Review: As Good As Dead | Holly Jackson

This review is spoiler free.

“Who will look for you when you’re the one who disappears?”

Series: A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
Published: 2021, by Electric Monkey
Pages: 570
Format: Paperback
Genre: Mystery, Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary
Contains: Violence, Anger, Death, Blood/Gore, Murder, Rape, Sexual Assault, Drugs/Alcohol

‘As Good As Dead’ is the epic conclusion to the a Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, following Pip Fitz-Amobi who is haunted by the way her last investigation ended. Soon she’ll be leaving for Cambridge University, but then another case finds her… and this time it’s all about Pip. She’s used to online death threats, but there’s one that catches her eye, someone who keeps asking: who will look for you when you’re the one who disappears? And it’s not just online. Pip has a stalker who knows where she lives. The police refuse to act, so it’s up to Pip and Ravi to investigate one last time.

This book has been on my wish list since its release last year, but recently I’ve been in the mood for mystery, and Holly Jackson’s series is the first one I turn to. Needless to say, I was not disappointed.

Pip is haunted by the ghost of her last investigation, traumatised and at her lowest when a serial killer investigation finds her. It was upsetting and heart-wrenching to witness, having fallen in love with this character since the release of the first instalment a few years ago. She’s struggling alone, and it’s not surprising considering everything she’s been through. It makes the story more realistic, and for that I’m thankful.
Ravi is a beautiful character, his devotion to Pip being admirable and understandable after all the pair have been through. This was a dark book, but Ravi sprinkled light throughout the pages for readers to gush about.

As mentioned above, this book was a dark one, following the devastation of Pip’s last investigation and becoming progressively darker as the story progresses. This book was raw and shocking but also addictive, being desperate to discover how the story ends but Jackson drip-feeds you information through the pages. That’s not to say I could devour it in one sitting, however, as I had to take numerous breaks in between to process the darkness within the pages. This book takes the boundaries of YA and pushes it, showing the potential darkness that lies within reality.

Overall, I deeply enjoyed this story. It was just what I needed to scratch the Mystery itch, and I got more than I bargained for with the trauma within. However, Pip will always have a special place in my heart.

5/5