The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson

Summary from Goodreads:

Ellingham Academy must be cursed. Three people are now dead. One, a victim of either a prank gone wrong or a murder. Another, dead by misadventure. And now, an accident in Burlington has claimed another life. All three in the wrong place at the wrong time. All at the exact moment of Stevie’s greatest triumph . . .

She knows who Truly Devious is. She’s solved it. The greatest case of the century.

At least, she thinks she has. With this latest tragedy, it’s hard to concentrate on the past. Not only has someone died in town, but David disappeared of his own free will and is up to something. Stevie is sure that somehow—somehow—all these things connect. The three deaths in the present. The deaths in the past. The missing Alice Ellingham and the missing David Eastman. Somewhere in this place of riddles and puzzles there must be answers.

Then another accident occurs as a massive storm heads toward Vermont. This is too much for the parents and administrators. Ellingham Academy is evacuated. Obviously, it’s time for Stevie to do something stupid. It’s time to stay on the mountain and face the storm—and a murderer.

In the tantalizing finale to the Truly Devious trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson expertly tangles her dual narrative threads and ignites an explosive end for all who’ve walked through Ellingham Academy.

New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson delivers the witty and pulse-pounding conclusion to the Truly Devious series as Stevie Bell solves the mystery that has haunted Ellingham Academy for over 75 years.

Review:

My husband and I are both librarians. We have very different taste in books. Occasionally, we find ourselves crossing over to each other’s bookshelves, but this is usually for graphic novels or sci-fi. This series is one of the rare breeds we both lovingly adore. We were both counting down the days for this book’s release.  I got it first from my library, and read it in one day, so I could then pass it to him. He came home at the exact moment it was all revealed to me, and I went, “I had no idea!” very loudly as he came in the door –making his wait even harder. But, it’s been so nice to talk to him about it (after he’s finished it of course).

Any way, what I’m trying to say is this: these books are so good that even my 39 year old husband (librarian) who mostly reads adult sci fi, comic books, and historical non fiction was counting down the days to its release and then he too, read this book in under 24 hours. He does like to read mysteries sometimes too. But still, Maureen Johnson is a master. And we could not wait to find out who the murder was, and how everything tied together.

To be honest, the books hadn’t gone how I thought they would. I thought Stevie would solve the current murders first and then the historic one. I liked that it was a little different. Though, I was wondering how the third book would keep me interested knowing that Stevie had solved the big one by the end of book 2. Did she really solve it? Maybe there was more to it. And I guess I wanted to see how things would resolve with David. What on earth was that fight about?

Book 3 answered all these questions and then some. Johnson went into the past a lot, highlighting even more the characters and the setting the of the original crime. I’m glad I finally got to learn the why of things. I might have known the who from before, but not why. And by doing this, the author brought to light the relevance of the the crimes of today and the how and why everything truly was connected.

Besides connecting all the dots, resolving the romantic plot lines, and solving the murder, there’s also a colossal snow storm, more secret passageways, more deathly accidents, more panic attacks, and more scary moments of suspense that will have any reader’s hearth thumping. This book has it all. Most all though, it has amazing characters. I’ve come to love Stevie and her quirky friends. I’d hate for the school to close –not just because I want Stevie to solve the case. But, I want machines to be built, fantasy novels to be written, and everyone else to succeed as well.

I have loved all 3 books in this series. I have been surprised over and over by the multiple murders. I have panicked with Stevie. And I’ve needed answers so badly that I’ve counted down the days for book releases with my husband. I’ve given books in the series as gifts. And despite reading the books first from the library, I also own them all. I highly recommend these books to mystery fans (particularly Agatha Christie fans), and those who like good character driven stories –who don’t mind a lot of historical flashbacks. But, I know people who like these books who don’t normally go for these kinds of stories too. They are well-written, well thought out, and are just plain fun. I give this a 10/10.