Summary
As Good as Dead concludes Holly Jackson's trilogy, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. Pip Fitz-Amobi prepares for college while struggling with PTSD, exacerbated by anonymous death threats. She investigates connections between a menacing stalker and a local serial killer believed to be apprehended years ago. Without police assistance, Pip works to solve the mystery on her own. This leads her through a complex network of deceit and danger, concluding the series.
Plot
In As Good as Dead, the final installment in Holly Jackson's A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series, Pippa Fitz-Amobi confronts a new mystery while managing PTSD from past events. As she prepares for university, she begins receiving alarming messages. These include online threats and symbols, including dead birds, echoing the signature of the DT Killer, a local serial murderer thought to be imprisoned. Pip suspects the real murderer is still free. She questions Billy Karras's conviction, citing coerced confessions and weak evidence.
Despite psychological challenges, Pip seeks police help but meets with indifference. She decides to investigate with her boyfriend Ravi’s support. They face escalating threats and revisit past unresolved cases.
The story shifts when Jason Bell, a respected community member connected to a past victim, kidnaps Pip. He admits he is the real DT Killer, having stopped murdering after his daughter's death. Pip kills Bell in self-defense using a hammer. In distress, Pip and Ravi plan to implicate Max Hastings, an adversary, for Bell's death. They create alibis and falsify evidence to mislead authorities.
As the plot unfolds, Pip navigates ethical dilemmas, transitioning from a justice seeker to someone driven by survival. Hasting is eventually accused of Jason Bell's murder, sparing Pip and Ravi from legal consequences, yet raising moral questions.
Characters
Pip Fitz-Amobi: The protagonist, a young investigator and host of a true crime podcast. Experiencing PTSD from past investigations, Pip reassesses her values and approach to uncovering the truth as she faces inner turmoil and danger.
Ravi Singh: Pip's boyfriend, who offers her stability and support amidst chaos.
Max Hastings: A character with a controversial past that complicates Pip’s moral decisions, questioning the boundaries between right and wrong.
Ms. Morgan: Pip’s psychologist, who provides support for mental health challenges, highlighting the importance of mental health care during crises.
Jamie Reynolds: Although a minor character, his links to past cases add depth to the narrative, affecting Pip’s actions.
Jason Bell: Previously introduced, Jason influences Pip’s understanding of justice. His role as the
Themes
As Good as Dead explores themes of trauma, justice, and morality. Protagonist Pip Fitz-Amobi deals with PTSD from past investigations, offering a perspective on how unresolved trauma affects mental health and decision-making.
The theme of justice emerges through Pip's disillusionment with a legal system that lacks accountability. This frustration leads her to cross moral boundaries in her quest for justice, illustrating the theme's moral ambiguity. Pip commits murder to protect herself and frames another, raising questions about the ethical limits of vigilante justice.
As the narrative unfolds, Pip's morality and psychological complexity come to the forefront. Her journey depicts a shift from a conventional moral compass to one influenced by survival and closure. Jackson presents Pip's actions as unsettling yet comprehensible, prompting reflections on human morality when faced with justice and security challenges. As Good as Dead encourages examination of these themes, questioning the distinction between right and wrong in an imperfect world. At the book's start, Pip is troubled by her past experiences and struggles with PTSD and guilt. She perceives herself as complicit in past violence, which leads to doubts about the justice system due to its repeated failures.
Pip becomes entangled in a dangerous conflict with a stalker, prompting a transformation from her initial persona. She shifts from being a "good girl" to someone skilled in creating strategies for survival and justice. Holly Jackson explores the impact of trauma on a young adult's moral integrity. Pip's journey examines conventional justice concepts, leading her to introspect on the ethical implications of her actions and the lengths she will go to protect herself and her loved ones.
Quick facts
Published in 2021, As Good as Dead is the gripping culmination of Holly Jackson's New York Times bestselling trilogy, 'A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder.
The novel features controversial plot twists related to the transformation of the central character, Pip Fitz-Amobi.
Pip suffers PTSD from past investigations and uses Xanax to cope.
The storyline connects Pip's stalker to a past local serial killer known as the DT killer.
Pip and Ravi attempt to frame antagonist Max Hastings for murder, sparking ethical debates among fans of the series.
Holly Jackson drew inspiration from true crime stories, podcasts, and authors like Stephen King in crafting the novel.
As Good as Dead departs from the whodunit conventions of the first two installments to reflect the darker elements and gripping pace of a thriller.
Readers expressed mixed reactions to the novel’s dark themes and open-ended conclusion regarding key character relationships.
The series addresses weighty themes such as trauma, justice, moral ambiguity, online threats, and the psychological effects of fear.
Pip runs a viral true-crime podcast that plays a central role in the story.
As Good as Dead is set in a fictional town in Connecticut.
The Audible audiobook is performed by a full cast of narrators, including Bailey Carr, Kristen DiMercurio, Robert Fass, Lauren Fortgang, Johnny Heller, Barrett Leddy, Shezi Sardar, Vassilea Terzaki, and Megan Tusing.
TV adaptation
Holly Jackson’s trilogy A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder has been adapted into a BBC television series of the same name. Adapted by Poppy Coogan, directed by Dolly Wells, and developed by Moonage Pictures, the series stars Emma Myers as Pip Fitz-Amobi. The first season, consisting of six episodes, was released internationally on Netflix in August 2024. A second season is in production.
About the author
Holly Jackson (1992-) is a British author of mystery novels. Her debut novel A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (209) was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fiction and named among the American Library Association’s Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults. It became a trilogy, culminating with As Good as Dead (2021), followed by a prequel novella, Kill Joy (2021). Jackson's work, often compared to true crime podcasts, blends suspense with youthful perspectives. She has also published two standalone YA novels, Five Survive (2022) and The Reappearance of Rachel Price (2024). Her debut adult suspense novel, Not Quite Dead Yet, will be published in 2025.
