Book Review - Good Girl, Bad Blood

Title: Good Girl, Bad Blood
Series: A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (#2)
Author: Holly Jackson
 
Description: Pip is not a detective anymore.

With the help of Ravi Singh, she released a true-crime podcast about the murder case they solved together last year. The podcast has gone viral, yet Pip insists her investigating days are behind her.

But she will have to break that promise when someone she knows goes missing. Jamie Reynolds has disappeared, on the very same night the town hosted a memorial for the sixth-year anniversary of the deaths of Andie Bell and Sal Singh.

The police won't do anything about it. And if they won't look for Jamie then Pip will, uncovering more of her town's dark secrets along the way... and this time everyone is listening.
With the help of Ravi Singh, she released a true-crime podcast about the murder case they solved together last year. The podcast has gone viral, yet Pip insists her investigating days are behind her.
But she will have to break that promise when someone she knows goes missing. Jamie Reynolds has disappeared, on the very same night the town hosted a memorial for the sixth-year anniversary of the deaths of Andie Bell and Sal Singh.
The police won't do anything about it. And if they won't look for Jamie then Pip will, uncovering more of her town's dark secrets along the way... and this time everyone is listening. But will she find him before it's too late?
 
Review: “Good Girl, Bad Blood” is the sequel to “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder”. In this second volume, Pip and Ravi have set up a podcast called “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder”. In it, they discuss what happened and how they solved Andie’s  murder. They also closely follow the trial that is underway against Max Hastings, the boy who raped several girls. Pip vowed not to play detective anymore. Solving Andie’s murder cost her dearly. But when one of her best friends, Connor, shows up at her door saying his brother Jamie is missing, Pip can’t help but help her friend. She gets out to find out what happened to Jamie. But the more she discovers, the more questions arise about his disappearance.   
 
This book cannot be read separately from the first book, you have to have read that before starting “Good Girl, Bad Blood”. For example, the trial of Max Hastings plays a big role and events from part one are often referred back to. What this book does do very cleverly is give a brief summary of everything that happened in the first book. This is very nice to refresh your memory a bit, if it’s been a while since you read the first book. I read it last year and it was my second favorite that I read that year. And I already know that this is also going to be one my top list of this year.  
 
Jamie’s disappearance is incredibly mysterious and the more Pip discovers, the more questions are added. And you never expect what eventually is revealed. And you’re not sure about all of it for a very long time. You just want to keep reading this book, even if you get 10 more questions for every answer. With that, Pip is one of the best female characters I have read in a long time.
 
Until the very end, author Holly Jackson manages to keep the reader on their toes and it is almost impossible to predict how things will turn out. I’m an avid thriller reader, but even I didn’t predict any of it. I’m not a big series reader, but I haven’t been this invested in a book series since “The Hunger Games”. And I can’t wait to continue reading these books.
 
Holly Jackson has a very pleasant writing style. The book is very easy to read and  even with 400+ pages, I flew through it, which is perfect for a slow reader like me. The story never has a dull moment in it and, like the first book, I really loved the concept of this. With not only standard storytelling, but also journal entries, transcripts from Pip’s podcast, interviews, news paper clippings. It makes the book super interesting. And you get a glimpse of what goes on in Pip’s head.
 
The unfolding of the mystery is extremely well put together. I really can’t say one bad thing about this book, you really need to read this series!
 
Rating: 5/ 5