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Five years ago Fairview High School senior, Andrea “Andie” Bell, went missing. Three days later the body of her boyfriend, Sal Singh was found in the woods, dead from an apparent suicide. Even though the body of Andie was never discovered, detectives assumed she was murdered by her boyfriend. It was an open and shut case. Since then, the residents of Fairview have treated the Singh family as social pariahs. Everyone believes Sal murdered Andie, everyone that is, except Pip Fitz-Amobi. For her senior capstone project, Pip decides to reexamine the case herself to try to find justice for Andie and Sal’s killers. Joined by Sal’s brother, Ravi, the two interview those closest to the two teens and retrace the last few days of their lives. When Pip starts to receive anonymous threats from someone involved in the murders, she may be closer to Andie and Sal than she ever realized.

Fans of Serial and other true crime podcasts will love A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. Just when you think you have figured out the mystery, Jackson delivers twist after shocking twist. This is a novel that will have students engaged throughout the learning process, and eagle-eyed readers will be able to piece together clues and bits of foreshadowing to solve the case before the novel’s big reveal. 

Jackson, Holly. (2020). A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. New York, NY: Penguin Random House.

Eighteen-year-old Jill Charron had everything going for her: good friends, an acceptance letter to Yale in her pocket, and a school trip to Italy to look forward to. That was before the accident. When Jill wakes up in the hospital after the car she was driving crashed into a brick wall in Florence, the last thing she can remember was attending her school’s production of Grease. That was over six weeks ago. Disoriented, she begs her mother and doctors to let her best friend Simone visit so that she can piece together her trip to Italy. However, Simone died in the accident. Even worse, authorities suspect that the accident might have been part of a murder-suicide attempt. That couldn’t be possible though, because Jill loved Simone. She would never do anything to harm her best friend. Before Jill can truly process what has happened, text messages from Simone and Jill are released to the public. National media begins to pick up the story, and suddenly Jill’s perfect reputation is being torn apart over social media. Slowly, as bits and pieces of her Italian trip start to come back to her, Jill realizes that her friendship with Simone wasn’t as perfect as she thought it was. Even so, did she really murder her best friend?

Although a bit predictable, With Malice is a suspenseful novel that will captivate teen readers. Good girl Jill is villainized by the media, but all is not as it seems. Because social media plays an important part in the narrative of the story, students and teachers will be able to discuss the roles perception and morality play in our society.  

Cook, E. (2016). With Malice. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.