A review by dawnilton
As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson

mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

OK so here's the thing. If I read this book isolated then the events in this book are amazing and so interesting to read. I would have loved this book. But since this book is part of the series and we know every single thing that Pip stands for. Everything that happens in Part 2 goes against the first two books.  I understand the direction Holly Jackson wanted to take with Pips character progression and her loss of innocence and her moral compass. I get it. It still doesn't feel right tho.
If Pip would've escaped and tried to fight her case without the help of the police then that would've been in line with the rest of the series. AND the character progression would have still worked.


I understood Pip's PTSD due to the the events in book 2. But I couldn't understand how she could turn to such unhealthy coping mechanisms. I was very hard to read and I considered dropping the book because this is not the Pip I knew. My question is did Pip just get over PTSD after everything that happened in Book 3? It really seems impossible considering that
she's all alone now AND she literally murdered someone.
But there's no mention of it... 

I could guess that
Jason was DT
waaayyy before the reveal. What I didn't expect was for Pip
to get captured.
My heart was racing throughout that entire section. I cannot believe that Pip and Ravi
came up with a whole plan to cover up the murder and to pin it on Max within 12 minutes. Thats insanity.
But Pip abandoning everyone who helped her at the end was didn't make any sense. Every one knows that Pip is so close with her friends and family. Seeing her suddenly distancing herself is actually more suspicious. 

I LOVED the full circle moments we had within this book. You can clearly see that Holly Jackson had thought of everything right from the beginning of book 1.
Andie's real motivation behind her actions, Jason's movements when Andie was killed, Pip using the phone trick when taking pictures at McDonalds, Pip making the same choice that Mr. Ward did
. Through these moments you can really see the dramatic shift in Pip's thinking.

So, rating this book is a bit complicated. If I think about this book isolated from the series then its easy 5 stars. But if I think about the first two books as well as this book. Then the rating drops for me - 3 stars. 
I get that Holly Jackson is trying to show the effects of PTSD on a person and how much it can change them. I get it. You can clearly see Pip's transformation throughout the series. So I get it. 
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