I’ve said it before, but this year I really want to starting reading more books out of my comfort zone. Or really just books outside of the usual fantasy and contemporary books that I normally read. There’s nothing wrong with those, but I’ve noticed I really enjoy other genres as well. So I decided to give A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder a go and I wasn’t disappointed! Keep on reading for my full review.

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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 murder, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn't so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final year 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?

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A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, #1) by Holly Jackson
Published by Electric Monkey on 02/05/2019
Genres: Mystery
Pages: 433
Goodreads

Review

When I started this book, I knew I was in for a mystery, but I didn’t know how good it would really be. I picked up A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder and couldn’t put it down. The story has the perfect pacing, the writing flows well and add the documents our main characters uses and writes to solve this mystery really made me feel like I was helping along. I’m always a fan when a story adds those extra elements to bring the book to life.

Our main character Pippa needs to do a school project and wants to look into the missing case of Andie Bell. She’s presumed dead and they’re sure Sal Singh is the guilty one. He committed suicide and had a text message sent confessing the crime. This doesn’t seem right to Pippa, so she’s determined to figure out what really happened.

“Pip wished she was strong enough, but she’d learned that she wasn’t invincible; she too could break.”

Pippa was a really interesting character. I loved how determined she was. And definitely stubborn (even though she could go a bit more at times). She really just wants justice and I love how caring she is. While part of me thinks she naive for ignoring the threats she got for so long, I understand her wanting to protect the case and the people she loves.

Ravi was a character that became a pleasant surprise. At first he is really skeptical, but he will do anything to prove his brother’s innocence. I really enjoyed his character and how he influenced Pippa. Also, it surprise me by how neutral he was in some ways even though it has to do with his brother. In the end, he wants justice, but doesn’t want anyone else hurt.

“The people you love weren’t algebra: to be calculated, subtracted, or held at arm’s length across a decimal point.”

In this mystery, some things are predictable. Especially the threats she gets and how it’s clear someone doesn’t want Pippa digging around. On the other hand, there were also a lot of twists. Andie Bell wasn’t all she said she was and she definitely had secrets of her own. Every time I though I knew what was going on something would change. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder had me on the edge of my seat until the very end. While some things didn’t make sense to me at the end, I am definitely happy I picked this up. I’m a happy reader knowing there will be three more books in this series.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder was a pleasant surprise. I was lucky to actually read this right before the release of the sequel, Good Girl, Bad Blood. I can’t wait to dive in the next installment of this series. If you’ve read this book, I’d love to know what you think. Let me know in the comments! Also, if you have any other mysteries you loved, feel free to let me know as well.