Good Girl, Bad Blood

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Genre: Young Adult Murder Mystery / Thriller

Rating: 5 stars

“And, finally, to all the girls who’ve ever been doubted or not believed. I know how that feels. These books are for all of you.”

Don’t you already want to give this book a go after reading this? If not, stay put, I have more to convince you to read this book. This quote made me sob at the end of the book because the theme of women not being believed is an ongoing theme in the book. Jackson gives a voice to all women who are silenced or ignored.

I decided to read this series because my best friend recommended it to me, and I could not be more grateful for her recommendation. “Good Girl, Bad Blood”, the sequel to the series “Good Girls Guide to Murder” is an incredibly gripping book about the mysterious disappearance of Connor’s brother, Jamie. The book starts off with Andie Bell’s memorial and quickly shifts to the sudden disappearance of Jamie. Connor, Pip’s best friend, desperate to find him goes to the police who take no action whatsoever. A furious Connor goes to Pip asking for her to investigate the case and find his brother. Pip at first refuses to take the case but when she sees how desperate her best friend is she takes the case knowing anything might go wrong at any time. 

The book revolves around the idea of hoping Jamie is alive and can be saved; however, along the way Pip, our compelling protagonist, faces a number of moral and personal problems such as media hate and fear of hurting others while looking for the truth. 

Going into this book, I can’t say I wasn’t afraid I’d be bored. I heard a lot of mixed reviews about Good Girl, Bad Blood being a “filler book”. People could not have been more wrong. I have never read a better murder mystery book. It goes without saying, though, it has its faults like no other. I would agree that the first book is, yes, a classic and is well written but–the sequel was not even comparable. 

This book not only showed us an immense amount of character development- not necessarily in a good or bad way- we also got to know the characters on a deeper level and got to see how justice is served or in this case not served in a small city. We can really see how the weight of everything Pip’s been through starts to change her. Pip, our once-bubbly protagonist, is no longer the same curious student we met in the first book; she’s someone who’s been scarred by what she’s seen.

I did love this book, however, I wish we saw more of Ravi and Pip’s relationship. We know they got closer, even saying “I love you” to each other. Yet I fear it didn’t make the emotional impact Holly intended because we don’t see enough of the moments in between. I think showing more of their relationship would have added a sense of warmth and balance to the otherwise dark story.

Another controversial yet essential part to mention of the book is the portrayal of the justice system. I have not read a book in so long that put how bad the justice system is in such a calm and coherent way. The way Jackson presented it made me realize how often justice depends on luck, privilege, or persistence rather than fairness. Jackson doesn’t just tell a story—she holds up a mirror to society which everyone chooses to ignore.

“What do you do when the things that are supposed to protect you, fail you like that”

This quote really made me think, because, What could we do really? 

Overall, this book kept me thinking long after I closed it – or turned it off as I read it on my kindle – which to me is the sign of a truly influential and exquisite story. If you like a fast paced book with emotion, mystery and depth, this is a must read for you.

xoxo 

-T