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A review by gloomyrivers
As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was a wild conclusion to the series.
For the record, I still adore Pip. That's my girl and she did nothing wrong. She was absolutely justified in everything she did. The first couple chapters were a rough read, not because they were bad but because Holly Jackson really drives home the fact that Pip is dealing with so much.I mean, reading that she was buying unprescribed pills because the trauma of watching Stanley die wouldn't let her sleep was heartbreaking. Not to mention her constantly seeing Stanley's blood on her hands and his dead eyes.
Pip's relationships and bonds with the people she loves are super prominent in this book. Her relationship with Ravi is adorable as always and her friends are absolutely the best people for her.Seeing Ravi and her friends willing to do literally anything for her no questions asked made me so happy. Help me get away with murder? Sure. Help me frame this other dude so that he goes to prison and not me? Sure. Help me establish a solid alibi even though I can't tell you why I need an alibi? Sure. They really said anything for Pip and they're so real for that. Pip and Nat's friendship was especially adorable to me. They've grown so much since the first book and I'm happy they were able to find each other.
As for plot, I feel like the first half of the book definitely went down the same route as the last book for me, where I figured out who the big villain was right away. The predictability ruined the big reveal and so it didn't hit the same as agggtm. Again, that does not mean it wasn't enjoyable to read. HOWEVER, the second half of the book was genuinely batshit insane. It actually felt like a fever dream and my jaw was dropped the entire time.
Pip killing a man was fucking crazy, and I definitely did not expect the book to go down that route. Also, her not going to the police and instead attempting to get away with murder? WHAT THE FUCK? I literally thought it was going to end up just being a big dream or hallucination or something and then it wasn't. Not to mention her framing Max for all of it. Which, by the way, not complaining about that. Not complaining about anything really because Pip being able to not only kill a killer but also put a rapist in prison like he deserves was a bad bitch move and I applaud her for it.
I definitely did not expect what happened in the second half of the book but I enjoyed it immensely. I've seen critiques that it was unrealistic and that Pip should've just gone to the police and to that I say, NO! My girl did what had to be done because the Fairview police department is famously incompetent and they sure as hell weren't going to do it. Did her choices stress me the fuck out? Yes. Will I stand by her anyway? Also yes.
Despite loving how unhinged this book got towards the end, I do wish we had explored some things a bit more.For example, how the fuck did Jason Bell become a serial killer in the first place? I was not confused that he was the big bad at the end, but I did hope we'd get something like with Mr. Ward and Stanley Forbes where they info dumped and gave Pip their entire backstory. Like please drop some lore sir on why you're the way that you are. Also, the man that got framed for being the DT Killer. I was hoping he'd play a bigger role, and we would get to learn more about him. Also, Charlie. I wanted Pip to encounter him again. I thought he'd play a bigger role as well but he got arrested and that was that.
Other than a few minor things, I felt like the plot was very well put together. All the pieces from the first two books came together and nothing felt out of place. It didn't feel like the plot was strung together randomly, or that the plot points made no sense. Many of the clues were there from the beginning, and it was so cool to see how they all tied together.
The ending was a bit unsatisfactory for me, but it definitely didn't ruin the experience or anything.I just didn't like how it all wrapped up, with Pip going no contact with her friends. That scene with Ravi in the woods HURT. I understand why she did it, but I don't like it. Not to mention it wasn't necessary in the end, since Max was found guilty. Also, I was hoping we'd get some sort of reunion with Pip and Ravi and her friends and instead all we got was a sort of cliffhanger ending with a simple text from Ravi. I also wish we got to see Max Hastings go to prison because my favorite scene was seeing him start tweaking about getting arrested, but that's more of a nitpick.
Overall, completely unhinged book. Most of the second half was just a whole bunch of what the fuck and anxiety. But, it was also super intense and fun and kept me engaged all the way through. I absolutely adore this series and I'll be thinking about it forever probably.
For the record, I still adore Pip. That's my girl and she did nothing wrong. She was absolutely justified in everything she did. The first couple chapters were a rough read, not because they were bad but because Holly Jackson really drives home the fact that Pip is dealing with so much.
Pip's relationships and bonds with the people she loves are super prominent in this book. Her relationship with Ravi is adorable as always and her friends are absolutely the best people for her.
As for plot, I feel like the first half of the book definitely went down the same route as the last book for me, where I figured out who the big villain was right away. The predictability ruined the big reveal and so it didn't hit the same as agggtm. Again, that does not mean it wasn't enjoyable to read. HOWEVER, the second half of the book was genuinely batshit insane. It actually felt like a fever dream and my jaw was dropped the entire time.
I definitely did not expect what happened in the second half of the book but I enjoyed it immensely. I've seen critiques that it was unrealistic and that Pip should've just gone to the police and to that I say, NO! My girl did what had to be done because the Fairview police department is famously incompetent and they sure as hell weren't going to do it. Did her choices stress me the fuck out? Yes. Will I stand by her anyway? Also yes.
Despite loving how unhinged this book got towards the end, I do wish we had explored some things a bit more.
Other than a few minor things, I felt like the plot was very well put together. All the pieces from the first two books came together and nothing felt out of place. It didn't feel like the plot was strung together randomly, or that the plot points made no sense. Many of the clues were there from the beginning, and it was so cool to see how they all tied together.
The ending was a bit unsatisfactory for me, but it definitely didn't ruin the experience or anything.
Overall, completely unhinged book. Most of the second half was just a whole bunch of what the fuck and anxiety. But, it was also super intense and fun and kept me engaged all the way through. I absolutely adore this series and I'll be thinking about it forever probably.