Not Quite Dead Yet Review: Holly Jackson's magnum opus
Upmarket fiction is generally my favorite. For those who don't know book category jargon, the simplest way to put it is: commercial is plot-focused, upmarket is character-focused, and literary is prose-focused. That's an oversimplification, but the point is, I didn't think Holly Jackson's novels would keep hooking me in so easily. This is the fourth novel of hers I've read, with The Reappearance of Rachel Price becoming one of my new favorite novels, against all odds (and taking into account her overuse of "get physics"). Anyway, I can't wait to glaze this book, Not Quite Dead Yet, and compare its strengths and weaknesses to her other books in today's Brighton's Bookshelf review.
I don't really think I have any justifiable, rational complaints about this book. The only things were: 1) many men are afraid of the dark, not just Billy—my brother was literally almost assaulted at a park—and 2) as a lover of rose gold who literally is trying to save up for a rose gold laptop currently, her description of no straight men liking rose gold as part of the mystery was wild. That made me laugh a lot. She saved herself with Billy and the humor; otherwise, we'd be beefing, Holly Jackson.
Half-jokes aside, I've got no complaints. I think The Reappearance of Rachel Price still has higher highs for me, but this is one of those rare books that I've got so few complaints that I have to make up crotchety, sentence-level nitpicks. So let's move into the positives.
One thing I've really noticed in Jackson's bibliography so far is that each book nails it across the board, but each project has had a clear focus. I don't know if Jackson specifically intended this, but the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder books (at least the first two) feel very much like procedurals. I felt like the reveals were just solid, but the investigation was the best part. For The Reappearance of Rachel Price, the process is interesting, but the reveals were firing on all cylinders for, like, the whole final 30% of the book, making it one of my favorite and most satisfying third acts of any book I've ever read.
While I've kinda liked every character in the previous books (Pippa, Rachel, Ash, and especially my GOAT Ramsey are highlights), this book does so much better at the characters and emotions than her previous works, which may be why she claims this as her best work so far. I might have to be inclined to agree that this is her magnum opus, even if my sensibilities and the bizarreness of The Reappearance of Rachel Price can't be beaten for me as my personal favorite.
Both Jet and Billy are straight-up awesome characters. Jet's sarcasm was so much funnier and likable than Pippa's and Bel's for me. Obviously, they're different characters, but Jet is just a hardcore girl boss done right. Pippa's great, and Bel is a hyper-flawed, pretentious, insane, crazy character, but Jet's so easy to root for. With the very first page, you know she's gonna die, but when she does, you realize just how wonderful the character and journey are in a much deeper way than before.
And Billy? He's Jackson's best character so far, in my opinion. I'm straight as an ironing board, but I almost caught feelings for the guy. He's so lovable and supportive, but in a way that feels realistic and not one-note. I felt like Ravi and Ash were good, but Billy's the full realization of what they could've been. They're all pretty similar characters in different fonts, but that's okay. Jet is also slightly similar to Bel and Pippa, but not in a way that took me out of the story, even if I would probably differentiate my characters a little more personally.
But that doesn't mean the characters are the only draw. The premise was fully realized to a T, in my opinion. The delayed-murder premise perfectly creates ticking-time-bomb tension, a reason for Billy and Jet to reunite in their beautiful romance that made me cry, and for Jet's humor to shine through. I laughed out loud multiple times at Jet's memory loss jokes, and I'd love to see more of that in her next book. Jackson continues to cook with her titles, as Not Quite Dead Yet just oozes Jet. Some books disappoint me with their titles, but not Jackson's.
I do love the passive approach, though. The mystery aspects were also great. The procedural elements were more interactive than The Reappearance of Rachel Price but less than A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, and while the reveals and mystery were less mind-bending and interesting, the way all the mystery is written and presented is the best yet. The final twist is revealed so much faster and has fewer layers than The Reappearance of Rachel Price. Still, the unique way everything is presented and the deep emotional layers make it easily up there with that book. I don't want to spoil anything, obviously, but all the mystery is revealed in a special chapter that's very different.
There's also an emotional interlude between the last two chapters that made me emotionally break. It was so good! Like The Reappearance of Rachel Price, the reveal takes you through the whole emotional spectrum—I was listening to the final chapter on the way to volunteering at the nearby assisted living center. I was tearing up, screaming at the audiobook, and hitting the steering wheel so hard with satisfaction that I bruised my hand and accidentally honked near an old grandma, giving her the jump of a lifetime. Just happy I didn't send her into cardiac arrest—this book almost did in its penultimate chapter when Billy is consoling Jet, though. I was almost gonna give the book 2 stars for where it went for a second, but it ended up making the conclusion 10 times more satisfying to have that emotional red herring.
The Brighton's Bookshelf Verdict
Brighton's Bookshelf Score - 9.5/10
Letter Score - S+
Not Quite Dead Yet continues to prove that Holly Jackson is a master of mystery novels. She's one of those commercial fiction writers that I want to see try their hand at something upmarket, because I'd love to see how she'd translate her command of the craft there. I'd love to see a genre blend. This book might still not be my favorite book of hers, but there's a reason she calls it her magnum opus—because it is. The characters, mystery, emotions, and prose all come together to be one of the most refined, enjoyable mystery stories ever written. If Jackson keeps up the steam, she might start to rival Agatha Christie and Kevin Sands as my current GOATs—that would be an insane bar to clear, but she's got a talent for her genre.
Interested in checking out some of my other Holly Jackson book reviews? Check them out below!
Author Bio
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