7 Books Like Truly Devious for Mystery Fans

Best for: Boarding-school mysteries and brilliant teenage detectives

Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson are descendants of the legendary Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but their lives are far from ordinary literary history.

When the two meet at a Connecticut boarding school, neither expects to become involved in a real murder investigation. Then a fellow student dies, and the circumstances raise suspicion about both of them.

Charlotte's extraordinary powers of observation make her a formidable investigator, while Jamie becomes increasingly involved in a dangerous mystery that requires more than clever deductions to solve.

As they work together, their complicated relationship and the secrets surrounding their families create additional obstacles.

Why it's similar: Both series feature unusually talented teenage investigators at exclusive schools where a violent crime disrupts student life. Stevie and Charlotte approach mysteries with intense curiosity, and both stories use the school environment to create suspicion and atmosphere.

How it's different: Charlotte Holmes is a contemporary reinterpretation of the Sherlock Holmes tradition, with greater emphasis on the relationship between its two central characters. Its first mystery is more immediately connected to the protagonists than Stevie's historical Ellingham investigation.

Start with: A Study in Charlotte

Best for: Cold cases, evidence, and determined teenage investigators

Pip Fitz-Amobi is not convinced that her community has the right answer to a murder committed several years earlier.

The accepted story is that Sal Singh killed Andie Bell before taking his own life. But Pip believes there are reasons to question that conclusion.

When she chooses the case for a school project, her research gradually becomes a real investigation. Interviews, overlooked clues, and contradictions lead her toward secrets that people in her town would rather keep hidden.

As Pip searches for answers, the risks become increasingly personal.

Why it's similar: Stevie and Pip are teenagers who approach unsolved crimes with determination and a strong interest in evidence. Both question accepted explanations, follow leads others have overlooked, and discover that investigating the past can create danger in the present.

How it's different: A Good Girl's Guide to Murder takes place primarily within a contemporary town and begins as a school research project. It offers less of the mysterious-campus atmosphere that defines Ellingham Academy, but more detailed attention to interviews and independent detective work.

Start with: A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

Best for: Classic whodunits, clever clues, and unlikely detective partnerships

Alice Ogilvie has already attracted considerable attention in Castle Cove after disappearing for several days and refusing to explain what happened.

Then her former best friend, Brooke Donovan, goes missing.

When suspicion falls on Brooke's boyfriend, Alice begins questioning whether the police have identified the right person. She joins forces with Iris Adams, a classmate whose background and circumstances are very different from her own.

Inspired by Agatha Christie's mysteries, the two girls examine evidence, question assumptions, and discover that their town contains more secrets than either expected.

Why it's similar: Stevie Bell and the investigative duo of Alice and Iris refuse to accept convenient explanations for troubling crimes. Both series invite readers to follow conflicting accounts, question suspects, and examine clues alongside teenage detectives who take the investigation seriously.

How it's different: The Agathas uses a coastal-town setting and a two-person investigative partnership rather than a residential academy with an infamous historical kidnapping. Its detective style also draws more explicitly on classic whodunit fiction.

Start with: The Agathas

Best for: Elaborate riddles, hidden passages, and mysterious estates

Avery Grambs is an ordinary teenager whose life changes when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne unexpectedly leaves her nearly his entire fortune.

Avery has no idea why she was chosen, but accepting the inheritance means entering a family full of suspicious relatives and complicated relationships.

Hawthorne House is filled with elaborate architectural details, secret passages, codes, and puzzles designed by its eccentric former owner.

As Avery follows clues, she finds that every apparent answer reveals another mystery about the family and her place within it.

Why it's similar: Readers who enjoyed Albert Ellingham's strange school and its deliberately designed riddles may appreciate Tobias Hawthorne's puzzle-filled mansion. Both stories use remarkable buildings, wealthy founders, and hidden information to create mysteries that reward careful attention.

How it's different: The Inheritance Games focuses on a mysterious inheritance, family rivalry, romance, and strategic puzzles rather than investigating a historical kidnapping or a boarding-school murder. Its suspense is more closely connected to wealth and the Hawthorne family.

Start with: The Inheritance Games

Best for: True-crime enthusiasts and group investigations

Seneca Frazier is deeply interested in unsolved crimes and regularly visits an online true-crime community called Case Not Closed.

When renewed discussion of Helena Kelly's disappearance draws her attention, Seneca decides to investigate the case in person.

She teams up with other teenagers who share her interest, bringing together a group with different personalities, experiences, and reasons for pursuing the truth.

As they examine a disappearance that has troubled a Connecticut community for years, they discover that long-hidden information may be connected to more recent danger.

Why it's similar: Stevie Bell and Seneca Frazier are both fascinated by unresolved crimes before they become personally involved in investigating them. Each story explores the transition from studying a cold case to facing the real consequences of uncovering secrets.

How it's different: The Amateurs is driven by a group of teenage true-crime enthusiasts who connect through an online community. Its investigation does not center on one unusual boarding school or a famous historical riddle.

Start with: The Amateurs

Best for: Another Maureen Johnson mystery with an atmospheric school setting

Rory Deveaux leaves Louisiana to attend a boarding school in London, expecting an unfamiliar city and a new academic routine.

Instead, she arrives as a series of brutal murders begins attracting widespread attention.

The crimes appear to imitate Jack the Ripper, and London becomes consumed by fear and speculation. Rory's arrival coincides with a disturbing discovery: she can see something that other people cannot.

Her unusual ability draws her toward a secretive group investigating threats that ordinary police work cannot explain.

As Rory learns more about the dangers surrounding her, the city and her school become part of an increasingly unsettling experience.

Why it's similar: Both series are written by Maureen Johnson and combine distinctive settings, young protagonists, unsettling crimes, unusual school experiences, and mysteries that connect the past with present danger.

How it's different: Shades of London includes ghosts and supernatural abilities. It is not a purely realistic detective series, and the central investigation is more closely tied to paranormal threats than Stevie's evidence-based approach to Ellingham's history.

Start with: The Name of the Star

Best for: Old tragedies, buried secrets, and darker mysteries

Five years ago, Sunnybrook lost five cheerleaders in a series of deaths that devastated the town.

The deaths occurred under different circumstances, including an accident, a double murder, and the loss of Monica's sister, leaving questions that still trouble the community years later.

The school no longer has a cheerleading squad, but the events continue to affect the lives of the people who remember them.

When Monica encounters troubling information connected to the deaths, she begins questioning whether the accepted explanations reveal everything that happened.

Her search forces her to examine painful family memories and secrets that people around her may have kept for years.

Why it's similar: Both books explore mysteries rooted in earlier tragedies. Like Stevie, Monica questions a story that her community has learned to live with, and the search for answers becomes increasingly personal.

How it's different: The Cheerleaders is more closely focused on grief, family loss, and the emotional aftermath of deaths in a small town. It offers a darker and more intimate atmosphere, without Ellingham Academy's elaborate historical puzzles.

Start with: The Cheerleaders