If you enjoyed “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder,” not only the book but the entire series, then you will rejoice with me, because Holly Jackson is back with something new. If you are not a Holly Jackson fan yet, then get onto it… young adult reads reads that are fast and furious, they are written to grab your attention “away from your screen,” and they do.
The books read fast, but if you are not a reader and you are looking to a share a good story with your older teens and enter their world of crime podcasts and cybercrime, then grab the audible versions and listen while you are lifting to and fro with your teens. The audible versions are absolutely brilliant, full cast productions, you will not be disappointed.
The Reappearance of Rachel Price
I was lucky enough to be gifted an advance copy of this new thriller, from Jonathan Ball Publishers… and let me tell you it did not disappoint. I was a little nervous, because A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder was unbeatably good, but Rachel Price, or rather her daughter, Bel, will creep into your heart and you will be invested in the outcome of this book from the very first paragraph.
“Sixteen years ago Rachel Price disappeared without a trace.” Rachel Price was a young mom, of two year old Annabel, they head for the shopping mall and vanish. Literally disappear from the surveillance screen at the shopping mall. Annabel is found hours later, strapped in her car seat in her mom’s abandoned car. it is sixteen years later and Annabel, now known as Bel, is eighteen and quietly getting on with her life at the heart of a happy, if not traumatised, family. When out of the blue a film company arrives to shoot a documentary about the disappearance…
Nobody just disappears, what could possibly have happened to her? The book begins on a set, they are shooting a documentary about the disappearance of Rachel Price, Bel, who was a toddler at the time of the disappearance is in the hot seat, answering questions that she cannot possibly know the answer to. However, as the questions get harder and harder to answer, so Bel, who has always just accepted the story, begins to question things… and not very far into the book, Bel’s mother walks back into the story… hence the title: The Reappearance of Rachel Price.
This is when you realise that everything before this point was just introducing the story and setting the scene… and now the book really begins. So many things just don’t add up, you cannot just reappear sixteen years later. Bel recognises her mother, but a few things she says are a bit off beat, it seems like she fits perfectly, but not quite… she is not an imposter, but her story doesn’t ring true. Bel, is determined to find answers… and you will never believe the answers she finds… the family background she discovers and the the twists in this tale… excellent read, thoroughly enjoyed it… just a heads up, it reads like a true crime podcast, there elements of true crime amidst the twists and turns.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, the Series
Let’s just talk about this great series, book by book, because it is a great series!!!
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder: I received this beautiful hardcover edition of The Good girl’s Guide to Murder, from Jonathan Ball Kids, and it is stunning. Honestly our paperback edition has been read and reread so many times it has disintegrated!!! On to the book: Let’s meet Pippa Fitz-Amobi, a high schooler, who decides to dive into a local closed case for her final high school project. Five years previously, Andie Bell was murdered by her boyfriend and he in turn felt so terrible, that he killed himself. Pip has a head for details and as she researchers her way through newspaper cuttings, past police reports, she interviews main players from the crime. Turns out small towns will go a long way to keep their secrets quiet.
Good Girl, Bad Blood: Pip has sworn off crime solving, once was quite enough for her. Pip is now producing an award winning podcast about her previous book and episode by episode demonstrating her “true crime” skills. But once is never enough for this die hard “Nancy Drew” and before you are a couple of chapters in… she is back at it, searching for missing teenager, Jamie Reynolds… the more she searches the more she uncovers and the more her small town wants her to be quiet.
As Good as Dead: The final in the trilogy and things do get more than a little criminally weird in this one. Pip is no longer the sweet innocent teen she once was, she has been through several traumatic events over the last three books (few years) and it is showing. PTSD to the for, and while those around her know she is suffering noone cold have predicted how much she was suffering… when an online stalker becomes a reality… Pip has to figure things out once and for all. Let’s just say her friends go way beyond expectations as emotional support and I can’t believe this series is actually over.
Kill Joy: This is a prequal, before she was a cold case curiosity kind of a gal, Pip went to a murder mystery party, dressed as “you guessed it,” a detective. This is a novella that will introduce you to her small town and her friends… but not nearly as good as the series… it is a short sharp read and you really want to read the series!!!
Five Survive
A stand alone… a road trip, six friends head out and they don’t all return… another gripping page turner from Holly Jackson. You know that road trip you have always wanted to take to the coast, for Spring Break… you are going to reconsider after reading this one. Red, and her friends head out… and very early on in the story, they lose their way, they are totally lost in the middle of nowhere, and then a sniper takes their tyres out. One by one. And then the gas tank… this is not a coincidence. One of them has a secret, but which one. If you like mind bending puzzles, and sitting on the edge of your seat (rather than hiding in a RV) then this is a great book for you. I love Holly Jackson’s “far from perfect characters. This is edge of the seat stuff, and a thriller of note.
These books were given to us for review purposes by Jonathan Ball Publishers. This is not a sponsored post and opinions expressed are entirely our own.