Kill Joy by Holly Jackson is an engrossing and well-crafted mystery that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. The book is the third installment in the author's popular A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series and follows protagonist Pip as she tries to unravel the mystery surrounding a suspicious death in her small English town.

Jackson's writing is sharp and suspenseful, with twists and turns that will keep readers guessing until the very end. The characters are well-developed and relatable, and the relationships between them add an extra layer of complexity to the story.

One of the strengths of Kill Joy, and the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series as a whole, is its focus on realistic police work and investigation. Jackson deftly balances the demands of the mystery genre with a nuanced portrayal of the challenges and limitations faced by law enforcement in small towns.

Overall, Kill Joy is a gripping and satisfying mystery that will appeal to fans of the genre as well as readers who enjoy well-written, character-driven stories. With its blend of suspense, realism, and heart, this book is a worthy addition to the series and a testament to Holly Jackson's talent as a writer.

A fun little novella that gives us a little more insight into Pip, her overall mindset/thought process, and her relationship with her friends. The book is entirely centered around the gang playing what is essentially a rebranded version of Clue. Pip, of course, comes in with the mindset that she has far better things to do than play a silly game. After all, she has her senior capstone project to think about - on a topic she has yet to decide. But the detective in her quickly gets overly invested and it all spirals from there.

As always, Ant is my least favorite one 🙄 irritating little bugger

Holly Jackson's novella Kill Joy continues the fun from her Good Girl's Guide to Murder series. Pip and her friends share a spooky good time at a murder mystery party organized by Connor. Jackson is great at revving up the thrills that keep the reader on the edge of her seat. For readers who haven't read the original series, not too much is lost. Since it's a prequel to the series, readers who haven't learned anything about Pip Fitz-Amobi and her world will lured into reading the whole trilogy. It also works well as a stand-alone.

This was such a fun little extra story that made for an awesome prequel! I loved being back with Pip and her friends after reading the first two books ( YES - I still need to read the third one lol). The murder mystery game was so fun to read and even had me laughing at times. My favorite part was the ending and how Pip came to the decision to investigate the murder that shocked her town five years ago. Overall a fun one that kept me interested and wanting to keep reading! Thank you NetGalley and Random House for my advanced reader copy of this one!! Be sure to check this one out when it goes on sale February 28th!

I was so excited to jump back into Pip's world when I saw this! This was a really nice and short intro into how Pip decided she wanted to investigate Sal and Andy for her senior capstone project. In such a short novella, you get a really good feel for who Pip is and how her brain works. You also are introduced to a lot of the side characters in her world.

While I really enjoyed this book, I think I would have liked it better if I had not already read the rest of the series. I already knew the characters and what happens to them, so it was hard to remind myself that none of that had happened. Also, while I loved being back with Pip, it was difficult being in her brain. She got so obsessive, so quickly that it was just disconcerting.

I do think this book is well worth the read. I just wish I would have had it before I read the rest of the series. If you love Pip, you should definitely give this a try. I wish my friends threw a murder mystery party like this!

I was surprised to find out that this was a prequel for the Good Girls series. I had thought it was actually a sequel. But, it was fun nonetheless to jump back into Pip's world! As always, Jackson's writing was delightful to read. The murder mystery was well thought out and engaging. I read this quite quickly and had a lot of fun. It definitely would work as a prequel, but I think it could also be read between the first and second books of the series for an impactful reading experience.

I loved the Good Girl series and this is a brilliant novella that explains why Pippa starts it all. If you have read the Good Girl's Guide to Murder series you need to read this novella. It is fun and hilarouis and we get to see the characters before everthing happens.

This is a prequel to the "Good Girl" series. I loved it. Great suspense and a good intro to all of the characters. I wish I'd read it between the first and second books.

It's been a while since I've read the first two books, so other than Pip and Cara, the characters were all a little fuzzy for me. Reading this reminded me that I never read the third book in the series, "As Good As Dead", so I'll be adding that to my TBR list soon.

First Impressions:
It has been a bit lonely without a Pip story. Her determination, drive, and need to win are so fun to read.



Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Review:
Welcome back to the world of Pippa Fitz-Amobi. This lovely novella is a prequel to "A Good Girl's Guide To Murder" which B T Dubbs was a top 2022 read for me.

This begins her thirst for solving the unsolvable. I mean who doesn't love a moment of mystery and intrigue with a side of 1920s dinner party? Pippa gathers with her friends to solve the fictional murder of Reginald Remi. This gave me all the vibes of an Agatha Christie moment but make it a murder mystery dinner. I really enjoyed Pippa's take on how to solve the crime and unfold the details like all good detectives giving a big reveal at the end.

Final Thoughts:
This was exactly what I needed after finishing the series. I liked going back into Pip's mind. Even though I wasn't entirely happy with how Book 3 ended this brought back the nostalgia of reading AGGGTM for the first time. Highly recommend to those who have not started the series or anyone needing a little bit more Pippa.


Thanks go out to Netgalley and Random House Children’s / Delacorte Press for allowing me a digital Advanced Reader's Copy with me in exchange for my honest review.

I have to say when I saw this was part of the Good Girl's Guide to Murder universe - I was super excited. I was a little miffed that it was a prequel and not a sequel (I am still holding out hope!) This centers around Pip at the end of her junior year. While her friends are thinking about unwinding and having fun, she is hyper-focused on what her Senior Portfolio subject will be although her friend's do a good job distracting her temporarily - with the murder mystery event at the Reynold's house. I really enjoyed revisiting the characters from this trilogy- and wouldn't mind returning to this world again in the future. The piece de resistance was Pip's reaction to the solution of the murder - I had quite the chuckle. Jackson does an excellent job staying true to the characters and the "Kill Joy" Murder Mystery was a fun exploration into how Pip solves mysteries.

Kill Joy
by Holly Jackson
Pub Date: 28 Feb 2023
This was a fun little novella for fans of Holly Jackson. A little over 100 pages, but packed full of mystery...literally...it's about a murder mystery party.
If you've ever wanted to join a murder mystery party but don't have friends who are fun enough to pull it off, here's your chance. You feel like you are a part of the party, enjoying the mystery through Pip's sharp eyes.
#HollyJackson
#KillJoy #netgalley

I loved every single one of the A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder books. I love the twists and turns and the characters. This short story was a fun way to get back into the lives these characters I have loved for years with a fun murder mystery party. Who doesn’t love a good murder mystery party?? I will continue to read every Holly Jackson book and this was a fun story that I was able to read in one sitting.

My love for Pip has no bounds! I’m truly so grateful to Holly Jackson for giving us a bit more of Pip’s amazing wit. I loved this and it was absolutely genius!!

I devoured this little novella in only a couple hours, it was so fun to jump back in to Pip's mind and her friends' lives after reading the whole AGGGTM series! This was such a fun murder-mystery book and of course Pip was killing it with her detective work in the game with her friends. This definitely reminded me how I fell in love with this series in the first place, there's just something about Holly Jackson's writing that makes you feel like you're experiencing things right alongside Pip.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this digital ARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

Very fun read! Though, I will go wherever pippa fitz amobi goes…I will also go wherever holly jackson goes because she is a genius!!!

I would read Holly Jackson's grocery list. Perfection as always. LOOOOVVVEEEEEEEEEEEE. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

”Pip knew. She knew who the killer was. Every piece slotted into place in her head, all those near-forgotten details right from the start that had come through the blackout into a new light. The clues, and not just what they said but how they said it.”

This was fun. I’ve played those murder mystery type games with groups of friends before and they’re always goofy and very CLUE-like.

I love that this little novella gave us a glimpse into Pip’s determination and her uncanny ability to find clues and make connections I’m cases, and how all of this led to her choosing to do her senior capstone project on Andie Bell and Sal: launching the rest of the series.

There were also some fun snippets that foreshadowed things that would happen in the rest of the series, which was fun to pick up on if you’ve read the main trilogy.

”Maybe she’d been wrong before. Maybe solving murders wasn’t too different from homework after all.”

Kill Joy is set to be published on February 28, 2023. Thank you to Random House Children's, Delacorte Press, NetGalley and the author for the advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book brings us into a new version of events from Pip and the gang. Compared to the other books in the series, this one allowed the reader to see more of the other characters beyond Pip. Overall a fun read and a quick one to keep interest. At times a bit predictable, but they may come from know the story style after reading the other three books in this series. Young adults and students would love this, and I will be recommending it as an intro into the Good Girl's Guide to Murder Series. This story read a little less dark for me, and so more readers may enjoy that. It is also was slightly less scary in many ways than the other novels in the series. And lastly, I felt the premise a little more fun and light hearted, so that new direction was a fun read.

I have so many mixed feelings going back to the Good Girl's Guide to Murder World. So many things have changed since the beginning of the series.

It was fun seeing a care free Pip and everyone interacting with each other. The murder mystery game was a fun twist to the story. At first i was a little skeptical of the novella but the ending absolutely made up for it. I loved seeing the reason Pip decided to investigate the murders as her senior project. It just made so much sense. There are also so many little details foreshadowing the series and it was exciting to pick up on them.

Thanks so much for letting me read an ARC through net galley!

Was this book necessary? No. But, was it a super fun addition? Absolutely! This book is a prequel to the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series. It is quite short, so it would be considered more of a .5 than a full book. Just a way for us to learn more about the characters in the book and see their relationships prior to everything that happened. Most importantly we learned how Pip figured out what her senior cap stone project was. Which was actually super nice because it did seem so random before. I really enjoyed this book and I highly recommend it to others who enjoyed this series!