A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is a popular mystery novel released in 2019 by Holly Jackson about a 17-year-old girl named Pippa Fitz-Amobi who reopens a case about a girl, Andie Bell, who had been murdered five years previously, allegedly by her boyfriend Salil Singh. It was presumed he murdered her when he sent a confession text a few days after Andie’s disappearance, and then had been found dead by suicide. Andie’s body was never found. Pip had decided in her head that Sal was innocent, and she was going to prove it with the help of Ravi Singh, Sal’s younger brother. As this happened in her very town, Fairview, Pip follows leads in the case which unfold numerous twisted dark secrets about Andie Bell and the town itself, ultimately putting her life in danger. 

AGGGTM had great success, so it was followed by two books, Good Girl, Bad Blood, and, As Good as Dead. Now in 2024, Netflix has released a show adaptation of the book series, starting with season one that follows book one. The show itself received good ratings and popularity, however, its viewers were a mix of members who both read the books beforehand and didn’t read the books beforehand. I am part of the audience that read the books beforehand. 

Compiled into six episodes, about 52 mins each, we get to view the story and put faces to names as we learn about what really happened to Andie Bell and Sal SIngh. There are numerous similarities and differences. For the most part, the basis of the story is the same, from the timeline, chronological order of events and characters, all the same. On the contrary there were differences, mainly small details that only someone who read, and enjoyed the book would’ve picked up on. My personal favorite difference is that in the book, the story takes place in Fairview, Connecticut, however in the show it takes place in England, and all the characters are British. 

Here are some Bethpage High School students’ opinions on the show. Starting with Senior Julia Baumbach, who only watched the show said “ I found the show super interesting. I finished it in two days, I would highly recommend it.” I agree with Julia, but let’s get Senior Gianna Gravelli’s opinion, as someone who both read the trilogy and watched the show. “ I definitely enjoyed the show, and it is better than most books to show adaptations, however I think the book is more interesting.” 

Let me know your thoughts on the book, show or both in the comments!