My Review of 'A Good Girl's Guide to Murder' by Holly Jackson | Whimsical Soul

⭐2.5 stars

Um...what did I just read?

It was an unrealistic story with a ridiculous ending, like something out of a fever dream, by how outlandish it was. This book had its great moments, several of them really, but the author probably didn't get the memo of how to write a compelling murder mystery with as few plot holes as possible. It was all over the place, and it wasn't easy to keep track of all the clues leaping out of every page. Most of them led nowhere and were just there to confuse the reader and render the story more convoluted and compelling than it was. I wanted to give it a higher rating, but the plot holes and unnecessary twists at every turn annoyed me. It was fascinating to read, but it could've achieved so much more in a better way. Instead of an artful web of complex twists, it weaved a complicated coil of yarn that was exhausting to unwind. Although it did get gritty and suspenseful by the end, and the buildup was unreal, it still fell short. It reminded me of reading Philosopher's Stone for the first time, where everyone suspected Professor Snape, only to find professor Quirrell behind the mysterious door at the end (but not in a good way).




The main characters were endearing. Pip was such a girl boss, and she's right up there with Hermione on my list of most epic girl bosses in the history of girl bosses. She was pretty ballsy in situations that would have scared the shit out of me. Ravi was a cutie and the perfect accomplice for Pip on this journey to finding the truth about what happened to Andie Bell. It took me back to the good old days when I would curl up in my bed with a Nancy Drew or Agatha Christie in hand and read away and how the dark twists would keep me up all night, afraid of even my own shadow.

On the other hand, this book wasn't well executed, and there were too many plot holes that were hard to ignore. However, I still begrudgingly give it 2.5 stars for how engaging the plot was and how my heart raced when Pip found herself in vulnerable situations. But it was darker than I expected. It went from an innocent teenage murder mystery to having a Silence of the Lambs/The Lovely Bones-esque psychopath horror ending.




The author wrote in a way that made it evident from page one who we should be looking at as prime suspects and describing their mannerisms and body language in overt detail so that there was little doubt about their guilt. Pip's constant conjectures about everything she discovered without concrete proof would not have held up if she decided to go to the police. Calling up people and asking questions under the garb of a school project was a stretch, and people not suspecting a thing and just giving off classified information and name-dropping other people was even more of a stretch. Cara not letting Pip go to the police despite her sister being guilty of lying to the police during a murder investigation and Pip relenting to her pleas didn't sit well with me. There's a lot more, but these come to mind right now.

I still recommend it, though. Despite its flaws, it was a compelling read, and I would pick up the subsequent books in the series. I can't wait to read what other storm Pip cooks up.

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