Title: A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
Author : Holly Jackson
Pages : 433
Genre : Crime, Investigation, Murder Mystery, Thriller, Young adults, Trilogy, Series
Language : English
Rating : 5/5
What is the Plot of ‘The Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’
About five years back, the quiet town of little Kilton was rocked by a twin murder-suicide of a teenage girl Andie Bell and her boyfriend Salil Singh aka Sal Singh. At that time the police investigation concluded that Andie Bell was killed by Sal Singh and then a few days later out of guilt he killed himself.
Though to Pippa’s astonishment, there were quite a few red flags in the police story:
- Firstly, Andie Bell’s body was never found, so how could they conclude she was dead?
- Secondly,Sal Singh was a diligent and bright student, he was not known to be aggressive or to get into brawls or physical fights, to expect him to murder his own girl friend seemed far fetched to Pippa.
- Thirdly,what was the motive behind killing Andie when they never had a public fight?
- Fourthly, Pippa knew Sal from her school days as a kind and caring boy and labelling him as murderer making the whole family social pariah seemed unfair to her. She wanted to know the truth.
- Fifthly, Pippa had known how it felt to be different and alienated -her step father,Victor Amobi,was a giant Nigerian man,while Pippa was white.Very often when they ventured out as a family, people gave them lingering and curious looks as if trying to work out the “logistics ” of her family.Similarly Sal Singh’s family too was affected by this murder allegation, they were socially ostracized. Being of Indian origin Sal Singh’s younger brother, Ravi was often labelled as “one of those brute Indian male chauvinists with hot tempers who beat up their wife at the drop of a hat.”
These reasons were compelling enough for Pippa Fitz Amobi aka Pip to choose this case for the topic of her EPQ ( Extended Project Qualification) – A project you work on independently alongside your A-levels in the final year of school School. The title of Pippa’s EPQ was – “A detailed report on how both print/televised media and social media have become invaluable players in in police investigations, using Andie Bell as a case study.”
Naturally it was Ravi, the brother of Sal Singh, who became her companion in their quest for truth and to hopefully clear Sal’s name.
Who has written ‘A Good Girl’s guide to Murder’?
This book is the debut novel of Holly Jackson. Her first unpublished novel was written at the age of 15.Holly Jackson has an MA in English literature and has studied creative writing and literary linguistics.She currently lives in London.
After the success of ‘The Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’ she further wrote two more books namely “Good Girl Bad Blood” and “As Good As Bad” that are sequels of this bestseller.
My Thoughts about ‘A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’
The Illustrations
The book has maps, diagrams and other such helpful illustrations that give the readers a good understanding of the chain of events and the locations of different places where the plot unfolds.
Cover Page Design
I have to praise the cover page. It has red threads criss-crossing across the book title.The red colour could denote blood or passion.The thread map adds to the appeal of the book.In fact some pages carry the black and white image of the pins on the top corner, which adds to the detective theme of the book.
This book was recommended by one of the fellow book bloggers in The Bookish League Blog Hop hosted by my friend Ritu Bindra and I wished to thank them but unfortunately I forgot who recommended it.
The Unique way of Storytelling
The narration by Holly Jackson adopts a very different approach in the form of a mix of Third person limited pointed of view , in this case from Pip’s point of view, along with Production log entries , Transcripts of Interviews that she conducts through mails or phone or in person, she also includes little maps and sometimes pictures to make the narration come alive and easy to follow.This is a very unique approach that initially made me feel sceptical but within few seconds I loved it – it was like keeping a school practical journal- aim , objective, experiment done, findings of the experiment and deriving conclusions, you remember ?
The Plot
As mentioned previously in this post, the plot is suspenseful and holds the reader’s attention till the very end. For a first book, Holly Jackson has done a brilliant job of storytelling and building the suspense page by page.
The Ending
After being completely hooked for the initial 250 pages or so pages, the last few chapters felt a bit slow to me and I was aching to somehow race to the end and resolve the mystery. The pace slackens with many new clues and details popping up but the plot remains tight and intriguing.I must say for a seasoned and compulsive crime fiction enthusiast, the ending was not something I had imagined.
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You can also visit my Goodreads profile to check out my ratings and reviews of many other books.
I have got this on my tbr for quite sometime now. But after reading your review I think I should pick it out soon. Thanks for this beautifully written review.
Cover design in accordance with the theme is highly appreciable and the imagery should reflect the book’s genre and match the expectations of the target audience. The cover must convey the book’s tone and the emotional journey the reader can expect.
It sounds like a good read, surely going to pick it up. The author seems really talented, having begun writing at the age of 15! And moreover, it’s a thriller, so definitely up my sleeve.
It sounded like a good read but I know what you’re saying. The end is so important when the story starts well and has a good plot. I’ll skip this. Read too many books such as this last year. My brain is already fried.
I like the book, and because of the way you have covered the review, I have included it in my collection for future reading.
I have only heard all good things about this book and have it on my TBR. Now after this post, I will surely get down with it. Thanks for this wonderful review!
Sounds like an intriguing read. Email/chats conversations in a book interest me. And yes, the cover is really captivating.
Lovely review.
Holly Jackson indeed made a splash with her debut novel, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. Her background in English literature and creative writing really shines through in her intricate plotting and engaging prose. The sequels, Good Girl, Bad Blood and As Good as Dead, continue the adventures of the protagonist, adding depth and new twists that keep readers hooked.
Then I should get the sequels too, thanks Jaideep!
5/5 from you clearly indicates that the book is offering something which I will love to read. Thrillers are my weakness and I cant resist myself from picking them. Adding t my TBR for my upcoming read.
I found the ending quite satisfying. This was one of my top thrillers and stand-out reads of ’23. I’ve been itching to get to the other books in the series. Hopefully, should be able to do it soon
Hey there!
I absolutely loved reading your thoughts on “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” by Holly Jackson. It’s clear that you were really drawn into the story and captivated by its unique storytelling approach and suspenseful plot.
I completely agree with you about the illustrations and cover design – they add such an intriguing and immersive element to the book, don’t they? And that mix of storytelling techniques, from third-person narration to production logs and interview transcripts, sounds like such a refreshing and engaging way to experience the story. I also loved the book series
What an interesting plot. I absolutely love reading murder mysteries and this has definitely piqued my interest. I’m adding it right away to my TBR. Thanks for sharing
Now this sounds interesting, and since there are 2 more books in this series, I wonder if she solves the mystery by the end of book 1? I’d love to read your review about the trilogy.
Yes Ishieta, the mystery is solved in book 1. I haven’t read the other books but I gather they might be about other adventures.
That was Charvi’s because I picked it on her recommendation too. I read the audiobook and quite liked it. Haven’t got a chance to read the sequels yet but I hear they are equally good.
As always, a detailed and well-balanced review. Makes you want to go and pick the book.
Ah thanks a lot, I had been scratching my brains trying to remember whose recommendation it was!I didn’t quite like how it ended but the rest of the book was very good, so I might get the sequels.
Thank you for the recommendation. I liked its cover page. I am going to check out this title at our public library. A very well written book review.
The title of the book itself sounds so intriguing and is sure to catch the attention of the reader. The plot too seems interesting and has all the makings of a racy whodunnit. I am sure it is a book one will read in one go.
I have read about this book on book-tok social media posts and was thinking of getting to it. Is this available on KU? This is my preferred genre too, thanks for keeping the review crisp and smart.
Interesting book, i dont usually read murder mysteries, but sometimes when they are really well written i am intrigued to pick it up.. ill check this one out.
This book is truly gaining all eyes for the right reason. I have read the book and agree with your review that many twists in the book skeeps you at the edge of the seat.
This sounds like a gripping page-turner! I’m definitely adding it to my reading list. Starting their writing journey at 15 is incredibly impressive. A thriller? Even better! Can’t wait to dive into it.