A Good Girl's Guide To Murder

''A Good Girl's Guide to Murder'' is a young adult mystery crime debut novel by British author Holly Jackson. The novel is the first in a series of three novels and one novella: ''A Good Girl's Guide to Murder'' (2019); ''Good Girl, Bad Blood'' (2020); ''As Good As Dead'' (2021); and ''Kill Joy'' (2021). All books were published by Electric Monkey in the United Kingdom and by Delacorte Press in the United States.

The plot follows an investigation carried out by seventeen-year old true crime enthusiast Pippa "Pip" Fitz-Amobi, a student in the fictional town of Little Kilton, Buckinghamshire. In the novel, she investigates the murder of popular student Andrea "Andie" Bell and the suicide of the supposed perpetrator Salil "Sal" Singh under the guise of a school project. Her objectives are to exonerate Sal, who she is convinced was falsely accused, and to uncover the true perpetrator, who Pip believes is still at large.

A six-part television adaptation was released on BBC iPlayer on 1 July 2024, with Emma Myers playing Pip.

Plot summary

Five years ago, a tragic murder-suicide rocked the small town of Little Kilton, Buckinghamshire when popular schoolgirl Andie Bell was brutally murdered and her boyfriend, Sal Singh, was accused before seemingly taking his own life. While initially Sal was just a person of interest, he was later believed to be the killer due to a confession-text he'd allegedly sent. Seventeen-year-old Pippa Fitz-Amobi however is convinced that the real killer is still out there. She befriends Sal's younger brother, Ravi, and launches an investigation under the guise of a school project. Perilously for Pip each interrogation puts her in greater danger, yet she persists. She finds evidence that Andie was selling drugs to students, including Max Hastings, and was having an affair with Elliot Ward — history teacher, and father of Cara Ward, Pippa's longstanding best friend.

Pippa finds out that Mr. Ward had pushed Andie into a desk in a moment of fury. When Andie went missing, Mr. Ward, thinking that he'd killed her, framed and murdered Sal while making it look like a suicide. A few days later Mr. Ward saw a girl walking through the street, mistaking her for Andie. Pippa discovers that the girl wasn't in fact Andie, but rather just a girl that looked similar. Becca, Andie's sister, reveals that Max had drugged and raped her with Rohypnol sold to him by Andie. In anger, Becca had pushed Andie, who fell, convulsed and died. While still in shock, Becca had hidden Andie's body in an old septic tank in a farmhouse near Pip's home. When Pip learns of the truth and goes to confront Becca, she is drugged with Rohypnol and Becca tries to strangle her, but is saved by Ravi. Pip later finds out that Becca accidentally killed her dog and was responsible for the death threats she'd received, threats that were quite violent and literal. With the truth revealed, Sal is declared innocent. The final verdict is that five people were considered responsible for this tragic double homicide: Mr. Ward; Becca; Max; Howie Bowers, Andie's drug dealer; and Jason Bell, Andie and Beccas' dad. Even though it is said Mr. Ward alone was primarily responsible due to his actions against her, it was actually a number of people who, in a way, worked together.

Reception

''A Good Girl's Guide to Murder'' was named one of the best books of 2020 by Barnes and Noble and received the following accolades:

* American Library Association's Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults (2021)
* Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fiction (2020)
* YA Book Prize shortlist (2020)
* British Book Awards Children's Fiction Book Winner of the Year (2020)

Sequels and prequel

''Good Girl, Bad Blood'' (2020)

The novel picks up where the first book left off. Pippa "Pip" Fitz-Amobi, after having created a podcast called ''A Good Girl's Guide To Murder'' based on the events that took place in the previous novel, is being hailed online as an amateur detective. Pip promises herself though that she will never take on another case after having lost her beloved dog Barney, and so narrowly having avoided death herself, in her prior case. Her friend Connor Reynolds however comes to her, asking her to investigate the case of his missing brother, Jamie Reynolds. Pip initially refuses, instead putting in a word with DI Hawkins, but when the police take no action she decides that she will investigate this one last case, having a gut feeling that Jamie had not simply run away, but rather had been abducted.

Pip starts digging into Jamie's past and present, conducting interviews and piecing together clues. As she gets closer to the truth she realizes that Jamie's case is connected to something dark and dangerous. Furthermore, it seems as though somebody is always one step ahead of her and trying to stop her from uncovering the truth.

''Good Girl, Bad Blood'' was shortlisted for the 2021 YA Book Prize.

''As Good As Dead'' (2021)

Following the events of ''Good Girl, Bad Blood'', Pip has been left psychologically traumatised and unable to sleep at night. With her life already at an all-time low, things take a turn for the worse when she becomes the target of a relentless, anonymous stalker. The stalker sends her constant messages, asking her the same question "''Who will look for you when you're the one that disappears?''" At first Pip tries to brush off the threats hoping that it's just a troll, but as the messages become more frequent and the stalker's presence looms closer and closer to her home, she begins to realise that the danger is real, imminent, and inescapable. Despite her desperate pleas the police refuse to take her seriously, leaving Pip to face the stalker alone.

Armed with two past experiences in solving murders and uncovering the truth, Pip starts to dig deeper into the mystery using her own resources and contacts, interviewing people and following leads. But the further she goes, the more she realizes that the stalker is someone who is closely tied to her past cases and has a vendetta against her. The stalker seems to know everything about her every move, every thought. She eventually discovers that the stalker is a dangerous serial killer who has been active for years, targeting bright young women like herself. The killer seems to be one step ahead of her at all times, leaving her feeling like she's being constantly watched with no possibility of escape. The stakes are higher than ever, and this time, she's not just trying to solve a case, she's trying to save herself from becoming the killer's next victim.

''As Good As Dead'' received a positive review from ''The Guardian,'' who named the book "a taut, compulsively readable, elegantly plotted thriller."

''Kill Joy'' (2021)

''Kill Joy'' is a prequel novella set shortly prior to events of the first book in the series. Pip is invited to a friend's birthday party, set up to be a 1920s themed murder mystery dinner. At first Pip is not excited about the idea of a mock murder investigation and would much rather stay home and work on her school project for the upcoming academic year, but she decides to attend for the sake of her friends.

As the night wears on though, Pip finds herself drawn into the investigation surrounding the fictional murder case of Reginald Remy. Using her sharp intellect and keen eye for detail, she pieces together the clues and is soon caught up in this game of intrigue and deception, finding herself becoming more and more invested in the case, and is determined to be the one to crack it open and uncover the truth.

As the night comes to a close Pip is left with the realisation that she is unable to resist the pull of the unknown, and that perhaps this game is not just a game but a prelude to a bigger, more important, real-life investigation into a locally infamous tragic murder-suicide that she could perhaps try her hand at solving.

Adaptation

In September 2022 it was revealed that BBC Three had commissioned a television adaptation from Moonage Pictures, penned by Poppy Cogan. In June 2023 the author, Jackson, revealed that production of the television series had started, and announced that Emma Myers and Zain Iqbal were cast as the respective lead roles of Pip and Ravi. In March 2024 she shared a small clip of the show with a July 2024 release date. This adaption was released on Netflix in the U.S. and the majority of other territories except the UK, Ireland, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand, on August 1, 2024.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Good Girl's Guide to Murder, a
2019 British novels
British novels adapted into television shows
Young adult mystery fiction
Young adult novel series
British mystery novels
Electric Monkey books
2019 children's books
Children's books set in England
Children's books set in Connecticut
British children's novels