First Frost Josh

I'm a huge fan of the young adult thriller genre, and few have done it better than Holly Jackson in the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series. Released in 2021, As Good As Dead caps off the trilogy in unexpected and increasingly macabre ways. Jackson takes the reader on a twisting journey of trauma, morality, and difficult choices that will leave them questioning just how thick the line between good and evil truly is. The bulk of my review is dedicated to my thoughts about the book's "big twist", so take this as a first and final spoiler warning ! I discuss key plot points from all three books in the series, so if you haven't read A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder , Good Girl, Bad Blood , or As Good As Dead , I would recommend giving them a read first!

I finally figured it out—why they still build houses with fireplaces. I mean, when you think about it, it’s 2021. We have furnaces—hell, the Earth sets itself on fire every other day now. I think we’re a bit past the days of huddling around a fire, swaddled in blankets that resemble a well-intentioned chokehold more than a snuggly embrace. And before you start talking my ear off about aesthetics or prestige or property value—I get it. Fireplaces certainly look nice. At least they used to. Gone are the fireplaces of yore: roughly laid brick and stone framing a chasm meant for a roaring inferno that would warm your toes from across the room. These days it’s all about minimalism—avant-garde—clean lines—monochromatic. It's too clean. Lacks character. The fireplace too. You’re really gonna have parties just so you can show it off? You paid how many extra thousands for an ornamental façade you’ll never use? It might as well be electric—you could eat off that hearth! But look, I’ve tho...