A review by arys_library
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, by Holly Jackson

adventurous emotional fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I absolutely LOVED this book! I went into this with low expectations because I see so many people posting about how amazing this book is, I didn't want to be let down. But this book definitely lived up to the hype! It was such a gripping y/a thriller, the characters were so interesting, and everything flowed together so smoothly. Throughout the entire book, I was creating different theories in my head as to what the ending could be and even though some parts were right, the ending was still so surprising! It was pretty diverse which is something I always look for when reviewing books. I don't have any negative thoughts about diversity. It was genuinely amazing! I think the only negative thing I have to say about the book is the similarities to other works. The TV show Pretty Little Liars has the main character Allie, and our main character Andie is exactly like her. Seems perfect until you get to know her and realize she is a bully and will do whatever she can to be popular and loved. There was one quote in this book by Andie's friend that reminded me so much of a quote from the show, it was hard to read this without thinking of it. Even then, it could be a stretch on my behalf, and the similarities are just coincidences. However, the second similarity I think is so specific that it's hard to believe it is a coincidence. SPOILER COMING          SPOILER HERE
SpoilerThe scene takes place in the book where max and his friends tell Pip about the night he and his friends hit someone with their car. They were drunk and drove home under the influence and hit a man who came out of nowhere on an empty and isolated road. They thought he was dead and decided to leave him there, with Max angrily trying to convince everyone to lie. But someone happened to see the incident and begin to blackmail them because of it. That EXACT scene happens in the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer, down to the angry guy being the most responsible, and telling everyone to cover up what they did
These similarities are so specific that I have a hard time thinking that this book was 100% the author's original idea. 
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