Holy cannoli it has been a long time since I’ve read a murder mystery book as artfully plotted out as this one. While there were a few minor bumps in terms of plot, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel.

First off, Pip is an amazing character. She is quirky, sometimes annoying, but overall, she is real. Not real in terms of “based on a true story” real, but real in the way that she has been so carefully developed, so wonderfully drawn out that there is no way the reader could ever think of her as anything other than real.

Second, this plot will have you spinning. Spinning in the mind-numbingly complex way. It is so intricate that I remember thinking back to earlier parts in the novel and having that “aha” moment when something I thought was irrelevant tied together.

Spoilers ahead.

Okay, so on to what threw me off in this novel. Finding out that Elliot Ward had killed Sal was kind of… odd? He definitely did not seem like the type. Not only that, but to find out that Mr. Ward was harboring a girl who resembled Andie Bell because he seriously thought it was her makes him very deranged. It didn’t at all seem to fit to me. However, when it came to finding out that Becca Bell had accidentally killed her sister, it made so much more sense. Especially after all the things Andie had done that had hurt Becca in one way or another (don’t even get me started on the date-rape drugs).

My verdict is that this is the perfect novel for those of us who love murder mysteries (I’m raising my hand very high), and even for those who don’t particularly like that genre. It is such a well-crafted novel with wonderful characters that it would make any true reader fall in love. I’ve read a lot of murder mysteries in YA and I do think that this one has become my favorite. Thank you, Holly Jackson for delivering this gem to the world. 

If you enjoyed A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, definitely go check out the second book in the series, Good Girl, Bad Blood!

Source: Personal Copy