Book Review of: Good Girl, Bad Blood

Good Girl, Bad Blood
By: Holly Jackson
Mystery / Thriller / YA
417 Pages
2020
Opening Line: “You think you’d know what a killer sounds like.”
Overall: This is the second book in this series. The first book is, A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder. (Click on the link to read my review of that great book.) These are separate mysteries, but this book starts exactly where the first book leaves-off. So, it’s best if you read them in order. In this book, Pippa has released a true-crime podcast about the murders her and Ravi solved last year. Because of the toll that solving those murders took on her, she swore she would never do it again. However, now the older brother of Connor, one of her best friends, goes missing and because he’s an adult, the Police are not concerned. Connor and his mother both beg Pippa to investigate the disappearance. They are sure that Jamie would not just take-off for days without telling anyone and they feel that something is really wrong. So even though she now knows the risks and the costs of getting involved, Pippa really wants to try and help her friend and his family. So, she agrees to try and look into what really happened to Jamie Reynolds, and find him before it’s too late.
Ovations: Like the first book, the story is told “true-crime” style. Meaning, we get to find out the clues along with Pippa as she discovers them. Again, she records all her interviews with everyone and takes extensive notes. The notes lead her to more theories and things to follow-up on. Which then leads her logically to more clues, suspects and secrets. I really like the was the author structures the books like this. It really helps you feel involved in solving the crime right along with Pippa. The plot moves along quickly and keeps you interested the whole time. each of her actions lead her to a decision and another action as she gets closer and closer to discovering the truth. Pippa is now 18, and although she is young, she is a smart, logical, gutsy, spirited and brave heroine. She is a great main character and role model for this Young Adult series. In this book she does some soul-searching to try and figure out what kind of person she is becoming, which adds some more depth to her character. The mystery in the storyline is good, has no plot holes, and you do not know what is going to happen next. There are many twists and turns as the mystery moves along, and you won’t want to put the book down.
Oh Well: This book is a bit more serious than the first one. Not that the plot is darker, it’s just that the relationship between Ravi and Pippa really lightened-up the first book. It is basically non-existent in this book. I mean, they are still together and cute as ever. He is still there supporting what she is doing. But, she is investigating alone a lot more in this book, and sometimes Connor is helping her because it’s about Connor’s brother and not Ravi’s. So, all the sweet moments between her and Ravi that happened while they were working together before, don’t really happen in this book.
Opinion: If you are not used to reading YA books as an adult, do not let that deter you from reading this series! I stayed up way too late at night reading this book because I did not want to put it down and go to bed! (Just like the first one!) This book is an entertaining and suspenseful thriller. I liked it a little less than the first one just because of the lack of interactions between Pip and Ravi. But, I can’t wait to read the third book in this trilogy. Rating 9 out of 10