"Well, it appears, I've been reading YA mysteries all wrong these past years. Evidently, I should not expect plausibility, believability, character development or strong motivations in these books, like I do when reading adult mysteries. No wonder there is only ONE teen mystery that I think is good, and actual teens don't even like reading it, from what I hear. (It's Sadie in case you were wondering).

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder starts off as a Serial rip-off, with upstanding Pippa swooping in Sarah Koenig-like to clear the name of a poor brown guy accused of the murder of a popular girl whose body remains missing. You see, it's only Pippa who believes in Sal's innocence, and she will save the day, because she is a GOOD GIRL and Sal was once nice to her years ago! I was already annoyed at that point.

However, from there this story devolves into a sleuthing adventure where Pippa manages to have every Tom, Dick and Harry confess all their misdoings to her, because PIPPA IS WRITING A SCHOOL PAPER ABOUT THE MURDER. She catphishes people, breaks into houses, blackmails drug dealers, discovers 5-year old evidence in plain view, because she is just so much better than the police at everything. I can understand why police wouldn't care to pursue a case of a variety, but a suicide and a presumed murder? And the victim is still missing and nobody but Pippa cares? Have you heard of Natalie Halloway? She disappeared 15 years ago, and she is still on TV. The whole investigation was one giant eyeroll for me.

Anyway, to put it short, this book has nothing that I look for in a mystery. I am not reading any more YA mysteries if suspending disbelief entirely is the main requirement to get through them. I am just going to stick with Courtney Summers from now on. Thankfully she has another one coming out next year, and it's about cults!

"