Is it worth watching?

Holly Jackson's bestseller was published in January 2021. A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, has captivated readers with a gripping mix of mystery, romance and a pinch of horror. Recently, the young adult novel was adapted into a TV show on Netflix and BBC, telling the story of Pippa “Pip” Fitz-Amobi (played by Emma Myers), who sets out to investigate a five-year-old murder-suicide involving two teenagers in the setting their school project.

The case? Andie Bell (India Lillie Davies) and Salil “Sal” Singh (Rahul Pattni), two 17-year-olds in love before a disappearance, a murder confession and a suicide change their world forever. Pip, who appears to have no connection to the two other than having seen them on the last day of their lives, has always doubted the account of events, believing that Sal could never kill anyone. Sal died before his conviction and was unable to prove his innocence or guilt, leaving Pip several questions unanswered. As she delves deeper into the mystery, she begins to discover the truth about it Really happened on that fateful April night.

As a long-time fan A Good Girl's Guide to Murder has a special place in my heart. It was the first crime series I had ever read, and at the age of 15, the story kept me up all night, eagerly awaiting the release of the next book. If you asked me what my favorite book was, I would answer hands down A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. So maybe I'm biased when it comes to the book and the TV show. However, if you know the readers at all, their answers would remain similar to mine. Read the book first.

Books enchant readers with their phrasing, sentence structure and beautiful language. It understands a character's emotions because it can describe them, while also helping readers understand what's going on. Books or any original source are just that: the Original Source. It is created the way the author intended it to be created and presented the way the author envisioned it.

That's not to say Holly Jackson didn't have power over the TV show. As executive producer, it was a priority for her to keep the spirit of the book alive and told in the adaptation deadline: “I made a lot of notes on the scripts to get them in good condition and to bring them closer and closer to the books. I saw my role as a representative of the readership, because without them we wouldn’t be here.”

However, with each adaptation, changes were inevitable. Not every detail of the book could be captured on screen, but the show remained true to the core of the novel.

An example of the difficulty of this adaptation was the nickname Sarge. In the series, Pip works with Ravi Singh, Salil's younger brother, to solve the case. Ravi gives Pip several nicknames, all in the realm of a police detective or sergeant. Sarge, short for Sergeant, appears several times as a nickname for Pip. This nickname is particularly important for readers. Jackson, wanting to keep such an important nickname, fought to keep it on the show. Eventually it actually made it and appeared in a teaser of the show before its release.

However, after the show aired, viewers were frustrated with the changes in the show. Holly Jackson wrote back in her Instagram comments, telling fans that she doesn't have full control over certain changes. In their defense, one X user wrote:

In my experience, the only way to truly appreciate the show for what it is is to first understand the book. Understanding the characters, plot, and message of the novel will give you a deeper analysis of the entire story and put you right in the middle of the action. In addition, you will have a lot of fun reading the novels! The maps and images of the texts in the books make it a truly immersive experience. Maybe you'll go home with a new favorite novel.

Unfortunately, in an age where TV shows are being canceled and remakes or adaptations are being put on a pedestal, it can be difficult to find TV shows that live up to the quality that viewers have come to expect from them. However, I prefer books to TV shows, but that doesn't make them any less worth watching. It can be an exciting experience to discover something new and play detective. And who knows? Maybe solve the case before she does.