Good Girl, Bad Blood: TikTok made me buy it! The Sunday Times Bestseller and sequel to A Good Girl's Guide to Murder: Book 2 Paperback – 30 April 2020

I bought Good Girl, Bad Blood (GGBB) a couple of weeks ago and didn’t pick it up until yesterday. I desperately wanted to read it, the thought of finishing it too quickly was stopping me from picking it up. But that is exactly what I did. I took just over a day because I was too enticed to put it down. If you haven’t read my review on Holly Jackson’s first book in the series ‘A Good Girls Guide To Murder’ (AGGGTM), go ahead and read that first!Why I Love This Book!“I can’t tell you what decision to make”At the beginning of the book, we get a very simple recap from Pip of the events that transpired in the last book. It seems like more of a conclusion to the first book than a starting point for the second. AGGGTM is instantly fresh in your mind again and as your reading, you’re not subconsciously trying to remember what has happened, keeping you fully absorbed to the story at hand.Time to grab the tissues because you are going to cry. Well, at least I did. Towards the beginning of the book unveils a very emotional memorial of Sal Singh and Andie Bell. The overlap of crimes is perfectly shown here. The ending of one is the start of another. Letting the reader know that trouble always finds Pip and this book isn’t any different.One thing I especially love in this book is the Podcast. The idea of Pip turning her school project into a crime podcast, for everyone to hear the twisted tale of Andie Bell, is an exciting and simple way to make us feel and react as we would to any real crime case. It’s very refreshing to read the interview-style text, alongside crime scene photographs throughout the book. It moves away from the fact that a 17-year-old girl is solving the case, and therefore a bond is created with the reader for us to read on allowing her to solve the case, that she desperately desires to do.The Crime”I said I would never do this again, never play the detective, never again lose myself to the world of small-town secrets. It wasn’t me, not any more. I would have stuck to it too; I know I would’ve. But something’s happened and now I have to break that promise. Someone has gone missing. Someone I know.”It’s with no surprise that in this book there are more complications in Pip’s life, preventing her from finding her best friend’s brother. Jamie Reynolds. As remarkable as Pip is at investigation, the want and need in her voice/actions to stay away from the obsession that consumes her in AGGGTM.Of course, she couldn’t stay away. None of her school work or numerous sponsorships being offered to her is academically challenging enough to keep her satisfied. There were a few parts in the story that I foresaw, but I was instantly left in bewilderment as Jackson proved me wrong on my many theories. The way she highlights certain characters and evidence to make us question which ones are relevant to the story are done exceptionally well.As well as the missing case of Jamie Reynolds, we also get to see the trial of Max Hastings play out. Letting us know the events from the prequel are far from over.The Characters“Words spliced, growing across the gaps like vines as her eyes unfocused until her handwriting was just one writhing blur. Pip was looking at the page, but she wasn’t really there. It was like that now; giant holes in her attention that she slipped right into.“Pip is a very strong-willed female character. She is the definition of a great female protagonist. And as much as everyone loves her in the first book, we see her character change due to the fame of her detective work. We start to see her faults, and how she begins to embrace these imperfections.I would have liked to see more of Ravi. I feel he only begins to open up towards the end of AGGGTM, and now he has been pushed back as a side character. Stopping us from finding out more about him and his relationship with Pip. However, what we do see of Ravi I absolutely adore. He is the main source to deliver the information of the Max Hastings trial, to the podcast and therefore to the reader. Hopefully, we will see a lot more of Ravi in the rest of the series and see how his relationship with Pip evolves.Connor Reynolds, one of Pip’s best friends, is featured a lot more in GGBB. To some extent, he becomes Pip’s sidekick by helping to solve the case. But quickly loses himself in the emotions of his brother being missing. Connor and his Mum, Johanna, play a big role when it comes to finding Jamie. They both manage to find the will-power to carry on looking for their missing family member, despite all the obstacles in their way.Overall ThoughtsOverall, I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of the first one. You can clearly see the thought and planning that Jackson goes through when it comes to writing both books in the series. I have to applaud her for throwing the reader off with many suspicious characters and events that happen from start to finish. It’s not an ending you see coming, making it a fantastic read for anyone who loves a bit of mystery to their books.Rating 5/5elliemaiblogs.co.uk

I really enjoyed AGGGTM but I absolutely loved Good Girl, Bad Blood. Pippa is an amazing and complex character and I am in awe of her! This was such a binge-able read and I finished it in two sittings cos I could not put it down once the ball got rolling—and it really got rolling! This YA thriller series has fast become a favourite and I can't wait to dive straight into the third book after this.If you love mixed media formats, then you'll love this even more because in addition to text messages, emails, maps and interviews, we also get episodes of Pip's famous true-crime podcast! It definitely makes for a more engaging and easy read. GGBB was a well-paced mystery and thriller that kept me hanging on to the edge of my seat as I sped through the pages eager to find out just what happened to Jamie. Y'know, I was so chuffed with myself at one point because I was 100% sure I had guessed whodunit but, alas, I led myself astray because it was not who and what I expected at all. Although there are definitely fewer red herrings compared to the first book, this had some delightful twists and turns to keep you guessing! Also, at this point, should I even be surprised that the police force is absolutely useless? It was so frustrating that they continued to do absolutely nothing when Pippa was basically doing their job for them, and the poor girl really suffers the consequences in the end.Pip is just as doggedly determined when it came to solving this mystery as she was in AGGGTM but things feel a little more personal here as the missing young man, Jamie, is one of her best friend's brothers. Pip evolves in such an interesting way, and not necessarily in the healthiest or most positive ways, but I loved her, though I can definitely see why people would find her frustrating and might hate her character. She tries her hardest to be the "good girl" and to not spiral while investigating Jamie's disappearance, but she struggles to be the person she was before she uncovered and experienced first-hand the horrors of Little Kilton's dirty little town secrets. She does push peoples buttons trying to get to the truth and she also does some damaging things towards the end as she slowly loses control but her grit, determination and sheer inability to give up (even if it puts her in dangerous situations) was something I really admired about her character. Yes, I wanted to shake her at times but I also wanted to give her high-fives along the way and, by the end, to give her the biggest panda hug and never let go. I really appreciated how Jackson show's the reality of what taking on such a tremendous role as Pippa does can do to a person. Yes, Pippa is an amazing sleuth and but there's really only so much a person can take, right? By the end, Pip is teetering on a knife's edge and we're not sure just which way she'll fall. It's not all roses, folks.Aside from Pippa, we see a lot of familiar faces in this book like Ravi, Cara, Connor, Naomi, Nat and Daniel da Silva and of course, Pip's family. Although I was a bit sad that we didn't get scenes with Pip's amazing family (especially her dad!), Ravi, Connor and Cara continue to play great supporting roles. Ravi and Pip have such a great relationship and their banter really had me cracking up at certain points—he's so cheeky and I loved how he brought levity to Pip's life (as cheesy as that sounds).Overall, I laughed a lot and I (very surprisingly) shed a couple of tears by the end. It's safe to say that I'm pretty invested in this series and the characters! I hope Pippa is gonna be okay and I can't wait to read on and find out for myself (soon). I'd highly recommend this series if you enjoy YA mysteries/thrillers!