Hello dear readers!! I am back at it after quite some time with another book review. Iโm quite sure you have heard it before. It’s one of the most famous Y/A, or, a โyoung adultโ fiction book. Written by Holly Jackson, I present to you- โA Good Girlโs Guide to Murderโโs review.
Firstly, let me just give a disclaimer that Young adult books refer to books read by people between the age groups of 12 and 18, but of course, older people can read them too. However, children younger than this age will have difficulty reading and understanding such books because they contain more mature content they wouldnโt understand.
A Good Girlโs guide to Murder- you know what, let’s just call it AGGGTM (partly because of convenience and partly since the internet calls it that and I want to be โ#relatebleโ) tells us a story of a teenage girl, Pippa Fitz-Amobi who is investigating a cold case murder for her final year report.
Five years ago in the town of Little Kilton, Salil โsalโ Singh had allegedly killed Andrea โAndieโ Bell for reasons unknown. Why the โreasons unknownโ part? Because when Andie Bell went missing, a few days later the police claimed she was dead, as they found a supposed confession note in Salil Singhโs phone.
They closed the case.
Why?
Because Sal Singh was dead. He had killed himself.
And Andie Bell, after her death, was believed to be a Martyr, an โangel taken too soonโ.
Or thatโs what they thought.
Pippa believes Salil is innocent and wants to prove it. She, along with Ravi, Salโs brother, investigate the case together. But, someone doesnโt want her to find answers. Sheโs being spied on. Left threatening notes. But she still doesnโt stop.
Will she be able to uncover this mystery and handle the horrifying truths she finds along with it? Or will her stalker manage to scare her into stopping?
I found this book awesome, and it’s something you can read again from the beginning just because of the beautiful way itโs written. I like how the author managed to weave the mystery into the story along with the casual teenage drama that occurs in life. And one good thing about it is that itโs exceptionally intriguing, and makes you want to read page after page without stopping.
Pippaโs production log and report drafts are included in the book, so you can read how she interviews everyone and collects information from both her point of view as well as third person narrative. It made me feel like I was solving the mystery alongside her.
I liked how her two best friends, Lauren and Cara play such an important role in the story. While at first you might think that they are just side characters and would have no sort of connection to the mystery, later on you discover just how well they are involved. Naomi, Caraโs elder sister, is also a major part in the story. We can see how Pippa is attached to them both and will do alot to protect them.
Ravi Singh is a crucial aspect in the story, as he is Salโs brother and can connect better to the case than anyone else. Without his character most of the story would change drastically. He and Pippa grow closer and have a better bond because of this case-solving.
Another girl, Natalie DโSilva, is also included in the โmajor peopleโ list I have. Her backstory and relation with Andie is NOT good. Its reflects on cyber-bullying and harassment and brings you back to reality. This book also focuses on more of the modern problems in this world, like cyber bullying, backstabbing, fake friends, drug-dealing and alot more.
While the plot is actually serious and contains scary life truths, somehow it still contains humour and sarcasm, put in just the right places.
One thing to understand, however, is that because so many people, including Andie herself, her father, her sister, Naomi, etc were involved in different aspects of crime, there are a lot of clues, leading to a little confusion.
Most of it is very ground breaking and majorly theory-changing, which is impressive since I donโt know how the author managed to get so many ideas in the first place. It’s initially confusing how everything is linked to everyone. Towards the end of the story, we get to see who the real killer was, and Iโm sure no one expected that, however, it fits perfectly.
A small problem was that I felt the author put too much evidence against everyone, and in the end, I feel some clues were unchecked, some leads were not followed up on, and some stories not match at all. It’s like: โOOOHHHH, So THATS why this was like this-โ and then suddenly, out of the blue โoh wait, no.โ
Otherwise, though, this book was one of the best murder-mystery-thrilller Iโve ever read. Would most definitely recommend it!
Well โfare thee wellโ, my dear readers! See you later in another review. Cheerio ๐
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Winter: Things I love (Then andย Now)
I grew up in Kolkata where winters meant cool mornings,cold nights but daytime required just a plain cardigan at most.
At nights, we looked forward to the lep/blanket which was a bright red colour ,hand-made stuffed with cotton and was taken out to be aired, well before the nights we needed them.
The weight of those comforters were way more than the modern ones and the cotton in them kept us warm as toast.
Then came those Darjeeling oranges .Sweet tangy and just the right amount of skin on them.Absolutely binge worthy.Lake market in South Kolkata had some of the best fruits on offer and my mother ensured we never fell short of fruits.
Winters also meant the long Christmas holidays which a Convent school usually has.But since I studied in West Bengal board,the final exam of the year happened in December just before Christmas holidays. That meant, that particular school holidays were really happy holidays.
My mother was working at a Central Government office with her work place at Park Street .Come winter holidays, Park street , New Market and Kolkata herself was decked up in all holiday fineries.Christmas decorations and lights made the entire place look like a giant party zone.
My sister was working there from 2018 to 2023 .While coming back from work in December, she shared pictures and videos of all those fairy lights.That made nostalgia nostalgic!
While there was a school picnic at Victoria grounds or Nicco park where we shared ,fried rice,chilli chicken,dosa, ice cream and cold drink without thoughts of calories,seed oils or food additives family picnics always had home cooked food.My mother and aunts remembered to cook and pack luchi, aloor dom and sandesh for breakfast ,followed by plain rice ,dal,aloo bhaja ,mutton kasha,mishti for lunch even if we visited the Alipur Zoo .As kids it was a no worry zone about what to eat.We ate everything .
My friend Rukmini’s mom Debjani aunty,took us out for Christmas Eve dinner and a stroll down Park Street.Those were good times.
As a grown up now winters are full of picnics in mango orchards at Malda,New Year’s Eve dance party at our Kolkata apartment complex,winter vacation with family and friends, winter mornings in the village home,winter garden full of Petunia, Marigold,Rose.
I still love curling under a blanket with a good book .
New memories in old places and new .That’s what seasons of life is about.
What’s your favorite winter memory?Let me know in the comments below.
11 Favorite Books of 2024 Perfect for Christmas Gifting #BlogchatterWrapParty
Books are my all time favorite.Authorsย are my friends as well asย teachers and the biggest reason behind everything I do.If there’s something I want to learn,I always research a book on the topic.But this year was amazing. I managed to read a large number of both fiction,nonfiction,children and books for Adults.I also bought books on painting and that’s always a pleasure .
My favorite books for 2024 for Adults
- Under the Influence by Malini Agarwal
- Enid Blyton the Biography by Barbara Stoney
- The Treasure Hunters by Enid Blyton
- Career of Evil (Cormoran Strike 3) by Robert Galbraith
- Little Book of Serenity by Ruskin Bond
- Bonus book –Human body for Kids
For kids curated by my daughter who is also a contributor on the blog -Young Reader Book Review
- Frost Heart book 2 Escape from Aurora by Jamie Litter
- The Midnight Gang by David Walliams
- The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill (one of my favourites too).
- Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief (Percy Jackson Book 1)
- The False Prince by Jennifer A Nielsen
Dr.Amrita’s Favorite Creators Who Inspire 2024 Edition! #BlogchatterWrapParty
It’s fun to follow artists and creators.Better yet learn from them .They are our online muse,inspiration, Coach,teacher,mentor and in this age of social media, much of it is free.The best way to give back to these creators is, to buy their books,support their work,listen to their podcast and be their social media warriors.Giving a big shout out to creators who inspire with their creativity,authenticity and persistence.
My favorite creators of 2024 are:
Joanna Penn of the Creative Penn :Author Podcaster and an amazing woman.She is a complete author writing fiction,nonfiction, audiobooks,using AI,doing self publishing,managing her own online store and author entrepreneurship, on a superwoman level.Check out her website or her podcast Creative Penn on your favourite platform.
itzginia my sister and myย baking inspiration. The creative cook in our family whose many delicious sweets ,savouries ,bakes and cakes not only make up family legends, but inspired me to become a full time cook on my spare time.Now my entire family bakes and cooks regularly and after the COVID pandemic we never employed a cook again!
docdivatraveller a beautiful doctor,writer and an exemplary mommy she lights up my instagram feed on days I want to just feel inspired and travel the world.Mandira balances work,life,mommying and creative with grace and humility that’s a rarity in these times.
Monnerisms Floral meets beautiful women .That’s the style Mona Biswarupa paints in.Simple,elegant,graceful,nature inspired and gorgeous women .You will get them all on her feed.Wish she would teach me someday.
duttaanushree I took an Art Course by her and you can see what I painted here.Reach out to her and follow her feed for divine traditions in art form.A wonderful teacher who helps you delve deep into the art form while keeping alive your unique Creativity .
Malini Agarwal is much admired and her book Under the Influence is one of my top picks for 2024 .If you are a creator, yoy must give this book a read.
2025 Resolutions orย Creative Goals Plans?#BlogchatterWrapParty
3 personal goals for 2025?Some of them are truly personal and can’t be shared but for the other’s here goes.
2025 Personal Goal
Stop procrastination.
That’s also known as cud chewing in less polite language.It’s crucial to stay vigilant about this as it’s very easy to wallow luxuriously in the land of day dreams and doing nothing.I am a professional day dreamer while I moonlight as an ENT surgeon.
Exercise more
I love walking ,swimming, running in the sea beach,gardening ,going for nature walk,strength training ,calisthenics and yoga.All of them are fun and absolutely feel good.But the most effortless is gardening. When I garden I forget to worry about how many calories I burn ,it’s more fun and helps me easily get into the flow state.
More protein in my diet .
Since I want real food eggs and fish are my favorite protein source.Nowadays I am focusing on a hero protein for each meal and take it forward after eating my fish/egg/chicken.I love milk,home made chana/cottage cheese and curd.But eggs win hands down for versatility and ease of cooking.I batch cook boiled eggs for eating and nowadays free range eggs from our village are my favorite.
3 Creative Goals for 2025
Write more .I am working on the discipline part for the last 10 years .My number one personal goal is what needs work ,even here.You can read about my
Publish more Audiobooks. I published one(Krishna Misra and the Mysterious Movie Star)and working on a second one.But this takes time.
Paint more and learn more from my favorite creators on Instagram .Like I learned to Paint Calm and paint the God’s of Mithila .
The best part of the trying to do more with less
Learning how to find the fun and creative in the daily grind is my forever goal .My husband is the inspiration behind that.
Why I wrote a letter to the Universe?
Writing a letter to the Universe?Does it work?
I wrote this blog post several years back ,but I think this is something that needs revisiting. You cannot ignore the power of your own mind.If you can dream it and plan it(and it doesn’t harm anyone),you can do it.
I dreamt of gardening, trees and my own kitchen garden and since 2021 it’s happening a little bit at a time.Its wild when I think about it ,but true .
Read the blog post too or share with a friend.