A Good Girl's Guide To Murder #2

Twenty years after a baby is stolen from its pram, a woman is murdered in a care home. The two crimes are somehow linked, and a good bad girl may be the key to discovering the truth. Edith may have been tricked into a nursing home, but at eighty years young, she's planning her escape. Patience works there, cleaning messes and bonding with Edith, a kindred spirit. But Patience is lying to Edith about almost everything. Edith's own daughter, Clo, won't speak to her. And someone new is about to knock on Clio's door.... and the intensions aren't good.

This story centres around three women. The story starts off slowly, but it soon picks up. Three suspects, two murders and a victim., all connected to the baby that was taken twenty years ago. The story is told from Edith, Clio, Patience and Frankie's perspectives. The ending of each chapter has something that makes you want to read on. I thought the second half was much better than the first.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #PanMcmillan and the author #AliceFeeney for my ARC of #GoodBadGirl in exchange for an honest review.

A baby stolen from a supermarket. A murder in a care home. But these two crimes are somehow linked!
Edith was tricked into signing her house away and living out her days in the care home. With the help of patience, a young hardworking woman, she is planning her escape, but both are lying and secrets are starting to reach the surface.
But the women must solve a mystery with three suspects, two murders and one victim.
Will they find out what happened to the baby, and how they are connected?
Well Alice has done it again, and created another twisty, addictive, breathtaking novel. This one is slow to get into, but definitely becomes interesting exploring motherhood along with all the ups and downs. We have 4 povs, and a shocking revelation. All the characters have their secrets and have links to the others, which was not very clear from the beginning. As it all starts connecting, the excitement of this novel becomes intense.
“The world is full of people who are good at being bad, and people who are bad at being good.”
The book kept my attention the whole way through, Alice knows how to grip her audience from the beginning. It's better to know as little as possible about this book, so i would say just read it.

Good Bad Girl is another gripping book from Alice Feeney. All of the characters are female but that really only occurred to me after I’d finished it so this is by no means a feminist driven novel. We hear the viewpoint of various women – Edith, aged 80, in a care home, her estranged daughter Clio, Frankie who is a prison librarian and Patience who has left home abruptly at 18.

The reader realises early on that all their lives are entwined in some way but just how is revealed bit by bit with various great twists along the way. There is also an occasional chapter set on Mother’s Day twenty years ago when a baby is kidnapped. I had various theories about who the baby was but was still caught out by the intricate plot.

I did struggle occasionally with the dialogue between the main police officer and the suspects as the police officer was disparaging, sarcastic and just rude at times. It didn’t sit well with me as I think any police officer behaving like this in 2023 is unlikely to stay in their job long.

With thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An enjoyable read. Excellent storyline that keeps you guessing throughout. Well written with subtle hints that bring the characters together.. A must for holiday reading. It will appeal to a wide audience and be very successful.

Overall a rather bitty telling of the tale. The chapters were short and the POV was swiftly chopping and changing. To my mind this never allowed the tension to build. It was an easy to read story with an interesting plot.

Sometimes bad things happen to good people, so good people do bad things...

I love Alice Feeney books and this one did not disappoint! The book is told in multiple pov's but can be confusing at times as its hard to link them up but it all comes together with a shocking end! This book is definitely for fans of psychological thrillers and is packed with suspense. This book unfortunately is not my favourite of the authors but well worth reading. Thanks to netgalley & Panmacmillan for sending me a copy of this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is a brilliant book and one I’d highly recommend.
It’s a combination of a family drama mixed with a crime thriller and I loved it!
The book begins with a baby being taken from her pram in a supermarket. Even though we don’t know who the Mum is, there are chapters about the loss of a baby.
Now I’ve started this review it’s really hard to write without giving too much away, as this story has many layers.
The story centres around Edith who is in a care home and is a great character and Patience who is her carer is very close to Edith.
I’ll leave it there and let you enjoy this brilliant book as I don’t want to spoil it.
Thanks to Pan MacMillan and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Good Bad Girl by Alice Feeney is a captivating domestic suspense thriller that explores the aftermath of a baby’s abduction twenty years ago and a murder in a care home. The lives of Edith, an eighty-year-old determined to escape the nursing home, Patience, a caretaker with secrets, and Clio, Edith’s estranged daughter, become entangled as they uncover the truth behind the crimes.

Good Bad Girl is a captivating domestic suspense thriller that may require some patience at the beginning. While the book starts off slowly, it gradually builds momentum and hooks readers with Feeney’s trademark twists. The narration in the third person initially creates a sense of detachment, but as the plot unfolds, the personal struggles and hidden motivations of the characters come to light. Feeney’s exploration of themes like postpartum depression and the complexities of motherhood adds depth to the story, making it more than just a suspenseful thriller.

Although I was able to anticipate some of the plot twists before the characters themselves, Feeney’s skillful storytelling and intricate plotlines kept me engaged throughout. The last 40% of the book is particularly gripping, as all the puzzle pieces fit together, delivering a satisfying conclusion that ties up loose ends and leaves a lasting impression.

Overall, Good Bad Girl is a testament to Alice Feeney’s ability to craft a gripping domestic suspense thriller. Despite a slow start, the book rewards readers with a thrilling and emotionally resonant tale. Fans of Feeney’s previous works will appreciate the unique blend of suspense and exploration of complex themes. With its satisfying conclusion and lingering impact, this novel is a must-read for anyone seeking a suspenseful and thought-provoking novel.

3.5 stars 🌟

*sometimes bad things happen to good people, so good people have to do bad things*

Alice Feeney is definitely brilliant at writing twisty and plot driven thrillers!

The only reason I couldn't rate this higher than 3.5 stars is that the storyline is quite Confusing, there is so many POVs and lots to take in, which can make it hard to remember whats going on and who is who.

But I did love the premise of the story and thought it was well written, Alice Feeney fans will definitely love this

The follow-up too Daisy Darker took just a few chapters to convince me I had another winning read in my hands; absolutely compulsive, an immensely compelling narrative and distinctly drawn characters with some razor sharp edges which I loved. It's really up to the reader to decide who is the good, or bad, of the four main women in the story, any could probably fit the title role (well, rule one out purely on age!) I particularly enjoyed feeling the various strands of this very fine mystery being woven together and not feeling quite clever enough to guess what was about to drop - this is a fine attribute! - and then that bombshell moment when I was so wrong, too. So cunning. There are powerful little gems of observation scattered throughout which often give pause for thought, too, and they always enhance, never detract from the story. I

With thanks to the publishers, Pan Macmillan, for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

This book was amazing. It was a thriller that had many point of views that I couldn’t figure out how they came together until the very end. When it was revealed how they did come together I was shocked by how well they linked and how well written this story was

Books like this are the reason I enjoy reading thrillers. Good Bad Girl is a page turner and kept me gripped throughout. The story is told from multiple points of view and centres around Mother's Day and relationships between the various mothers and daughters in the book. I found all the characters were intriguing and the novel is packed with suspense in not knowing who has done what or who knows what is going on. There were a couple of good twists. I recommend this novel to fans of psychological thrillers.

Good Bad Girl - Alice Feeney

I was totally hooked from the first chapter, this was such a fast-paced thriller! 👀📚

Told from three POVs, the novel is packed-full of lies, plot twists and family betrayals. I read it in one sitting, I literally couldn't put this one down! Every time I thought I'd figured out what was happening, there was another reveal or twist 😂

Definitely recommend this for fans of Lisa Jewell and/or Harlan Coben.

Thanks to @netgalley and @panmacmillan for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review ✨

#goodbadgirlnovel #alicefeeneybook #thriller #thrillerreads #bookreview #netgalley

20 years after a baby stolen from a stroller, a woman is murdered in a care home. The two crimes are somehow linked, and a good bad girl may be the key to discovering the truth. With every reason to distrust each other, the women must solve a mystery with three suspects, two murders, and one victim. If they do, they might find out what happened to the baby have disappeared, the mother who lost her, and the connections that bind them.

This book felt like a slow burn to me. Nothing much really happens until towards the end, which made the book hard to get into. I feel like it focuses more on building the characters up and their developments rather than focusing on the plot, which didn’t feel as strong, There are 4 POVs in this (Clio, Patience, Edith and Frankie) which don’t make a lot of sense until the story further develops and we find out how they all connect to one another. I didn’t like or dislike the characters - if I had to pick a favourite, I’d probably pick Edith as she was the most interesting.

I do wish that certain aspects of this book like post partum depression and child loss were explored more. For this book to work for you, I definitely feel like the police and prison aspect to this book, needed more research because the things mentioned in this book would never happen in real life. I just found a lot of things in this book predictable, so I wasn’t as surprised when things started to unravel. I also wasn’t the biggest fan of how the time periods were done as it would often go back 20 years and then to current day, which was confusing. I did find the ending to be quite strange and it didn’t make total sense to me. Despite this, I still enjoyed the story, but not as much as other Alice Feeney books I have read.

⚠️ CWs: profanity, derogatory language, alcohol use, murder, grief, child death, postpartum depression, mentions death, pandemic, excrement, physical assault, child abduction, vomiting, homophobia, abortion, child abuse and neglect & animal cruelty ⚠️

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for the opportunity to read this book!

What a great read. The book opens on Mothers Day and this is a recurring theme. A mother shopping with a 6 month old baby, berating herself for her lack of motherly feelings, she is struggling with motherhood and all it entails but when the unthinkable happens, and the baby is snatched, she is distraught. This event took place 20 years ago and in the present we follow the lives of four women. Frankie is in her late 30’s and has been a prison librarian for 10 years, Patience is 18 years old and works cash in hand in a care home for 12 hours a day where she has met and befriended Alice, an 80 year old woman whose daughter, Clio a therapist, put her in the care home against her will. The book is written in short chapters and told from the POV’s of these four women, mainly in the present but with some flashbacks to the time the baby was taken.

Briefly, when Clio receives a call from the care home saying they need her to come in she is shocked to find her mother is missing and the care home manager has been murdered. The police have three suspects for the murder!

This was a really well constructed novel with some brilliant red herrings that I can’t share without fear of spoilers, but believe me they were good. I thought I knew how all the different characters were connected but I was in for more than one shock. Looking back the clues were there but I missed so many, and I normally don’t, the whole picture is so cleverly hidden. I enjoyed this a lot, entertaining, full of twists and turns this story of mothers and daughters was a cracker.

After loving Daisy Darker, I had high hopes for this one but I was disappointed. It was an interesting storyline, but very predictable. I also struggled because I really disliked all of the characters. I do like Alice Feeney’s writing, however unfortunately I didn’t love this book. Some parts of the storyline also felt really unrealistic, and it felt like some parts happened how they wouldn’t happen in real life. I know this is a fictional book, but the parts that felt unrealistic were the police procedures. I am disappointed that I didn’t enjoy this one more, but I’m looking forward to reading more from Alice Feeney in the future.

Alice Feeney 'Good Bad Girl'.
Due to be published 3rd August.
'Bad things happen to good people- sometimes good people have to do Bad things' a brilliant way to sum up this thriller. If reminded me a lot of Lisa Jewell. The story is told through each chapter having a different character telling their side of events. Three suspects, two murders, one victim. Its got so many layers and plot twists, I love it when a book keeps me guessing. I didn't expect the ending. A great 'can't put it down' book. Not sure why I haven't read her other books but great to find a new author to follow 😍

Thanks to Netgalley and Pan for the ARC of this book.
Absolutely loved this book. The characters are amazing and so lifelike. Fell in love with Edith she was so sweet. The way the story was constructed was very very clever and the stories all joining together was so well conceived. The only unlikeable person was Jude and luckily he got exactly what he deserved in the end.
Will certainly be looking for more books by Alice Feeney.

Thank you to Alice Feeny and @panmacmillan for allowing me to read and review this ARC. Another amazing 5 star read from Alice Feeny that literally pulls you in from the first chapter and keeps you hooked throughout. An amazing example of a true psychological thriller as every time you think you have something figured out there’s another twist!! 10/10 recommend!! Good Bad Girl is out 3rd August 2023.

A fan of Daisy Darker, I was pleased to be given the opportunity to read and review this. A twisted tales, as I expected, with multiple narratives and two time periods (twenty years apart) focusing on mother's and daughters. Complex and tense, the reader learns how their lives intersect, involving murders and a missing baby. Well paced and plotted with engaging characters, the novel explores families and betrayal in this gripping thriller, which I didn't want to our down!