Following on from the success of A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder, Holly Jackson had big shoes to fill – how would she better the second book in the series? Well she makes a less predictable mystery; she raises the stakes for Pip and Ravi whilst continuing to tackle and mention difficult subject matters throughout the book. All the while setting up the third book in the series.
Pip may have successfully discovered the truth behind Andie Bell's disappearance and the death of Sal Singh - that doesn't mean she came out of the events unscathed. With broken or damaged relationships and friendships surrounding her, Pip attempts to ignore the calls to return to what she does best - her detective work. Connor, one of her best friends, and his mother contact Pip with the news that Jamie (the older brother) has gone missing - and the police won't do anything about it.
The second book in the AGGGTM series has a good balance of developing the series and bettering what was done before, as well as acknowledging that the story directly follows on from the first - so no character can have any huge changes to their arcs or personalities. Like the first one, Good Girl Bad Blood is paced well with the addition of small chapters making the reader want to read on instantly. The after effects of the first book are clearly displayed as Pip battles through her anxiety and potential PTSD as she struggles with the events surrounding Andie Bell's disappearance as well as her addictive tendencies surrounding her detective work.
Pip is as lovable and likeable as she was in the first book, you worry and root for her in equal measure. Her relationship with Ravi continues on its slow burn growth throughout the book, never taking over from the main plot, but being included enough that you root for the relationship. Similar to the first book, the interactions between her and Ravi as well as Pip and her family provide needed doses of comedic and light-hearted relief, considering the heavier topics the book covers.
As always, I attempt to make my reviews as spoiler-free as possible, so I will make my thoughts on the mystery plot very vague and short. I definitely thought the disappearance of Jamie was more complex and less easy to follow than that of Andie Bell - I enjoyed that I couldn't fully guess what was happening next, which made the book such a page turner. I felt that the added background plot of the court case for one of the previous books villains, was a good link to the first book - it also reminded me somewhat of the plot to the second series of 13 Reasons Why. Except Holly Jackson did it better. This isn't me wishing that element of the book wasn't included, the opposite in fact, the arc of the court case was an extremely important story to tell - as was the character arc of Nat Da Silva. I wasn't her biggest fan for most of the first book, however, she really grew on me this time round and she definitely has became one of my favourite characters. Her story, with the addition of the court case arc, are very important additions to this book.
The twists throughout the book pay off incredibly well, I was not expecting at the beginning of the book for the journey to take us where we ended up. Not only does the story answer some of the questions that Pip herself said had remained unanswered at the end of the first book, but it also sets up the third book really well, which will be released next year. Trust me, if you love the first book don't worry about this one not living up to the hype - because it most certainly does, and then some.
Thanks for reading,
Rhi
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