A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson Book Review

_{Trigger warning: Murder, Rape, Drugs, Violence, Animal Cruelty}

"A Good Girl's Guide to Murder" is a debut novel by Holly Jackson about a 17-year-old straight-A high school student, Pippa Fitz-Amobi, who decided to investigate a murder case that happened five years ago for her senior capstone project. The victim, Andie Belle, was a pretty and popular girl from Connecticut High School who disappeared out of the blue. The next thing that came up was a professed message sent to the police that he killed Andie Bell. And that was the boyfriend, Sal Singh. After sending the confession message, he then killed himself.

Aside from getting an interesting project, Pip doubts the original investigation--she thinks foul play eventuates in the investigation. He knew Sal when she was a kid--he was kind to her ever since. That alone gave her the gut feeling there was something else, and the investigation and the published news were lacking. As a curious teenager, as she is, Pip deems that her project is the gateway to finding the real score as to what had happened five years ago, and this could lead to proving the innocence of the kind guy she knew.

Pip knew along that it is not just for her senior capstone project. Since her topic is sensitive, especially to the involved parties, Pip's teacher warned her to be more cautious during the interview. That warning just passed by from right to left ear. Pip approached the younger brother of Sal, Ravi, explained her intent, and then asked him to team up with her. Now the supposed to be simple investigation became an obsession. She was immersed in tracking the trail of dark secrets that happened five years ago. As they went, Pip's person of interest list becomes longer.

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THOUGHTS

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I am deeply annoyed with Pip. But somehow, I can say my annoyance is a compliment. Despite the danger, Pip was determined..and obsessed. A two-way sword--bravery and stupidity--I must say. I had a sinusoidal wave of emotions—anger, shock, second-hand embarrassment, and sadness.

Since Pip's ended up befriending Ravi, Sal's younger brother, I was hoping the romantic air must not be highlighted and rushed. And Holly Jackson must be thinking of me while writing this. Hah! But there's this one event that I didn't like at all; it brought me to tears.

Even though Pip was becoming more of a stupid A student to me, she had character development at some point, both good and bad. She decides with conviction and does anything to achieve whatever goals she sets. There are times that she sways, but it is never enough to put her to a halt. Her actions and decisions are enough to make my heart beat so fast. As mentioned, she's brave and stupid. Not totally a perfect combo, but somehow, an exciting one.

Moreover, the book is engaging because of its production log and a transcript of the interview between the chapters. This format makes the story perceptible and easier to follow, which felt like the book is Pip's journal. The plot and storyline are well-constructed. The lengthy list of a person of interest had me predicting numerous times.

All in all, I recommend this book if you are a lover of crime and mystery. This is one of the debut novels that you shouldn't miss!