:)'s Reviews > The Vanishing Stair

3 stars

“a book gives you everything. it gives you a window into other souls, other worlds. the world is a door. books are the key."

synopsis:
the vanishing stair takes place directly after the events of Truly Devious, as stevie continues to try solving the ellingham case, and the mystery of the death of one of her classmates.

trigger warnings:
light violence, mention of drugs, drinking, alcoholism, anxiety, death

overall thoughts:
okay im pretty conflicted on this book. because honestly, it wasn’t that good. the plot was slow moving at times, the side characters were shallow (except for one), and the "answer" to the mystery was predictable and kinda pathetic. but for some reason, i could not put this book down. the writing wasn't even that good, but it was formatted in a way that kept me curious throughout the entire story. there were definitely many flaws, but i will admit that this was a captivating book!

main characters:

stevie:
can we talk about how smart stevie is for a second?!? shes literally a genius. i dont understand how she figures out the things she does, but she does, and it blows my mind everytime. i loved following her train of thought, and watching her connect the dots of the mysteries was so fun!! i also thought her anxiety was so well written. her mental illness was subtly incorporated into every decision she made, and it was so fascinating to read about.

nate:
WORDS CANNOT EXPLAIN HOW MUCH I LOVE NATE
BUT I THINK THESE QUOTES CAN
HDSASJDHKJA
"im hugging you with my mind."
"this is cheerful. can we eat? lets be morbid over food."
"this is why i prefer books to people"
"its been all feelings and love. i want to go back to numbness and avoidance."
"why. do. people. do. stupid. things."
"oh i like it. snow makes it socially acceptable to stay in."
I THINK YOU GUYS GET THE IDEA. BUT HONESTLY. NATE IS THE BEST CHARACTER. I LOVE HIS SARCASM AND HIS PERSONALITY AND HIS FRIENDSHIP WITH STEVIE!! UGHHHH.

HUNTER:
HUNTER DESERVED (oh- im still in caps lock from talking about nate. oops.) hunter deserved better. nothing can change my mind. he is superior to david in every way.

david:
you guys wanna hear this david quote? because it pretty much sums up my thoughts on him.
"sometimes i dont think people like me."
oh really david? i wonder why!?!?!?
maybe its the whole "im an attention seeking, condescending jerk, but its fine because i have daddy issues!" thing you have going on. anyways, stevie can do so much better.

janelle:
at least she contributed something to the plot this time.

larry:
hi proud larry stan over here! i wish we had more of him. ALSO HE REMINDS ME OF REMUS LUPIN.

OH WAIT I HAVE ONE MORE NATE QUOTE.
"”okay,”nate said. “my motive is that i prefer dragons.”
”to what?”
“to the absence of dragons.”"

things i liked:
- at the start of this book, stevie is at home. i had a mini heart attack when i read the first chapter. i thought maureen johnson was about to pull a Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on us and have the story take place outside of the boarding school. but she didnt!!! and the boarding school aesthetic was still there and still amazing. it makes me wanna go to boarding school.
- i mentioned in my last review that the chapters that took place during the original ellingham murder and kidnapping were boring but i actually enjoyed them a lot more in this book!
- EDDIE AND FRANCIS
- the underlying political tones were awesome. i love political references and metaphors and they are very rare in YA, so i appreciated that.
- nate. but i think we already established that.
- the story was layed out in a way that kept me turning the pages!

things i did not like:
- i was very disappointed by the motive behind the crime. maureen johnson had the opportunity to create very complex reasoning behind the murders, and i dont think she seized that opportunity.
- the romance in this story is so bad. it didnt make any sense and the characters had absolutely no chemistry. IF YOURE NOT GOING TO WRITE A GOOD ROMANCE, DONT PUT ONE IN!
- the entire david subplot is boring and unnecessary.
- this book reads like a middle grade book, with some cursing and mature themes. when you write a book for a specific age range, not only does the content have to cater to that age group, so does the writing.

i liked this book well enough, but it wasnt my favorite thing in the world. i will say that i am very curious on how this mystery will wrap up, so i will be picking up the final book!

also sorry this review was a chaotic mess 💀

my reviews for:
book one: truly devious
book two: the vanishing stair
book three: the hand on the wall