticulously written and strung together Truly Devious is a rollercoaster ride! nothing short of amusement. You straight up get invested in the characters and you care about them. The unraveling of events is the best part. Piece by piece author Maureen Joshson let's you into this world of her, her Ellingham Academy. The time period when the first crime has actually happened was the best part, until this book's and the present time period's climax. Things pace up and you are left with questions and a hunger to know more. I could not keep this book down, I was trying to read the end slowly because I don't have the second part yet and God, oh God! I am hooked. I want to stay in this world, with these characters and witness how the mystery unfolds. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ A delightful page-turner! *by S***N on 12 March 2019* Agatha Christie is my all-time favourite author. The only problem with Agatha Christie is that once you read dozen or so murder mysteries revolving around iconic Hercule Poirot character you seem to get disappointed by other authors writing a murder mystery. However, Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious the first novel in a murder-mystery trilogy was an exception to that theory. The story runs parallel in two eras, the 1930’s and present era at the Ellingham Academy founded by an ultra-rich businessman – Albert Ellingham for the special and most talented students. He has a unique affinity towards riddle and games, so much so that he has made it compulsory for all students to participate in games such as Monopoly. Since he is one of the most well-known tycoons of the country he is accustomed to regular life threats. In the month of April 1936, one peculiar threat comes along in the form of mocking riddle listing down methods of murder, signed with a pseudonym – Truly Devious. A week later, Albert’s wife Iris & daughter Alice gets kidnapped. Despite paying demanded ransom, kidnappers do not release his family. Their disappearance becomes one of the greatest unsolved crime. Many years later, Sherlock fan & crime aficionado Stevie Bell gets admission at the Ellingham Academy. She has already researched the case and she is determined to solve this mystery. At the academy, she meets five friends with a unique background such as a YouTube star, a novelist, an artist etc. During her first year at the academy she makes an attempt to solve the murder, however, the past crawls out and results into the death of one of her housemate. Was it an accident? Was it a murder? Does eighty-year-old past of Ellingham academy come back to haunt current students? Does Stevie get close to solving the case? These answers and much more is revealed by Maureen in her wonderfully crafted novel Truly Devious. What I admire about Maureen’s writing style is her impeccable ability to parallelly run stories in both eras, as an author it is easy to lose track of one of the plot while shifting focus, but Maureen makes sure that a reader remains glued to her story. There are patches in the book, where because of a number of the side-characters the story loses its pace. However, her character development of the central character – Stevie brings stability to the plot. The author has effortlessly set up Vermont of the early twentieth century. Truly Devious is a delightful page-turner for all murder mystery lovers. Maureen has ended her first novel of the trilogy on a cliffhanger leaving (or rather forcing) readers to go on her second one without a shadow of a doubt. Let’s see what is in store with The Vanishing Stairs the second part of the trilogy. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Must Read 😍 *by S***I on 19 June 2025* This series was so freaking Goooooooood ! I loved every bit of it.. The characters, the plot and places mentioned just work perfectly! ## Frequently Bought Together - Truly Devious: A Mystery (Truly Devious, 1) - The Vanishing Stair (Truly Devious, 2) - The Hand on the Wall (Truly Devious, 3) --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.vu/products/104410223-truly-devious](https://www.desertcart.vu/products/104410223-truly-devious) --- *Product available on Desertcart Vanuatu* *Store origin: VU* *Last updated: 2026-05-15*