Oh, Stevie Bell, how we’ve missed you! Maureen Johnson‘s Truly Devious series has been a favorite of ours, and we’ve been waiting years to return to Stevie Bell’s universe. Now, we get to do so with The Velvet Knife, her latest standalone YA mystery novel!
Following the events of Nine Liars, Stevie has gone back to Ellingham Academy and can’t wait for the semester to be over. She’s still reeling from her breakup with David, finding it difficult to focus on anything other than where it all went wrong.
Her parents aren’t making things any easier, so she jets off to New York City with her friend Nate for the holiday break. But wherever she goes, trouble follows, and Stevie finds herself solving yet another murder (or two). Here are three of our favorite things about The Velvet Knife by Maureen Johnson!
Book Overview: The Velvet Knife
Content warnings: death, murder, blood, corpses, violence, drug use, drugging, serious injuries, abusive relationship, manipulation, car accident, smoking, vomiting
Summary: Stevie might be the greatest teenage detective Ellingham Academy and the world has ever seen, but even she can’t figure out what happened with her boyfriend, David. What she needs is a distraction: a good old-fashioned murder. Stevie is much happier dealing with dead people. They’re a lot less confusing—they don’t send cryptic texts and make out with other girls in British pubs.
But then Stevie gets exactly what she wanted when a dead body turns up in the middle of a Manhattan apartment complex, and this one is . . . complicated. Caught in a web of messy alive-people feelings, Stevie finds herself questioning all human connection. Is magnetism only manipulation? Can you trust anyone? Does anyone realize that they’re joining a cult—before it’s too late? And are things with David really over?
The Dual Narratives
The Velvet Knife alternates between 1976 and the present day. In the 1976 narrative, we follow a young woman named Blue who finds herself in a cult of self-proclaimed Robin Hoods that meet a tragic end. In the present day, Stevie takes a trip to New York City over the holiday break for just that: a break. But when Helen—the elderly woman next door—dies of apparent heart failure, Stevie feels like she’s missing something crucial about the case. Her investigation connects back to the very cult we’ve been reading about all the while, which was not very easy for Stevie to track down.
Following Clues
One of our favorite things about The Velvet Knife and murder mysteries in general is how the main character starts their search for clues. When Stevie finds Helen’s body, she observes everything about her apartment. From the neatly labeled ingredients to the stack of printed articles on the table, she makes a note of everything. Stevie barely knew anything about Helen’s past at first. We love how she digs around for information from other residents that she’d be able to explore further. Her mind amazes us, especially once she finds exactly the thing that was entrusted to her.
Stevie’s Personal Growth
Finally, we loved reading Stevie’s personal journey throughout The Velvet Knife. She struggles with her breakup and complicated feelings toward David amidst the investigation. And though Stevie gets swept up in a mystery she didn’t plan for, she manages to juggle everything…until David makes his way to the forefront of her mind (again). By the end, she gets answers to the questions that have been plaguing her mind and comes to terms with them. Stevie ultimately decides she wants to stay in the present with friends who want the best for her. This book feels like a “see you later” rather than a “goodbye,” and we hope she gets a well-deserved break from solving murders for now.
With an interconnected dual narrative, expert-level sleuthing, and admirable character development, Maureen Johnson’s The Velvet Knife is well worth the wait!
The Velvet Knife by Maureen Johnson comes out September 29th, and you can order a copy of it here!
What do you think of the newest addition to Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious series? Are you adding The Velvet Knife to your TBR? Let us know on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram!
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