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Precocious teen girls solving mysteries is a trope I’ll never tire of thanks to Nancy Drew and Veronica Mars. Lucky for me and fans of teen sleuths everywhere, it’s a very popular genre. The fact that Holly Jackson’s thrilling YA trilogy, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, has been turned into a series on the BBC and Netflix is just the proof in the pudding. YA thrillers like A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder are here to stay.
It’s a genre that, much like many women’s (admittedly often questionable and sometimes problematic) obsession with true crime, taps into our primordial desire to find meaning and order in the world. Violence is so often senseless, and girls and women are all too familiar with the fear that constantly hangs over our heads because of it. But in stories like these, we get to see girls take back the narrative—and the power—from the people who would take it from them. Not to mention, maybe if the teen sleuths in these YA thrillers like A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder can save themselves and their loved ones, or at least find out the truth, then maybe we can, too. That’s not always something we get in the real world.
Whatever your reason for loving YA thrillers, these eight books like A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat and up after your bedtime. Just make sure to keep a light on.
The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson
One obvious place to start is with another YA thriller written by the author of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. In The Reappearance of Rachel Price, the mystery is even closer to home. The disappearance of her mother has been hanging over Belle Price’s head since she was two years old. Now, with the making of a new documentary, all that hurt and anger is forced back to the surface. She’s tired of everyone obsessing about the mother who left her behind. But when a woman reappears claiming to be Rachel Price, Belle is more suspicious than relieved. What does this woman want? And why is her return tearing the Price family apart?
The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe
You most likely appreciate a headstrong teen protagonist if you’re a fan of Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, so you’ll absolutely love Nora O’Malley. Nora has been a lot of different girls in her lifetime. That’s no surprise considering she’s the daughter of a con woman. Nora’s been trying to figure out what being herself looks like for the past five years, ever since her older sister helped her get out and put her dangerous step-father behind bars. But now she’s gotten caught up in a bank robbery. She’s a hostage alongside her girlfriend and best friend/ex-boyfriend. Normal is probably the last thing she needs to be right now—at least if she wants to get them all out of this unharmed. Telling the truth hasn’t always gone well for Nora in the past, though. This time might be even worse, though. This time, it might cost her her life.
Once you’ve read The Girls I’ve Been, be sure to read the equally thrilling sequel The Girl in Question.
This Book Kills by Ravena Kaur Guron
When the most popular student at an elite school is killed in exactly the same way as a character in Jess Choudhary’s short story, all her efforts to keep her head down and make it through high school without incident go out the window. Now Jess finds herself the main suspect in a murder investigation. Even worse: the murderer sends her an anonymous message thanking her. If Jess can’t figure out who used her story as inspiration for a real murder, she might wind up in prison for a crime she didn’t commit. That is, if the killer doesn’t get to her first.
How to Find a Missing Girl by Victoria Wlosok
Much like in A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, a true crime podcast plays an important role in this YA thriller. Before she went missing, Heather’s podcast about the disappearance of Stella Blackthorn made waves through her Louisiana town. Especially for her ex-girlfriend Iris, Stella’s younger sister. Iris didn’t appreciate Stella’s disappearance—and the police’s refusal to look for her—being exploited for entertainment. Especially when Heather broke up with her over Iris’s own investigation into what happened to her sister. But now Heather is missing too, and the police think there might be a link between the podcast and her disappearance. So does Iris. It’s not her first time looking into a missing person’s case, but this time she’s determined to uncover the truth.
Hollow Fires by Samira Ahmed
Just like the drive to clear Sal Singh’s name motivates Pip’s investigation in A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, Safiya’s burning desire for the truth after she discovers the body of a dead boy propels the story in Hollow Fires. Safiya Mirza dreams of becoming a renowned journalist, which means facts and not feelings must drive her writing. But when she stumbles across the body of a 14-year-old cosplayer, whose first attempt at making a realistic jetpack had him labeled a terrorist, she can’t help but let feelings take hold. After all, it wasn’t facts that got Jawad Ali killed. Her investigation into his life and death blurs the lines of what everyone thought they knew.
Heart-Shaped Lies by Elizabeth Agyemang (November 5)
Kiara, Priscilla, and Nevaeh have nothing in common. Kiara is internet-famous Tommy Harding’s girlfriend. Priscilla is his on-camera co-star, who wishes Tommy would just admit to Kiara what goes on between the two of them behind the scenes. Nevaeh is a good girl who would never dream of dating someone who’s already taken. But when Tommy’s social media accounts are hacked, revealing his cheating, the three suddenly have much more in common than they would’ve liked. Before any of them have time to adjust, Tommy is dead. His body is found on their class trip to a Florida theme park. Tommy’s social media accounts are still running, though, and the secrets it’s set to reveal have only just begun.
When Mimi Went Missing by Suja Sukumar (November 19)
When Tanvi’s cousin disappears just after they’ve had a falling out, Tanvi doesn’t know what to think. Literally. She’s woken up to strange injuries and no memory of what happened the previous night. All she has is the incriminating photo she took of Mimi and the bully who’s made Tanvi’s life a living hell. Tanvi is determined to find out what happened. But as her memories begin to come back and the police claim to be searching for a killer, Tanvi has to confront the terrifying possibility that the person who killed her cousin is none other than herself.
If You Can Hear This by Faith Gardner (November 19)
Aspiring journalist Posey Spade loves asking questions, but there aren’t a lot of mysteries to be solved in the small town of Wild Pines she and her family just moved to. There’s only an AV Club full of slackers she hopes to somehow inspire. But when the club’s sponsor, Ms. Moses, goes missing, Posey and the AV club decide it’s up to them to solve the mystery. Wild Pines has more secrets than Posey initially realized, though, and as she digs into them, she’ll realize that it’s easier to solve a mystery together than alone.
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