Best-Selling Author’s Novel, Ranked ‘Readers’ Favorite Mystery and Thriller,’ Was Built on a Wild Premise

Author Holly Jackson released her latest novel, Not Quite Dead Yet, in July 2025. It was the first book she wrote specifically targeted to an adult audience, and it quickly became a massive hit.

Not Quite Dead Yet soon landed in the top spot on the New York Times hardcover fiction list, and it was chosen as a pick for the Good Morning America Book Club in August 2025. In addition, it also won a Goodreads Choice Award in the “Readers’ Favorite Mystery & Thriller” category for 2025.

The novel is full of twists and turns, and Jackson throws out a big one at the end of the first chapter: the novel’s protagonist dies. The book has a 4.0 rating on Goodreads, with over 192,000 ratings and 34,000 reviews.

The plot of the book revolves around 27-year-old Jet Mason, who is attacked on Halloween. She is badly injured, so much so that her doctor tells her she will surely die of an aneurysm within seven days.

Jet decides she will solve her own murder before she dies.

Reviews on Goodreads indicate that, as expected, Jackson packs Not Quite Dead Yet with surprising twists and turns. As much as readers have come to expect surprises in Jackson’s writing, she shared a light-hearted warning while promoting the book ahead of its release.

While announcing Not Quite Dead Yet as the Good Morning America Book Club pick for August 2025, Jackson teased, “There’s no twist that twists too far. Watch out, you can never trust me, guys.”

In describing her writing process, Jackson explained that she plans all the twists for her novels before sitting down to write. Her approach works.

One reviewer on Goodreads wrote, “I LOVE the concept. Holly Jackson’s most unique and highest stakes book [in my opinion].”

Another shared, “Who thought I would end up sobbing over a murder mystery? Holly, you’re gonna pay for my therapy.”

Someone else admitted, “I just can’t get over the cleverness of this premise.”

Jackson’s first foray into adult fiction has been a big success, but she isn’t done with young adult stories.

During her book club launch with Good Morning America, she said, “Of course,” she will go back to doing more young adult books.

Of the idea of leaving that genre behind her, Jackson quipped, “Betray my roots? Never.”

She added that she thinks she tends to sit “Very uncomfortably at the top of what is acceptable in young adult” novels. Jackson thinks that played a role in what she says was “quite a natural move for me” to write her first adult novel.

Next up for Jackson is the paperback release of Not Quite Dead Yet, which comes out on May 5. In addition, Season 2 of the Netflix adaptation of her book A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder premieres on May 27.

Jackson teases that Season 2 of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is “incredibly faithful to the book,” but she’s “had a lot of fun bringing it to life in a way that the book couldn’t ever be.”