'A Good Girl's Guide To Murder' by Holly Jackson
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| 'A Good Girl's Guide To Murder' front cover |
*There are no spoilers in this review!*
Description:
The case is closed. Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it.
But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the crime, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn't so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic of her final project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth...?
Goodreads Rating: 4.34 My Rating: 5
First Impressions
Before this one, I hadn't really read many thriller/mystery books, so I wasn't very sure what was lying ahead (as you can tell by my rating, I definitely wasn't disappointed!). As a girl who has grown up enjoying different true crime programmes with my mum and trying to figure out the 'who done it?' before it is revealed, 'A Good Girl's Guide To Murder' seemed like such a perfect match to me! Immediately I just had to know if Pippa - a student like I was at the time - would be able to unravel the truth about the murder of Andie Bell.
In the first 20 or so pages, we are thrown into the story without any dilly-dallying: for an EPQ project, Pippa Fitz-Amobi wants to prove that Sal Singh did not murder Andie Bell (and find out who really was responsible). The way Holly Jackson chose to lay-out the novel was so interesting to me because I have never seen a book presented in the same way! Rather than just chapter after chapter, information is given in the form of transcripts, articles, and logs as though the reader is solving the case too! It is quite a wordy book, so if you struggle to get through those I would suggest splitting up how much you read at one time. 'A Good Girl's Guide To Murder' would really be worth your while, I wouldn't let the size of it scare you off!
The Characters
There are so many different characters in this story that all have unique personalities - no two are alike, and I really commend Holly for that! As you are introduced and start to learn about each one, you can't help but be suspicious and try to catch them out yourself. I began writing predictions every few chapters for who I had my suspicions about and what I thought had happened. It became a fun little game to see if I had been right about any of my ideas (fun fact: I was very wrong!).
I loved watching relationships grow and blossom, especially Pippa and Ravi. Ravi finally had somebody in the town they live in that didn't treat him badly and wanted to be there for him while also wanting justice for his brother, and Pippa had his support when others discouraged her. The admiration they had for each other became so prominent and their small disagreements made their situation all the more realistic - it isn't always sunshine and rainbows! There was a good balance between the mystery and character and relationship development, one thing didn't outshine the other and make it seem insignificant. Overall, the characters and their lives were very well crafted and executed!
The Truth
*Again, there are no spoilers but if you would prefer to you can skip past this!*
As I touched on before, 'A Good Girl's Guide To Murder' allows you to take this journey with Pippa and form your own predictions regarding how the story will end. There are so many pieces of information and clues that you could try to pick apart, but if you zone in on everything it could miss the intended experience of the book. I made some guesses on what I thought could have happened regarding Andie's murder every few chapters and some small ideas about whether I thought something was a lie or not, but I tried not to get too ahead of myself and orchestrate a full playthrough of events since it would just take me away from the book itself! It's great to question things in a book like this, but let the story play out the way it is supposed to do!
I only have one word for the truth: WOW.
At points where you would think you know where something is headed, it takes a different turn and you are left gob-smacked at the twists you have read. I'm in awe at the originality behind this book and just how carefully everything has been planned out! The final chapters really put me on the edge of my seat, I had absolutely no idea what was going to come next with there being so much unpredictability throughout the whole novel. Overall, it couldn't have been done any better in my eyes! Absolutely amazing!
Final Thoughts
The very end of the book was really satisfying! I've found with quite a few novels that the very last pages can be anticlimactic, rushed, or a little bit disappointing, but this one really ties the whole story together so beautifully. I didn't start thinking about how it could have been done differently here and there, so it felt GOOD to close the book and place it back onto my shelf.
Conclusion
'A Good Girl's Guide To Murder' really felt like the perfect introduction into this particular style and genre since it was so intricately detailed and engaging, it took my breath away! It was so exciting to learn about the sequel, 'Good Girl, Bad Blood', as I would love to know what path the characters have taken since the events of the first book. Holly's writing is also VERY addictive and unique!
If you're like me and want to dabble in some more thrilling books, this book is PERFECT to start you off! And if you just haven't read this book yet, I highly recommend giving it a go!
Let me know what you think! :)
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