A Good Girl's Guide to Murder books in order
The show adapts three novels over three seasons. The books also hold Kill Joy, a prequel novella, and the scenes the series trims, such as Layla Mead's catfishing plot.
- 1
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
2019 · A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (BBC Three and Netflix), series 1A 17-year-old true-crime fan takes on a murder from five years earlier in her own town.
- 2
Good Girl, Bad Blood
2020 · A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, series 2 (2026)Pip, who swore off sleuthing, is pulled back when Jamie Reynolds vanishes on a town memorial night.
- 3
As Good as Dead
2021 · A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, series 3 (2027, final, announced)Pip, struggling with guilt after a journalist's death, starts researching the stalker who menaces her.
- 4
Kill Joy
2021 · No adaptation announcedA short prequel novella, set shortly before the events of the first book.
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What the books give you
Only in the books
The books add Kill Joy, a prequel novella set shortly before the first book, and fuller side plots such as Layla Mead's catfishing subplot in Good Girl, Bad Blood.
What the screen changes
The series keeps the English town of Little Kilton and makes Pip's family resist her investigation. Season 2 removes Jamie's father and shortens the catfishing plot. Season 3, the final one, is set for 2027.
Show differences (spoilers)
In the book, Andie's body is in an old septic tank; in the series, Becca has placed Andie just beneath the surface of the town itself.
Editions
- 1
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder deluxe paperback boxed set
The three novels in a deluxe set, Delacorte Press.
- 2
Good Girl, Bad Blood, hardcover
The sequel in hardcover, 416 pages.
More by Holly Jackson
- 1
Five Survive
2022 · six teenagers on a spring-break RV trip, stranded on a South Carolina road by an unseen sniper
- 2
Not Quite Dead Yet
2025 · a woman with a week to live hunts the man who attacked her
If you liked it
- 1
One of Us Is Lying
Karen M. McManus · 2017 · four students in detention become suspects after a classmate dies
- 2
Truly Devious
Maureen Johnson · 2018 · a true-crime fan at a Vermont school tries to solve a decades-old kidnapping
- 3
We Were Liars
E. Lockhart · 2014 · a girl with a head injury pieces together a summer on her family's private island
Quick answers
Which book is each movie and series based on?
| Movie or series | Book |
|---|---|
| A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2024, series) | A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2019) · six episodes; BBC iPlayer in July 2024, then Netflix in August 2024 |
| A Good Girl's Guide to Murder season 2 (2026, series) | Good Girl, Bad Blood (2020) · six episodes; released 27 May 2026 |
| A Good Girl's Guide to Murder season 3 (2027, series) | As Good as Dead (2021) · final season, four episodes; announced for 2027 |
In what order should I read A Good Girl's Guide to Murder?
Read A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2019), then Good Girl, Bad Blood (2020) and As Good as Dead (2021), the three novels of the series by Holly Jackson. The short prequel Kill Joy (2021) is set just before the first book. The BBC and Netflix series adapts one novel per season.
What book is the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series based on?
Series 1 (2024) is based on the first novel, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2019). Series 2 (2026) adapts Good Girl, Bad Blood, the second novel, and series 3 (2027) adapts As Good as Dead, the third and final one.
How many A Good Girl's Guide to Murder books are there?
Three novels and one novella. The novels are A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2019), Good Girl, Bad Blood (2020) and As Good as Dead (2021). Kill Joy (2021) is a prequel novella set shortly before the first book.
Is there a third season of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder?
Yes. The third and final series, which has already been filmed, is set to premiere in 2027. It adapts As Good as Dead in four episodes, while the first two series had six episodes each.