Watching You: A Novel Paperback – August 6, 2019

Very good, suspenseful readingQuick read as it dress you into plot.

“I’ve been watching you. All along. Watching everything you do...” - Watching You.SYNOPSIS: Melville Heights is one of the nicest neighborhoods in Bristol, England; home to doctors and lawyers and old-money academics. It’s not the sort of place where people are brutally murdered in their own kitchens. But it is the sort of place where everyone has a secret. And everyone is watching you. As the headmaster credited with turning around the local school, Tom Fitzwilliam is beloved by one and all- including Joey Mullen, his new neighbor, who quickly develops an intense infatuation with this thoroughly charming yet unavailable man. Joey thinks her crush is a secret, but Tom’s teenaged son Freddie- a prodigy with aspirations of becoming a spy for MI5- excels in observing people and has witnessed Joey behaving strangely around his father.One of Tom’s students, Jenna Tripp, also lives on the same street, and she’s not convinced her teacher is as squeaky clean as he seems. For one thing, he has taken a particular liking to her best friend and fellow classmate, and Jenna’s mother- whose mental health has admittedly been deteriorating in recent years- is convinced that Mr. Fitzwilliam is stalking her. Meanwhile, twenty years earlier, a schoolgirl writes in her diary, charting her doomed obsession with a handsome young English teacher named Mr. Fitzwilliam...”- Watching You.REVIEW: Lisa Jewell is one of my favorite authors! I have only read a couple of her titles so far, but have enjoyed every one. This book is quite the thriller, full of plot twists and secrets. In addition, in the book we read from three narrators (Joey, Jenna, and Freddie) so we get to see all different perspectives. This also lends well to the thriller and mystery, since each person knows something that the others don’t, and everyone is watching each other. Also, each character has their own “stuff” going on outside of the main mystery, so it helps the reader connect to the characters more and get to know more about their personalities. I rated this book four stars because I enjoyed it! However, there were a couple things (which I can’t mention due to spoilers) that I still had questions about at the end of the book. Also, while I enjoyed the ending, I wish it was a little more dark or more shocking. I did not guess the end of the thriller, but wanted something a little more.Each of the main characters in this book were great. They all were so well done, that I came to like each of them in their own ways. Also, they tended to take turns that I wasn’t suspecting, and they each were dealing with their own problems throughout the course of the book. It’s hard to pick a favorite character with this one because they all play off one-another and mesh together so well. I do wish that some of the side characters were developed a little more. They were so interesting and I wanted to know more about them!Overall, if you are looking for a quick, page-turning thriller, pick this book up! Lisa Jewell is an amazing writer and her books flow so well. I look forward to making my way through all of her other titles!

This is a review of Lisa Jewell's WATCHING YOU: A Novel. I found this book hard to put down. As with all this author’s books, they always grab me from the start. This book was no exception.This story starts with a murder and evidence found. It introduces Joey Mullen and her husband Alfie Butter, in the beginning as major characters in the book. They are moving into her brother’s home, to live temporarily with him, Jack Mullen, a heart surgeon at Bristol General Hospital and his wife, Rebecca. Their lives soon intertwine with neighbors in the posh Bristol community of Melville Heights, a row of 27 Victorian villas, which were all painted bright colors. Jack and Rebecca live in the cobalt blue house #14. Joey was so moved and excited to take Jack up on his offer of moving into their attic room and helping Rebecca with the baby. Rebecca is several months pregnant. Joey had always admired the homes that graced Melville Heights. As a young girl they were a sign that she was close to home. She fantasized about living up there and now found herself doing just that in the cobalt blue house.As the story goes on, it introduces you to several of the neighbors who are key to this mystery of subterfuge among the locality of Melville. A headmaster of their local state school, Tom Fitzwilliam, an elder, nice looking, gentleman and his family, wife Nicola, with their son, Freddie. They live in the canary yellow villa, two doors down from the Mullens. Another neighbor in the vicinity, who lived in the village, with her daughter Jenna was Frances, a small blonde middle aged woman who is obsessed with fear that she is a target of stalkers. Tom Fitzwilliam being one of them.As the story goes on we are drawn into the drama of these neighbors, each dealing with issues of their own, until towards the end, when they all come together tied up in a neat little bow. This novel keeps you guessing until its conclusion about who is the victim and who is the murderer.Simply a joy to read. Kept me up quite late last night, trying to finish it. I gave this book a rating of 5 out of 5 stars because I thoroughly had a good time reading it. Examine it and determine if you concur with the same conclusion.