Book Review - Dead Girls Walking

Dead Girls Walking
Author: Suzy Cox
Series: Dead Girls Detective Agency #2
Genre: Mystery, Contemporary | Young Adult
Release Date: 15th May 2014
Publishers: Much-in-Little
No. Pages: 320
Source: Review Copy - Much-in-Little
Rating: 
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The Dead Girls Detective Agency trilogy charts the adventures of teens in NYC, tasked with solving the mystery of their murder from beyond the grave. Lorna has been dead long enough to know the Rules. But that doesn't stop her showing up at her little sister’s high school production of Hipster Hamlet. But when she arrives, a lighting rig comes crashing down on the lead cast member mid-performance. All fingers point to Lorna’s little sister, Emma, and it’s up to The Dead Girls Detective Agency to find the real culprit. Unless Em’s not as innocent as she looks?

Charlotte wants to help Lorna prove her sister’s innocence, but she’s completely distracted. Not only is her ghostly-self suspended in this New York-limbo-hotel, she is having to deal with the fact that the very alive love of her life has moved on. And then there’s the cute dead boy Edison, who seems to be acting nice all of a sudden. But is Charlotte ready for a new boyfriend, and one with such a murky past?

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

After pleasantly enjoying The Dead Girls Detective Agency, I was pretty excited to see where Cox would take Nancy, Lorna and Charlotte next with their next murder, but what I didn't expect was for this book to have such a focus on all types of relationships and the fine line between the living the dead, not to mention that totally uncalled for cliff hanger which now has me begging for a copy of the third installment. Dead Girls Walking, like that of the first book wasn't without it's flaws, but it most certainly was still just as entertaining and enjoyable.

My biggest fear with this book was that the voice of the book would change from Charlotte to Lorna, considering there's a lot of focus on Lorna and her family in this installment, but I was very pleased to see it wasn't; there was still the wonderful quick-witted humour, snarky comments, girls drama and realistic grieving process which I very much enjoyed. Charlotte now, having been dead two months, is more at home at the Attesa and has become an avid member of The Dead Girls Detective Agency and HHQ, but is still quite emotional over the events that unfolded at the end of the first book, while Nancy is still the same little quirky nerd that takes the lead, but I liked most that this story gave a much more in depth look to Lorna, who in the first book, was dupped the ditsy blonde who likes bags and dress shops. It was wonderful to see how much Emma, her sister meant to her, and it was this that really highlighted how heartbreaking it must be for Lorna to be close to someone but not be able to comfort them, your own family; no amount of time being dead can help that pain, and I think I really began to connect with Lorna on a more emotional level and I could relate to her protectiveness. While I'm glad Cox didn't take the view point from Charlotte away, I appreciate that a large amount of the story was focused on her.

Much like in The Dead Girls Detective Agency, the second half was much better than the first, and after having been through that once before, I hoped that this book would get more into the murder quicker than the first, considering they actually saw the murder themselves, but the angle Cox took with introducing and 'living' side to the investigation really made for  an interesting turn in characters and in the rules. Fine lines were crossed, crushes developed and rules were most definitely broken between all the characters, and it meant everyone had more to lose, especially their current state in limbo. However, the touch of the 'living' investigation also meant that the girls didn't do their own investigating, or take on their own leads which was a shame. They didn't take on the fun elements the first book had, the possessions and the hauntings and it meant some of the quirkiness was missing. One of the plot twists in the end did help my overall feelings on the case, but on a level of enjoyment compared to the previous book, this one lacked a little.

What Dead Girls Walking didn't lack though was Edison. Oh Edison, I'm pretty sure it's abnormal and completely wrong to have a crush on a ghost, but his character was quite possibly my favourite in this installment. His character development from a reclusive teenager to a getting involved with the investigation and risking his afterlife for Charlotte was really pretty sweet. I could totally understand Charlotte's feelings of resentment and anger towards Edison, and I could understand Edison's confused feelings and faithfulness and loyalty to not speaking about what he shouldn't. Everything he did for Charlotte, looking for a second key, opening up to her, taking her to where he lived, he all created this depth to Edison that book one never had and it compliment the romance brewing between him and Charlotte too.

After The Dead Girls Detective Agency, I expected a little more from Dead Girls Walking, I wanted more murder mystery and I wanted more romance, and only one of those I got, however, the increased level of romance made up for the sluggish murder solving, as did the plot twists on the final pages. I'm eager to see whether Cox will take the third book to develop Nancy a little more, and I'm excited to see how this huge murder mystery will get wrapped up; who did it and why, and whether my hunch on Lorna's murder being solved too will happen, what the final pages events do to the girls, and whether Charlotte and Edison will finally give in to one another. If you enjoyed the first book, it's definitely worth going out and getting a copy of the this installment, because the third book sounds like one you don't want to miss.