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A Good Girl's Guide to Murder #1

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

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THE MUST-READ MULTIMILLION BESTSELLING MYSTERY SERIES ? Everyone is talking about A Good Girl's Guide to Murder ! With shades of Serial and Making a Murderer this is the story about an investigation turned obsession, full of twists and turns and with an ending you'll never expect.

Everyone in Fairview knows the story.

Pretty and popular high school senior Andie Bell was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal Singh, who then killed himself. It was all anyone could talk about. And five years later, Pip sees how the tragedy still haunts her town.

But she can't shake the feeling that there was more to what happened that day. She knew Sal when she was a child, and he was always so kind to her. How could he possibly have been a killer?

Now a senior herself, Pip decides to reexamine the closed case for her final project, at first just to cast doubt on the original investigation. But soon she discovers a trail of dark secrets that might actually prove Sal innocent . . . and the line between past and present begins to blur. Someone in Fairview doesn't want Pip digging around for answers, and now her own life might be in danger.


And don't miss the sequel, Good Girl, Bad Blood!

389 pages, Paperback

First published May 2, 2019

64.1k people are currently reading
1m people want to read

About the author

Holly Jackson

26?books64k?followers
Holly Jackson was born in 1992. She grew up in Buckinghamshire and started writing stories from a young age, completing her first (poor) attempt at a book aged fifteen.

'A Good Girl's Guide to Murder' is a YA Mystery Thriller and her debut novel. She lives in London and aside from reading and writing, she enjoys binge-playing video games and pointing out grammatical errors in street signs.

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Profile Image for Nilufer Ozmekik.
2,900 reviews56.8k followers
February 19, 2025
Yesss! The BBC series adaptation is announced to be released on Netflix on August 1st! It¡¯s a date! Cannot wait!

Applause! Applause! Applause! This book offered one of the quickest and most exhilarating roller coaster experiences the moment I laid my hands on it. I¡¯m still shaky, incoherent (I¡¯ve even requested a translator to articulate my thoughts properly), my nails have seen better days, and I¡¯m both confused and dizzy. But I¡¯m also smiling and filled with happiness! I wholeheartedly give it a perfect five out of five mysterious shining stars!

The storytelling is exceptional, the plot keeps you hooked, the character development is fantastic, the pacing is fast and heart-pounding, and the ending is immensely satisfying. What are you waiting for, folks? This book won¡¯t just fall from the sky into your lap. Go ahead, buy it, and send me thank-you letters for my encouraging words!

We have an incredible heroine in Pippa (don¡¯t mistake her for Pippi Longstocking). Fitz-Amobi is a talented, smart, nerdy, funny, social, friendly, brave investigator who stands somewhere between Nancy Drew and Veronica Mars, a slightly older version of Harriet Walsh, possessing technical skills but without tattoos, leather, or chains, a more restrained version of Lisbeth Salander, and a younger version of Dana Scully without Mulder and alien conspiracies!

The blurb is tempting, intriguing, and immediately pulls you in, making it hard to let go of the book, as I found out. My dogs are even jealous of the book, barking at the moon in protest, but I couldn¡¯t put it down, as it¡¯s one of those books that grabs you from the very first page.

Five years ago, Andie Bell went missing, and Sal Singh, who committed suicide after confessing to her murder in a text message, was presumed responsible. Yet Andie¡¯s body was never found. The case was closed, but Pippa is determined to reopen it for her school project. She starts by interviewing Sal¡¯s 20-year-old brother, Ravi, who naturally becomes her partner in crime. Their project evolves into a mission to prove Sal¡¯s innocence and find out who might have really killed Andie.

As they dig deeper, Pippa¡¯s list of people of interest grows longer, even including her best friend¡¯s sister.

There are numerous burning questions in your mind: Who truly killed Andie? Is Andie really dead? Did she deserve her fate? Because as we learn more about her, we discover she was a bully, a drama queen, a drug dealer, and a blackmailer. Her less-than-stellar attributes made me want to give her a piece of my mind. It¡¯s strange because I¡¯ve never felt the urge to confront a presumed dead person¡ªor someone I¡¯m not even sure is deceased! But this character is a living, breathing (or not) scoundrel!

Who framed Sal? Did Sal actually do it? His portrayal as a nice, humble, angelic guy led me to nickname him Castiel, like the angel from ¡®Supernatural.¡¯ But we can sense he¡¯s been hiding something. His friends changed their testimonies regarding his whereabouts and the time he left their gathering, refusing to be his alibis. So where was he at the time of the murder?

Who was sending threatening messages to Pippa, trying to stop her investigation?

I devoured this book, and my detective skills failed me completely until the final pages. The author always stayed ten steps ahead of me! I feel blessed to be outsmarted by her brilliant writing. I can already picture this as an amazing YA mystery movie or a limited Netflix series (anything to replace the third season of ¡®13 Reasons Why,¡¯ which might as well be titled ¡®13 Reasons Why Did You Even Make a Third Season?¡¯).

It was an emotional, enjoyable, nail-biting, mind-bending, thrilling, and ultimately satisfying read. I savored every page, every clue, and every heart-pounding moment of this book. I highly recommend it! It¡¯s even better than ¡®One of Us Is Lying.¡¯

And the best news is there are three more sequels to look forward to! I¡¯ve already started my excitement dance, which is a blend of Beyonc¨¦¡¯s ¡®All the Single Ladies¡¯ moves and John Travolta¡¯s ¡®Staying Alive¡¯ grooves. Yay!




Profile Image for megs_bookrack.
2,038 reviews13.2k followers
January 1, 2025
You heard it here first, folks. I have found a new favorite YA Thriller. I am stoked by how much I loved this!!



For her Senior Capstone Project, Pippa Fitz-Amboi, an extraordinarily-focused high school girl, decides to solve a murder.



Andie Bell, disappeared five years ago from Pippa's hometown; foul play was suspected.

The police, and thus everyone else, believe Andie was murdered by her boyfriend at the time, Sal Singh, who subsequently disposed of the body.



Their biggest piece of evidence, a purported confession Sal texted his parents, days after Andie disappeared. This confession was sent just prior to Sal's death, an apparent suicide.

In spite of this, Pippa does not believe in Sal's guilt. Andie's body was never recovered and there is no real physical evidence linking him to her disappearance.



Pippa is such a great character. She's an overachiever, who works tirelessly towards achieving her goals.

You can tell, once she sets her sights on something, she will not give up and that's exactly how she tackles her Senior project.



I think one of the things that connected me so much to this story was Pippa. I found her super relatable and loved reading from her perspective.

She ends up befriending Sal's younger brother, Ravi. That additional commitment to him, and clearing Sal's name, makes Pippa even more steadfast; in spite of very real danger.



Additionally, the format of this was creative and engaging. The use of mixed media sources, including the transcripts for the interviews from Pippa's investigation, and a present day narrative, made me feel like I was a part of the action.

As Pippa is evaluating what she has learned along the way, she recaps things, as you actually would if you were working on this type of project; including a running list of current suspects tracked on her murder-board.



The stakes were high and there were times Pippa was legitimately in very real danger. Through it all, she stayed true to herself and fought for justice for Andie and Sal.

I loved this so much, as I said. I could go on for many more paragraphs of all the positive attributes of this story, but don't just take my word for it, PICK THIS UP!!!



If you love it even half as much as I did, you're in for a good time! Well done by Holly Jackson. I am so excited to get more mysteries from her!!!
Profile Image for Yun.
600 reviews32.7k followers
February 9, 2025
"Who do you think I am, an amateur?"

Move aside, Nancy Drew! There's a new teen detective in town. And she won't rest until she's unearthed all your secrets and gotten to the bottom of a mystery that has long held her town captive.

Pip never truly believed what all of Fairview has accepted: that Sal Singh murdered his beautiful and popular girlfriend Andie Bell and then killed himself. Five years later, Pip is a senior in high school, and decides for her final project that she's going to find out once and for all what really happened that night.

I'm always in the mood for a good whodunnit. Give me a small group of suspects, everyone hiding secrets, more twists and turns than you can shake a stick at, and red herrings galore, and I'm in heaven. I loved putting on my detective cap and puzzling out the clues alongside Pip as she investigates and solves this mystery.

For me, in order for a mystery to be successful, it has to be so riveting that there is no room for me to think. Once my mind gets going, it has this annoying habit of supplying me with random unsolicited guesses, some of which inevitably turn out to be right, and ruining the surprises. So it's best if I'm so taken with the story that I'm only surfacing to turn the pages as fast as I can. And this story was exactly that.

I grew up on Nancy Drew, and have been looking for an older version of that for as long as I've outgrown it. And how wonderful that this story turned out to be all that I've been looking for and more. Pip is clever, spunky, and fearless, the perfect teen detective staring down secrets and murderers. And the fact that this is a series means I won't have to say goodbye to her just yet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
See also, my thoughts on:
#2. Good Girl, Bad Blood
#3. As Good As Dead
~~~~~~~~~~~~

? Connect with me ? ?
Profile Image for franzi.
719 reviews231 followers
April 15, 2021
Rating: 1 star.

Genuinely asking myself why I read this. This book had it all - bad writing, a completely unrealistic plot, white savior trope, "I'm not like other girls", and probably the most annoying main character I have ever read about.
For some reason, this teenager is allowed to start a massive murder investigation, where every possible witness tells her everything without her having to work for it, and - of course - she ends up doing what the police couldn't. The whole premise was just so unrealistic and unbelievable that I was annoyed from the very first page.
The mystery itself was also barely a mystery at all, the pacing was off, things made no sense and everything was terribly convenient. Pip kept making random decisions and suspect basically everyone until she finally guessed the right person. At that point in the book, I was just counting down how many pages I still had to suffer through.
Pip had no personality traits aside from her constant need to save everyone because she was such a good person and better than everyone else, which the reader was reminded of every second page. It's never explained why any of these people talk to Pip and basically tell her their entire life stories, or even why she cares enough to launch this entire investigation. Her character has no development and at the end of the novel, she's still exactly as annoying as she was on the very first page.
I wish I hadn't read this, it clearly wasn't for me and a massive waste of time.
Profile Image for emma.
2,402 reviews83.6k followers
April 5, 2024
can i sit at the cool kids table?

i enjoyed a popular book. i think i'm well past due my invite at this point.

this is a fun book that is sometimes really repetitive and sometimes really boring and only has half of a satisfying ending, and yet it's still a quick read.

that is literally all i expect or desire from a popular YA mystery.

bottom line: i'm going to read every book in this series until i ruin it for myself <3
Profile Image for Emily (Books with Emily Fox on Youtube).
628 reviews69.2k followers
November 8, 2022
This was good but just good.

I think I'm getting too old to suspend my disbelief. The MC puts herself in so much danger by meeting up potential murderers, known drug dealers, etc. Everyone tells her so much personal information just like that... not for me.

Won't be continuing the series but the ending was good!
Profile Image for charly (normalreaders).
147 reviews265 followers
April 27, 2022
From the moment she said ¡°holy pepperoni¡±, I realised i was too old to be reading this book
1 review16 followers
June 29, 2021
I made a goodreads account just so I could give this book one star.
Profile Image for Chelsea Humphrey.
1,487 reviews82.6k followers
September 7, 2022
Surprise! I was asked to write the recommendation for this story on the Book of the Month website, and I'm thrilled to finally be able to share it with you as it's live on the site. If you'd like to go directly to the page, you can click , just keep scrolling below if you are outside of the US and not a subscriber.

As a reader who developed her book obsession by devouring every Nancy Drew installment in elementary school, I've been an avid enthusiast of YA crime fiction for most of my life. I cannot resist a good mystery, and am always on the hunt for the next "it" book in the genre. I'm a busy mom of two, so it is rare for me to find a book so special that I can finish it in two sittings, but that's exactly what I found with A Good Girl's Guide to Murder.

Pippa Fitz-Amobi is a true crime loving teen who aspires to become a top-notch journalist one day. So naturally, she decides to focus her senior capstone project on her small town's most buzz-worthy, unsolved crime: the murder of Andie Bell. What begins as a simple proposal quickly turns into an in-depth investigation full of unexpected twists and turns. After teaming up with the alleged murderer's brother, the pair spiral into a web of danger and obsession, and quickly wonder if they've gotten themselves in too deep.

This debut reads as if you are investigating alongside the main characters, and fans of true crime podcasts will rejoice in the multimedia formatting that so wittily engages the reader from beginning to end. If you enjoy a grounded, engaging mystery that features a diverse cast, discussions surrounding racial injustice, and the importance of found family, I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Whether you are aged 13 or 102, this book is for you!

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
Profile Image for Jesse (JesseTheReader).
569 reviews182k followers
February 4, 2023
(3.5) I enjoyed this more than I was expecting to! Albeit it is filled with cliches, but the author manages to make it a thrilling story with lots of tension and excellent pacing. I'll definitely be picking up the next books in the series!
Profile Image for ELLIAS (elliasreads).
512 reviews41.2k followers
May 7, 2022
WHAT THE¡­.???!!

Hell no.
Did I even read the same book as everyone else??

Apparently TF not!! The way I pulled an all nighter finishing this I¡ª

Full review here:

1.5 STARS
Profile Image for SK.
488 reviews10k followers
August 16, 2023
3.5 stars
Was it enjoyable? Yes
Is it binge worthy? Yep
Was I amazed? No, not really
Now now, before anyone gets triggered.. Here me out I got my reasons ?

So I had a lot of fun reading it, the mystery surrounding Angie and Sal was really awesome. Pip and Ravi are likable characters and with intriguing personalities. The amount of work Pip put in to unravel the mystery was commendable and it's all for a school project ?

It's a well written and extremely well thought out book, no doubt, so kudos to the author there. Also the way she exposed racism via characters like Stanley is something I really liked. Let's be honest, people like him still exist. That was the only part in the book where the author was realistic...

Cmon you expect me to believe a school girl solved this murder case when the big guys police, detectives can't do shit. I get there can be some sort of corruption involved in cases but no way a school kid is solving a murder that complicated without the consistent assistance of someone with experience. I don't care how intelligent Pip was, it's just extremely unrealistic.
Also, it was kind of a bummer that Ravi didn't get that much of time in the book. I wanted to see him involved more often.

Don't even get me started on the dog. The last 100 pages were really wild. So much happened, so many exposed and new questions arising. Am keen on starting with the next book already.

It's definitely worth checking out but it's not anything special. Maybe the expectations got to me but I would suggest to anyone who reads this for the first time- go in with lowered expectations. I personally believe that Five Survive was the better book.

~?~?~
Y'all.. Am gonna do it? Really hope it's worth the hype
Profile Image for Tatiana.
1,488 reviews11.3k followers
May 15, 2020
Well, it appears, I've been reading YA mysteries all wrong these past years. Evidently, I should not expect plausibility, believability, character development or strong motivations in these books, like I do when reading adult mysteries. No wonder there is only ONE teen mystery that I think is good, and actual teens don't even like reading it, from what I hear. (It's in case you were wondering).

starts off as a Serial rip-off, with upstanding Pippa swooping in Sarah Koenig-like to clear the name of a poor brown guy accused of the murder of a popular girl whose body remains missing. You see, it's only Pippa who believes in Sal's innocence, and she will save the day, because she is a GOOD GIRL and Sal was once nice to her years ago! I was already annoyed at that point.

However, from there this story devolves into a sleuthing adventure where Pippa manages to have every Tom, Dick and Harry confess all their misdoings to her, because PIPPA IS WRITING A SCHOOL PAPER ABOUT THE MURDER. She catphishes people, breaks into houses, blackmails drug dealers, discovers 5-year old evidence in plain view, because she is just so much better than the police at everything. I can understand why police wouldn't care to pursue a case of a variety, but a suicide and a presumed murder? And the victim is still missing and nobody but Pippa cares? Have you heard of Natalie Halloway? She disappeared 15 years ago, and she is still on TV. The whole investigation was one giant eyeroll for me.

Anyway, to put it short, this book has nothing that I look for in a mystery. I am not reading any more YA mysteries if suspending disbelief entirely is the main requirement to get through them. I am just going to stick with Courtney Summers from now on. Thankfully she has another one coming out next year, and it's about cults!

22 reviews2 followers
March 3, 2020
I found out that the dog died and decided that I didn¡¯t need to finish this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for chan ¡î.
1,240 reviews58.5k followers
January 29, 2023
this was an exceptionally good mystery, YA or otherwise. action packed, clues on every page. fun characters to root for. good red herrings. deserving of the hype and imo far better than other similar books (*cough, Truly Devious*)
Profile Image for Lisa of Troy.
842 reviews7,248 followers
August 13, 2024
The dad wouldn¡¯t allow boys in the bedroom but was fully OK with Pip going on unsupervised co-ed sleepovers¡­¡­.

The best audiobook of the year! Not only is this the best mystery of the year, the audiobook had a full cast. When Pip interviewed suspects or witnesses, it sounded like an old-time tape recorder.

Secrets abound in this novel! A Good Girl¡¯s Guide to Murder is page-turning and riveting. This book reminds me of back in the day when Riley Sager wrote great novels.

The ending was fully satisfying and one that I did not expect.

Do you ever wish you could read a book again for the first time? Yep. That's me and this book.

2025 Reading Schedule
Jan A Town Like Alice
Feb Birdsong
Mar Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Berniere
Apr War and Peace
May The Woman in White
Jun Atonement
Jul The Shadow of the Wind
Aug Jude the Obscure
Sep Ulysses
Oct Vanity Fair
Nov A Fine Balance
Dec Germinal

Connect With Me!
Profile Image for Avery.
255 reviews907 followers
March 8, 2024
¡°But sometimes remembering isn¡¯t for yourself, sometimes you do it just to make someone else smile. Those lies were allowed.¡±

I LOVE THIS SERIES SO MUCH ?

I had the sudden urge to reread this series after reading a different murder mystery book and realizing that I am so good at reading those types of books quickly, so I was hoping and praying that they would get me out of my terrible reading slump, and since I just reread this entire series, I'm really hoping it worked ??

This is also such a good series to reread if you first read it a long time ago, because going into this I remembered nothing except for the basics and who the murderer was, but it was almost like reading it for the first time all over again which is such a good experience.

¡ã? ? ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C? ?¡ã
The Plot

All of Holly Jackson's books have wild plots ? even in this reread I was gasping and feeling so confused and then almost crying.

Murder mysteries always have a way of making me super stressed or tense or nervous but this trilogy is something else when it comes to that, there's just this certain undertone to them that make me so wrapped into the story-line that I forget about the real world and literally everything spooks me ?

I love that this book isn't super predictable. During my first read I was so confused, but I had so many guesses as to who the murderer was, or who any other suspects for any of the other small plot-lines were, but I never guessed who it was, which is always a good feeling. Though I get a good feeling when I get it right too, so either way, it'd have been great ?

Still never getting past a certain event in this book. That scene has always stuck with me ?

¡°Pip wished she was strong enough, but she¡¯d learned that she wasn¡¯t invincible; she too could break.¡±

¡ã? ? ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C? ?¡ã
The Characters

I know that we only really begin to see it in this book but Pip is an actual like psychotic genius or something. She is so smart and such a good detective, and she can solve mysteries in the amount of time that it would take for me to even start collecting the clues. Excluding that, she is also just such a relatable character, like if you disregard the fact that she solves murders and stuff then she's just a normal, relatable teenage girl! ??¡â??¡â way better than me though, I wish I was more like Pip (only in this one though) she's also like crazy brave, I would not be able to do ANY of the things she did.

Ravi is my KING. I've always loved him, he's just so adorable and friendly and EVERYTHING. He's so loyal and seeing him try so hard to prove his brother's innocence is just so amazing, just showcasing his determination and passion. I also ADORE the fact that he's not afraid to show his emotions; like I've read a lot of books about stone-cold guys who don't show emotions, like their grumpy and blah blah blah but Ravi is definitely not the grumpy one, I'd say Pip is more of the grumpy one if that's the case, but Ravi tries hard to be sunshine and rainbows and I love it ??

FUCK MAX HASTINGS

I love Pip's friends (except for two people), they're just so fun and have a wide range of personalities ?

Yeah I didn't really care for them much, except I did really love Cara.

¡°They were each other¡¯s crutch to lean on when life got too much to carry alone.¡±

¡ã? ? ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C? ?¡ã
The Relationships

Now, there wasn't really much of a romance but it's kinda quite obvious where one "friendship" is headed, so you've been warned if you don't wanna see.

I loved Pip's relationship with her family, it felt real and authentic, and they were all so cute, as well as her friendships, they were all just so loyal.

All of those are insignificant in comparison to Team Pip and Ravi, my dream team. They mesh so well together that it's actually insane. They are the ONLY romance I have ever accepted in murder mysteries, which is saying a lot because I actually despise despise despise romances in murder mysteries, so these two are waaay up on a pedestal that even I can't reach right now.

Also, the nickname Sarge is the cutest thing ever.

¡°We¡¯re a team, remember. You and me.¡±

AH

¡ã? ? ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C? ?¡ã
Overall, this was probably the last time I can ever read this book "for the first time" because I usually remember everything after the second read, which is unfortunate, but whatever

I LOVE THIS SERIES SO MUCH

5 stars

(note: and if this stupid show isn't available in the US I'm gonna scream my head off.)

¡°Maybe laughter was one of the very first things you lost after something like that.¡±

<><><><><><><>
reread

either Pip is some sort of genius or the cops in that town are actual idiots. i think it's both

anyways i'm on a roll, two books in one week is great for someone who hasn't read since december AND i read this in 2 days

rtc ?

<><><><><><><>
Y'ALL I HEARD THEY'RE MAKING A SHOW OUT OF THIS, THIS BETTER NOT BE A JOKE AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I NEED PIP AND RAVI HELP

<><><><><><><>
Holy cow, I did not expect that ending. I definitely did not guess the murderer, nor did I guess literally anything in this book. I really enjoyed the plot and the murder mystery aspects of it. Great book, and I cannot wait till I get my hands on the next books in this series!
Profile Image for Jen.
85 reviews6 followers
May 5, 2021
I¡¯m very concerned for this author, it appears they have never once met a real human being in their life¡­..
Profile Image for ?  ?  ale   ? ??¡ã.
492 reviews2,884 followers
June 29, 2023
time to reread, maybe? we'll see.


4.75 stars.

¡°Pip wished she was strong enough, but she¡¯d learned that she wasn¡¯t invincible; she too could break.¡±


tw: mention of rape, death of an animal, kidnapping, death, drugs.

Notes.
1. If you haven't read the book and don't want to spoil yourself, I recommend that you don't read any further.
2. The spoilers section, and possible random spoilers, will be signposted to avoid any misunderstandings.

I must admit that this is my first thriller book, so I'm not very familiar with the genre, and now I want to read more. And it's also one of the first I've read entirely in English, and as you know that Spanish is my native language, I assume you'll know that it was a bit complex. Although, I'm adapting a bit more to reading in English. Wish me luck, folks.

In A Good Girl's Guide to Murder we follow Pippa Fitz-Amobi, a 17-year-old student whose final year project is the case of Andie Bell, who was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal Singh and taken for granted by the police. But Pippa knows Sal is innocent, so she decides to find out what happened five years ago and who really killed Andie Bell.

Pippa discovers that Andie had many secrets, that she was not the beautiful and tragic victim that the people of Little Kilton martyred and idolised, branding Sal Singh a murderer and a monster, treating his family very badly for it. In addition, Little Kilton holds even more secrets that intrigue Pip and make her want to keep digging to solve the mystery.

Writing.
I don't think I remember reading a book like this, with diary-like entries speaking in first person and then in third person. It was a bit strange, if I'm honest, and it took me a bit longer to adjust. However, it was an easy read in some respects. And, I don't know if it's because of the difference between British and American English, but there were phrases that I had to look up because I didn't understand them, lmao.

Plot.
The plot kept me glued in my seat, not wanting to put my phone down, wanting to know what would happen next. I mention that I was late with this book because college is eating me alive, though I made time to keep reading because I was consumed with thoughts of not knowing what would happen, who the killer would be and if Pip was going to find out. There are a lot of plot twists that I wasn't expecting and a lot of things that made my brain almost melt from thinking about it so much.

Pacing.
It was a quick and light read, and I take back that I was late because of college: I would have finished it sooner if it weren't for homework. It's not that complicated to understand and the pages turn very quickly.

Characters.
Pip is a good girl, addicted to homework and determined to solve the Andie Bell case and prove that Sal Singh is innocent at all costs. So eager is she to find out what really happened, that she finds herself lying to others so that they won't worry about her and try to stop her from abandoning her project.

Ravi is the younger brother of Sal Singh. He has been the target of criticism, and is known as the brother of Andie Bell's killer. Ravi knows his brother is innocent, and when Pip shows up at his door asking him a few questions, he thinks it's a joke. And soon, Ravi becomes Pip's partner in crime, both looking for answers about his brother's sudden death and his innocence in the case. Ravi is a beautiful little baby, don't touch him I want to take care of him.

Also, Ravi: marry me.

Andie was a bitch and it doesn't surprise me much that bad things happened to her. Everyone held her in such high regard, believing she was a good girl whose boyfriend murdered her. Andie ruined several people's lives, and although I thought I would feel bad that she had died, I didn't really. When you find out the truth about Andie Bell, what she did and didn't do, you don't feel any empathy for her.

Cara is Pip's best friend, her older sister is Naomi, who was in turn Sal's best friend and who also keeps a big secret that makes Pip dig very closely into her and her life, including her family.
(Bonus and unnecessary fact: Cara translates from Spanish to English as: 'face' and 'expensive'. Unnecessary examples: Su cara es hermosa= her face is beautiful. La camisa es cara= the shirt is expensive.) Follow me for more unnecessary Spanish classes, they are free of charge.

Pip's family is ok. They're the typical caring and normal family. Tho I loved Vic's jokes, jsjsjs he laughing at his own jokes (just as Ravi) is totally me.

Max Hastings can die and I wouldn't care for him. He deserves the shit going on in his life. He's a dick and you can easily see it. Please, go fuck yourself, you fucking bastard. ???


????????oK, PEOPLE, SPOILER SECTION. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.????????

Tho I loved this book, I really enjoyed and liked it a lot, there were many ??? things that left me with a bitter taste on my mouth.

First of all, Pip felt a little bit dry and typical. She's a good girl who starts to lie for her project and she doesn't feel the same anymore. I mean, idk, I can't put it into words, I just hope she felt more real and not flat.

Second, how quick all of the possible suspects told Pip the truth, when they lied to the police or omitted information. I found it quite unbelievable and a little bit ilogic. Also, Mr. Ward confessed really quick and it felt dry... I don't quite know how to explain it, but I was expecting more. Becca Bell also confessed really quick, and spilled her secrets out as she were talking about the weather, which also felt a little bit bitter.

aND THE FINAL STRAW: BARNEY. NO. NO. NO. NOT MY BABY BARNEY. HE WAS AN ANGEL AND I WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HIM WITH LOVE. LEANNE CRYING OVER THE CHRISTMAS' VIDEO OF BARNEY GIVING EVERYONE A SHOE BROKE ME DOWN. I WILL NEVER FORGIVE THIS!!!

???????? End of the spoiler section????????

In summary, I really liked this book, was a quick reading and many plots got me hanging of the cliff. This is a "you must read" book.

My mood during the last chapters:
description

description
Profile Image for Claudia Lomel¨ª.
Author?10 books84.4k followers
February 27, 2022
Hoy tengo ganas de escribir en GR, as¨ª que dar¨¦ mi breve opini¨®n de este libro.

?La verdad es que me gust¨® bastante! Ustedes saben que llevo tiempo interesada en leer thrillers y este me lo hab¨ªan recomendado un mont¨®n, luego vi las rese?as y termin¨¦ por convencerme, ?no me arrepiento!

Pippa, la protagonista, es un ser f¨¢cil de querer, jajaja. S¨ª siento que a veces era demasiado impulsiva y no med¨ªa las consecuencias de sus actos, pero a¨²n as¨ª solo quer¨ªa que todo le saliera bien. No s¨¦, como protagonista me pareci¨® din¨¢mica y divertida y carism¨¢tica, en ning¨²n momento me cans¨¦ de seguirla en su investigaci¨®n :). DIGO, s¨ª llegu¨¦ a pensar que estaba llevando las cosas muy lejos, pero se me hizo un personaje tan bien construido, que sus acciones ten¨ªan sentido (tipo de: "?eso es tan Pippa!").

AWWW, adem¨¢s no me esperaba al inter¨¦s amoroso y, aunque la historia no se centra para nada en el romance, se me hizo una parejita s¨²per bonita AND I WAS ROOTING FOR THEM.

El elemento principal de la historia es el misterio y est¨¢ s¨²per bien llevado. El libro te atrapa desde el primer momento y es imposible de soltar. Adem¨¢s, a m¨ª me pareci¨® poco predecible. Ten¨ªamos a varios sospechosos y TODOS POD?AN SER CULPABLES. Todos ten¨ªan sus razones muy fuertes. ?Y adivinen qu¨¦? Obviamente no le atin¨¦, jajajaja.

Eso s¨ª, no s¨¦ si continuar con la trilog¨ªa porque creo que este libro termin¨® muy bien as¨ª. Pero qui¨¦n sabe, no estoy cerrada a las posibilidades.
Profile Image for jessica.
2,627 reviews46.6k followers
December 14, 2020
this story is giving off such strong ¡®serial¡¯ vibes that i can only imagine how amazing listening to the audiobook version would have been.

a re-investigation of a cold case, including detailed diagrams and evidence files, with a really interesting mystery and suspects - what more could you want? this is every true crime enthusiasts dream story.

the one thing preventing me from giving this five stars is the same thing i tend to find obnoxious about most YA mystery/thrillers - the need to include every crime imaginable. this murder revolves around and a lot more. by the end of the story, its just too farfetched to be realistically believable. such a shame.

but overall, this story is solidly entertaining, one that i would have absolutely no problem recommending to people. now excuse me while i go redownload the entire first season of ¡®serial¡¯ to listen to again.

? 4 stars
Profile Image for kendyl ???? .
194 reviews4,490 followers
Want to read
July 10, 2024
?07/09/24
i¡¯m honestly drowning in pain reading boys of tommen so i just need a little break?a big thanks to my brother for gifting me this series???i better love this?
Profile Image for Josu Diamond.
Author?9 books33.4k followers
July 11, 2020
OMG QU? WHAT WOW.

Ten¨ªa ganas de leer este libro desde hac¨ªa tiempo. No es que hubiera le¨ªdo muchas rese?as positivas ni nada por el estilo, pero me daba esa sensaci¨®n misteriosa que algunos libros te dan y sabes que necesitas leerlo y que te va a gustar. Sab¨¦is a lo que me refiero, ?no?

En Asesinato para principiantes tenemos una trama que sinceramente me ha sorprendido muy positivamente. Los thrillers juveniles de este estilo, a lo Natasha Preston o incluso Sara Shepard, suelen quedarse a veces un poco en la superficie de todo. Bueno, quiz¨¢ no es la superficie, pero s¨ª que me suele faltar un poco que me construyan mejor todo. Y es que Holly Jackson no escatima en detalles.

description

A ver, el libro te agarra desde el primer momento. Yo normalmente leo el primer cap¨ªtulo de un libro para decidir si va a ser mi pr¨®xima lectura o no, y en este caso es que llevaba p¨¢gina y media y dije pOR DIOS, S?, ESTO TIENE QUE SER M?O. El estilo de la autora hace que te introduzcas de lleno en la historia, y lo mejor de todo, es que no es solo un thriller.

Para que un libro de estas caracter¨ªsticas funcione, o por lo menos para m¨ª es esencial, tiene que tener una buena protagonista con la que conecte, entienda y quiera luchar por ella. Pip es as¨ª. La construcci¨®n del personaje no es algo accesorio, al contrario. Holly Jackson se centra bastante en tener una protagonista muy definida, conociendo detalles de su vida privada, relaciones con amigos y dem¨¢s. No hace que el ritmo del libro baje y no hace tampoco que te impacientes para descubrir qu¨¦ est¨¢ pasando en el pueblo. La manera en la que Jackson maneja el espacio entre escenas me ha gustado mucho.

No es muy normal para m¨ª ponerle 5 estrellas a un libro de este g¨¦nero. No s¨¦ por qu¨¦, la verdad, pero puedo recordar pocas ocasiones donde un thriller me haya volado la cabeza tant¨ªsimo. Pero es que en Asesinato para principiantes tenemos una historia que est¨¢ perfectamente hilada, que se desarrolla lentamente pero con decenas de giros, y que te atrapa cada vez m¨¢s porque se va convirtiendo en una locura cada vez m¨¢s incre¨ªble.

description

De hecho, le han visto el incre¨ªble potencial que tiene y los derechos audiovisuales han sido comprados. Esperemos que la cosa fluya y tengamos a Pippa y Ravi en la gran (o peque?a) pantalla, porque de verdad, este libro es incre¨ªble.

Tenemos toda la trama de misterio, sobre qu¨¦ pas¨® con Addie Bell y Sal Singh, cuyas averiguaciones van poni¨¦ndote los pelos de punta cada vez m¨¢s. Los m¨¦todos para descubrir mentiras o verdades a medias de Pip son de aplaudir, porque es una chica muy inteligente y que no le tiene miedo a nada: tan solo persigue la verdad y la justicia.

Una de mis cosas favoritas del libro es lo woke que es la autora. Pippa tiene un padrastro -al que llama padre- de origen nigeriano, su nuevo mejor amigo es indio y una de sus amigas es lesbiana. Y dir¨¢s: ¡°?pero la protagonista sigue siendo blanca! ?Es una privilegiada!¡± Y as¨ª es. Y, de hecho, es tan as¨ª que hasta ella misma lo dice. Hay situaciones de racismo en el libro en las que Pippa habla sobre tener privilegios por ser blanca, sobre c¨®mo puede tener actitudes racistas pese a haberse criado con un padre negro¡­ Me ha encantado que en un libro de misterio aparentemente solo de eso, se debatan o comenten este tipo de temas sociales. Tambi¨¦n se habla de machismo, abusos sexuales¡­ En general, es un libro con temas de actualidad, y quiz¨¢ la excusa para tratarlos es el misterio. (Aunque tampoco es que la cr¨ªtica sea una pieza central, no nos confundamos.)

description

Sin embargo, con lo que m¨¢s me quedo de Asesinato para principiantes es con la pedazo de trama de Holly Jackson y c¨®mo est¨¢ organizada. Os prometo que es incre¨ªble la cantidad de capas que tiene la historia, la cantidad de personajes relacionados¡­ Es que sigo sin palabras. Qu¨¦ maravilla. Ahora solo queda esperar a ver si traen el segundo pronto a Espa?a, porque si no¡­ Amazon, is that you?

(Tambi¨¦n os digo, que me da mucha rabia hacer la rese?a sin spoilers. Se me queda corta comparada con todo lo que quiero hablar, pero no quiero joderos la experiencia. Confiad en m¨ª cuando os digo que os va a flipar este libro.)

Tw: tramas sobre suicidio, asesinatos, violaciones, abusos sexuales, pedofilia, muerte de animales, consumo de drogas y alcoholismo.
Profile Image for rehaab.
57 reviews380 followers
July 29, 2024
??? ? ? .? 4.80 stars ¨C no spoilers

??¨A overall thoughts ???
this book still holds such a special place in my heart¡ªfrom the characters, to the mystery, to the found-family, to the entire fandom and everything else. ??? PIP, RAVIIIII ???

??¨A characters ???

? pip: she's such a queen!! she was so smart!

? ravi: OMGGGG, RAVIIIIII!! I NEED a ravi singh. and tell me you didn't start cackling out loud when he made a joke??!

? sal: i love how everyone liked him and he helped everyone.

? andie:

? cara: literally so nice and true to pip!

??¨A the overall vibes ???

lots of mystery¡ªwhich i loved¡ªand was so GIVING. some parts honestly WRECKED me, but the rest were great! <33 i felt so many different emotions while reading this, so it's really hard to explain ...

??¨A favourite quotes ???

? (????) ? ???? ??? ???? ?????? ???? ???????????. ? this man's humour is just>>>>>>

? (???) ? ?'? ??? ???? ?'? ??? ???? ???? ? ???? ??????? ? ??? . ?'?? ???? ??? ????? ??? ???. ?

? (???? & ???) ? ?? ??????, ??? ??? ????? ?? ??? ???? ?? ??? ????, ??????? ?? ??? ????, ??? ?????? ?? ?? ????? ??? ???????? ??????? ????. ??¡¯? ???? ??? ?????? ???? ?? ??? ?? ?? ???? ???? ???? ??? ???????, ???? ??? ????????, ???? ??? ?????? ?????? ??? ???????? ?????????. ?? ???? ???? ?? ? ??? ????? ????? ????? ??? ???? ??? ???? ????. ? AWWWW

? (???) ? ????? ??? ?? ???? ?? ????????? ?? ???. ? lol, THIS ENTIRE SCENE WAS JUST-

? (???? & ???) ? '?¡¯? ???????????? ???????.' ??? ??????, ??????? ??? ?????????? ??? ?? ???. '??? ? ???? ???????.' '???? ??????? ????????' '????¡¯? ???? ??? ?????? ????, ????.' ?

? ? ???? ???? ???? ?????¡¯? ?????? ?? ???? ?? ???? ???? ??? ??? ???? ?? ????? ?????. ? Cara & Pip r so cuteee! <3

? (???? & ???) ? ?? ?????? ???, ??? ??? ?????? ???? ???? ???????. ??? ??? ???? ?????. '??? ????? ??? ???? ???? ?? ????, ???.' '? ????.' ? again, I NEEEED a Ravi Singh.

? ? ????? ? this got me every damn time ???



??¨A thoughts on the ending ???

why was the ending SO SADDDD???!! i felt so bad and the real killer WOWED me. so many people didn't get what they truly deserved. ?
Profile Image for Dr. Appu Sasidharan (Dasfill).
1,360 reviews3,521 followers
October 7, 2023
This is a teenage detective novel with Nancy Drew vibes and an exciting plot that will be the best way to help you break a reading slump.

Holly Jackson rose up to the expectations and managed to pull out a thriller that is exciting to read.

Police found out that schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh five years ago, and the case is closed now. But Pippa Fitz-Amobi thinks that Sal is not the killer. She chooses this case as the topic for her final year, Senior Capstone Project. She is trying to find the mystery behind Andie Bell's case. Was Sal the real killer? If not, is Pippa's life in danger? Will the killer try to hurt Pippa so that she won't be able to solve the case? Holly Jackson will answer all these questions through this book.

What I learned from this book
1) What is hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia?
This is an interesting new word I learned from this book. Its meaning is fear of long words.
¡°Pip knew a great many things; she knew that hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia was the technical term for the fear of long words.¡±


2) What happens to all the missing people?
The author shares some interesting statistics related to the missing people in this book. This will help us to know what actually happens to the missing people.
¡°I found these statistics: 80% of missing people are found in the first twenty-four hours. 97% are found in the first week, and 99% of cases are resolved in the first year. That leaves just 1%. 1% of people who disappear are never found. And just 0.25% of all missing persons cases have a fatal outcome."


3) What is toxic productivity, and how can it hurt our life?
Few of my friends and patients are obsessed with watching productivity videos on YouTube. Productivity is always good in our life. But when it reaches such a level that we always try to be productive in all areas of life, it might reach toxic levels. Are the online productivity gurus hurting people's lives instead of helping them? This serious question can only be answered after more profound research and understanding.

The author indirectly mentions toxic productivity in a couple of areas in this book.
¡°What's wrong with me? ... I might seem like the ideal student: homework always in early, every extra credit and extracurricular I can get my hands on, the good girl and the high achiever. But I realized something just now: it's not ambition, not entirely. It's fear. Because I don't know who I am when I'm not working, when I'm not focused on or totally consumed by a task. Who am I between the projects and the assignments, when there's nothing to do? I haven't found her yet and it scares me."

¡°Your efficiency offends me.¡±



My favourite three lines from this book
¡°Half less of a bad thing meant there was room for half good.¡±


¡°The people you love weren¡¯t algebra: to be calculated, subtracted, or held at arm¡¯s length across a decimal point.¡±


"But sometimes remembering isn't for yourself, sometimes you do it just to make someone else smile. Those lies were allowed."


What could have been better?
If you are someone who attended Med School, you will know how some patients try to avoid Med School students saying that they are not Doctors even after knowing they will be Doctors in a couple of years.

If we look at the world from the angle of the people I mentioned above, it will be difficult to believe that a teenager is going for an important murder investigation like this, and almost every person connected to it treating her like a real grown-up police officer/ detective and fully cooperating with her and telling her everything they know. It, in fact, looks totally unrealistic from any practical human being's point of view.

Rating
3.5/5 This is a real page-turner with many twists that will satisfy most of the readers.


¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª
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Profile Image for Natilie Bell.
83 reviews2,894 followers
June 19, 2024
3.5/5 ???

i have finally finished this and i'm not sure entirely how i feel - i think i'm going to give it 3.5 stars for now? i definitely enjoyed it, but the ending was a little... i don't know maybe i wasn't following as closely as i should of? ??????

¦á¦á¦á ? ¦á¦á¦á?????¦á¦á¦á ? ¦á¦á¦á

¨t©¬? Plot:

This was overall enjoyable, it was YA so I didn't feel a gripe in my stomach (but I did in Five Survive). The stakes didn't feel that high - this is for sure more murder mystery than thriller. It was very addicting though and did not see the first big plot twist coming at all. A lot of the points Pip (the main character) though 'oh that's suspicious!' - I think a normal person wouldn't have thought that and all. I get that's the point of her character, she 'overthinks', finds leads and chases them down like a bloodhound. To me, whilst this book discusses some really important topics, I didn't find it thrilling. .

I know I've just trashed on the plot so you might be wondering why it's still such a high rating -

¨t©¬? Characters:

All the characters were loveable. Pip is your typical quirky and super intelligent female YA MC. She grows on you, especially her relationship with her family. She started to annoy me in some parts - and she seemed to. Ravi is so incredibly sweet and funny I could picture the flirting in my head.

We didn't see too much of any other characters, but it all felt like typical high school to me.


¨t©¬? World/Setting:

This... was OK. I could kind of picture the different places she was talking about, the places of interest - it wasn't particularly like amazing or adding a sense of dread. Compared to Five Survive, the world didn't feel as vivid. It does the job though.


¨t©¬? Pacing:

This is where the book really shines. Holly Jackson is so good at creating addicting page turners. I couldn't put it down, even if some points frustrated me at times and I cringed at others.

¨t©¬? Enjoyment:

I'm not the target audience for this book, so I didn't expect to give it 5 stars here. However, I did enjoy this book a lot. To me it felt like a fun detective story, I wasn't trying to solve anything because too much information was being thrown my way. The banter between Ravi and Pip is really cute, and I did enjoy reading about her family.

Overall, I would recommend this!

¦á¦á¦á ? ¦á¦á¦á?????¦á¦á¦á ? ¦á¦á¦á

reading log ?¨A ? ?¨@

12/05/2024 10:32am ??
okay listen i'm at 91% and i did not expect this i thought it was all wrapped up

12/05/2024 8:07am ??
good morning everyone - time to finish this book! it's very addicting and i'm invested in the ending, i truly have no idea who's going to be the culprit

11/05/2024 7:34pm ??
alright i keep flipping the pages, but with so many 'suspects' im starting to get lost

11/05/2024 11:58am ??
okay so i¡¯m trying to figure out who fits into the *everything is not what it seems* category and so far my guesses are

10/05/2024 9:12am ??
oh this is has racist idiots in it

¦á¦á¦á ? ¦á¦á¦á?????¦á¦á¦á ? ¦á¦á¦á

pre-reading ?¨A ? ?¨@

hello! this has been sitting on my shelf for the longest time and I thought I'd finally buy into the hype after absolutely loving five survive - i need to know what all the fuss is about!

may tbr:

?. salt to the sea
?. powerless
?. house of earth and blood
?. everyone in my family has killed someone
?. bride
?. listen for the lie
?. she's not sorry
?. love on the brain
?. the familiar
?. a court of wings and ruin
+ a good girl's guide to murder
Profile Image for Antje ?.
163 reviews14 followers
April 21, 2023
Not really a guide tbh, more of a WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN YOU'RE INVESTIGATING A MURDER ?
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