I absolutely LOVED this book!! I very rarely give thrillers 5 stars and I was thinking I was tired of thrillers, because lately so many of them felt predictable, but this was just WOW!! Incredibly well developed characters, super tight plot, excellent pacing and an unforgettable ending!! I recommend this book!

Entrancing, irresistible and compelling!

WATCHING YOU by LISA JEWELL is a clever, unputdownable, and suspenseful psychological thriller novel that immediately drew me in and had me totally engrossed and interested right from the very first page.

The opening scene had me so intrigued in finding out who was murdered and why that I was racing through those pages as fast as I possibly could. We the readers aren’t privy to any of that information and that is definitely the strong point of this novel. The process is a slow-burn as we get to know all the characters and their motives. Plenty of questions started swirling around in my mind and where some of those questions are answered the motive behind those actions aren’t revealed to us until the end.

LISA JEWELL delivers an intriguing, character-driven, well-written and plotted story here with interesting and engaging characters that was told in multiple points of view along with police transcripts intertwined into the storyline. The police transcripts were a favorite and such an effective way for us to get a firsthand look into the investigation and pick up on some of those clues.

I absolutely loved that this book created so many questions and the subtle clues are perfectly interspersed in the storyline but piecing them all together was definitely making my head spin. So I decided that I was just going to read and let the story do the job for me. And, I am so glad that I did because what transpires in the end was absolutely stunning and so totally worth it!

Publishing Date: December 26, 2018

Norma’s Stats:
Cover: Eye-catching, intriguing, and effective! Absolutely love everything about this cover and such a fantastic representation to storyline.
Title: Intriguing, suspenseful, and an absolutely perfect representation to storyline.
Writing/Prose: Well-written, engaging, absorbing, captivating, and skilled.
Plot: Suspenseful, fascinating, engrossing, steady-paced, held my attention fully and extremely entertaining.
Ending: A twist ending that wrapped up everything perfectly! Loved it!
Overall: An irresistible, intense, surprising, suspenseful, and fabulous read! Would highly recommend!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Lisa Jewell for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

Man I just love Lisa Jewell her books just suck you in form the first page. They seem so real I found myself kind of creeped out reading this book! I loved the character development and how fast paced the plot is a great thriller for any mystery fan! I’ll read anything she writes!!

Unfortunately, this mystery-thriller fell quite short of my expectations. I was hoping for a lot more action and page-turning excitement, but we just didn't get that with this book.

For one, I wish the main characters weren't so obviously flawed. It honestly ruined the book for me because I couldn't stand them. Especially Joey, whose weaknesses and ignorance is blinding.

It's also kinda creepy writing about children being obsessed with a 51 year old man...I just couldn't get over that. Every chapter from Jenna made me cringe.

I will say that I really enjoyed reading the police logs because that's where all of the mystery and cliffhangers were. Everything else was just weird obsession over a man.

The ending was good considering I didn't predict who the murderer was, so I give it credit for still being able to have a shock factor. Not many mystery-thrillers can do that! I really just wish there was less disturbing obsessions...

This beauty comes out at the end of December and you are going to want to read it! This is my second Lisa Jewell book and like I said after the first one, The She Was Gone, I don’t know why I am so late to the party!

There is a dead body in one of the houses in Melville Heights. (And I have to admit I thought it was one person but was so wrong) The story takes us between the police questioning a few people, to the stories of the people living there. They all seem to revolve around Tom Fitzwilliam, the headmaster at a local school. There is Joey, who recently moved in with her brother and pregnant wife. She feels a connection to him. There is Jenna, who’s mother has some serious mental issues and believes that Tom is watching her ever since a vacation they took. Jenna also has serious doubts about Tom’s character around female students. Tom’s son, Freddie, who keeps an eye on the comings and goings of the street, feels like he both loves and hates his father. Then there is Nicola, Tom’s wife, who seems to try to be something she’s not for him. It all swirls and ebbs around and around until you start to not trust everyone and isn’t that the most delicious part of reading?!

This is such a page-turning read and I could not wait to see how it all played out. Each of the main characters are written with such clarity and you really could feel what they were all about. I really loved the progression in Freddie. And who doesn’t love that little tidbit at an ending that makes you go AHA! I will read more and more from this wonderful writer, at least until I finish her library, and wait for more.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for this fantastic book.

*4.5 stars*

Holy moly macaroni! I was happy to be approved for an ARC of this via Netgalley, but I had no idea how intensely I'd be sucked into the world of Melville Heights and Tom Fitzwilliams.

Immediately we find out that everything is not what it seems in this posh neighborhood. Joey is there to find herself after a sudden marriage, but instead of putting down stable roots, she's immediately drawn to Tom, the man everyone seemingly admire. Tom's teenage son is constantly watching people from his room, taking pictures, and making notes. And Jenna's mother is convinced that a secret mob of people are out there, trying to drive her crazy.

And who exactly is Tom, the charismatic "fixer" of schools, the man who sweeps his family into a new city every few years because of his career? Is there something darker on his agenda?

It was fascinating for me to go into this book with presumptions about who these people were, only to be steered, through strong story-telling and character development (yay!!!) to wildly different conclusions. The whole novel was intensely interesting, and heartbreaking in sections as well.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

I was hooked from the opening crime scene. I really wanted to know what happened and how everything got to that point. There are a few twist and while a few might be more obvious it was still intriguing all the way to the end. I would recommend this book.

I enjoyed reading this book. It had a good story to it. I liked the variety of characters in it. I have read another book by this author and liked it too. I hope to read more books by this author.

What do you do when no one is who you thought they were? The famous "rescue " head master sent in to change low achieving schools is not the shinning star everyone seems to think. It seems that everyone in the neighborhood is watching and making assumptions about their neighbors but who knows the truth that will solve the murder of the head master's wife?

I’d like to give this book an outstanding reciew but I can’t because I’ve only been able to review the first 4 chapters.

From what I read, the book starts out slow. And told from several different 3rd person POV. I’m not a huge fan of 3rd person, but if executed right I don’t mind.

It felt like the book was all over the place in some parts. To be honest there wasn’t much that I liked let alone loved.

I’ll give it 3 stars out of 5 because I know the author has written better books.

I received this ARC from the publisher, author and Netgalley in return for a honest review. Thank you.

I have loved many books by Lisa Jewell so I could not wait to read this. The premise was interesting and from the beginning, I did not know where this story was going. I loved the use of the police interviews interspersed throughout the book. There were a lot of characters to keep track of but I liked most of the characters and found myself invested in the story. However, I enjoyed her prior books more and felt she was so great at bringing a strong emotional component to the story, which is more rare in thrillers. So going into this story, I expected that same emotion but didn't feel it as much. Overall, I enjoy this writer and will read everything this writer does but this book doesn't fall in my top picks from her.

While I wouldn't classify this as an intense psychological thriller, it was still a page turner for me.
I'd say it's a bit out of the box as well, and has some quirky characters, which for me made this all the more entertaining.

Told from 3 POV's, the story revolves around the residents of a small neighborhood:
There's Joey: recently married and trying to find her way in life but not being very successful.
And Jenna: A very likable character who is a student with a mother who has mental issues.
Last is Freddie: The son of a popular Headmaster of the local school. At first I found him to be a bit creepy, but he soon grew on me as more backstory was revealed.

Incredibly well written plot that like an onion, slowly peels back layer after layer, until the lives of these characters are shown to be intricately woven together. What results from the past rains down in their future, with an ending that I didn't see coming!

Highly recommend!

ARC provided by NetGalley

This is one of those books that I tried really really hard to like, but I just could not get into it. Lisa Jewell is hit or miss for me, sometimes I really love her stories, and sometimes I can't stand them.

"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 is the second novel by Lisa Jewell that I read, the first was When She was Gone, after having read this last book I have been left with the desire to know more about her work.

Watching you is a suspense novel that tries to wrap us in the day to day of an English neighborhood, where each person who lives has secrets and is aware of the other.

The story begins with a murder but the reader does not know who it was, nor for who was killed, nor the reason why they commit it. I love books where you can spend the whole plot trying to find out the end and this manages to surprise you, this was what happened to me. Lisa left me surprised with the final twist, I did not expect it.

The plot is counted from several points of view, the characters are not likable, I can not connect with any, but even so, it seemed an interesting book to read.

In conclusion is a quick, entertaining reading that keeps you stuck to the plot. I will definitely read more books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and Lisa Jewell for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. #NetGalley #WatchingYou

Thank you to Atria books for the free review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This was an extremely fast read for me. I found the pacing to be good. I also really enjoyed the multiple viewpoints in this novel. While the novel really centers around Tom Fitzwilliam, the reader doesn't see his point of view but instead, this book focuses on those around him that are influenced by his decisions. I think this was an interesting perspective to take because of how it influenced me as I was reading. I wasn't sure what assumptions to make about this character, which I liked. This is what ultimately had me hooked into the story line. 

I did find this story somewhat predictable. I wasn't super surprised by the ending but felt that it was a great one for the story. I think it worked well and that the epilogue tied up the ending as best as possible. 

If you're looking for something that is fast-paced and an easy read, I recommend checking out this book on December 26 when it is released.

For some reason I kept getting confused between two characters, I guess I can't keep track of characters whose names start with the same letter? So that was just a personal issue for a couple of chapters but I did kind of forget who was who a couple of times throughout the book. Overall a good little mystery!

3.5 stars

This was good, but definitely not my favourite book by Lisa Jewell. I find that Jewell's novels are often a cut above many other psychological thrillers. She writes well and her characters are well developed. Watching You is definitely well written and tense, but I figured out what was happening quite early on and I'm not sure the denouement worked as well for me as in some of Jewell's other books. The story focuses on a group of characters in a small town in England. Joey - aka Josephine - and her new husband are living with Joey's brother and his wife. Joey - and every other woman and teenage girl its seems - is attracted to her neighbour, Tom. Tom, his wife and son have recently moved to the community, where Tom is the new head of the local school. There's a suggestion that of something sinister about Tom. But is there? My favourite characters were Tom's son and another teenage neighbour. Jewell is always strong in her depiction of children and teenagers. I didn't love the adults or ending. But my 3.5 star rating reflects that it was still worth reading. And I'm looking forward to Jewell's next book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy.

I am a big fan of Lisa Jewell and she did not let me down with this highly addictive psychological thriller. Her characters jump off the page. Teenage drama, teacher infatuation, and secrets galore made for a great read.

*will post in additional online publications upon review.

Tl;dr: Billed as a thriller/mystery, Watching You is neither, but it is one hell of a piece of psychological fiction that manages to implicate the reader as much as it does the characters in a fascinating look at assumptions.

Watching You is set in the (fictional) town of Melville Heights in Bristol.

We have:

Tom, school head extraordinaire, brought in to turn around the local public school. Tom is very, very good at his job, turning around school after school. Sadly, this requires him and his family to move every few years, as there's always another school that needs him. Tom is handsome, though not outrageously so--what he has is charisma. That's not found in:

Nicola, his wife, a largely silent woman given to attempts to fit in with every move that happens, along with bouts of exercise followed by periods of depression. There's also:

Freddie, Tom and Nicola's almost fifteen year old. Freddie wants to be a spy, he thinks, and isn't sure that his father is as wonderful as everyone else seems to think because his mother devotes herself to his father, often at Freddy's exclusion, and his father seems to never notice or care about it, or her, or Freddie. But that gives Feddie plenty of time to watch their new neighbors (though he's not especially into terms like voyeur or stalker, although both titles fit him, imo) Anyway, Freddie especially likes looking at two of his prettiest new neighbors:

Joey, mid-twenties, newlywed to Alfie after a whirlwind romance in Ibiza, and now currently living in increasingly nonmarital bliss with him in her brother Jack's home with his pregnant wife, Rebecca. Joey fell madly (impetuously) in love with Alfie, but is intrigued by Tom from the moment she sees him, and he, in turn, seems interested in her, although she's never quite sure...

Which brings us to: Jenna.

Jenna another object of Freddie's attention, is a student at Tom's new school, and although she does her best to present a polished look to the world, at home her life revolves around placating her mother, who is convinced there's a large group spying on her--and that Tom is their leader. Jenna just got to me--trying so hard to be what she thinks people want to see while dealing with a father who seems very happy to be a distant part of her life and her mentally ill mother and how her best friend, Bess, has decided she's in love with Tom--who is, Jenna decides, spending a lot of time (alone time) with her. Oh, and her mother's theory that she and Jenna saw Tom in a rather odd situation during a long ago family trip turns out to be true and so:

What is Tom hiding?

A lot, but not what you think. (Kinda*)

What role does Joey play in what happens?

An important one, but not how you think. (Kinda*)

Is Jenna right to be wary of Tom?

Kind of.

Is anyone who they say they/act as they are?

Yes. And no.

That--perception--is the heart of Watching You, and it's very, very well done. Not only do the characters frequently think they alone see who someone else "really is," readers (or at least this reader did) will too. It's fascinating because, in the end every character is a mix of what they represent themselves as, but as something different as well. All the major characters, bar Jenna, who emerges shining as true and bright as the self she's kept hidden under her "normal" guise, are fascinating shades of gray, running the gamut from light to very, very dark.

Well, I sure sound enamored with Watching You--and I am, but it doesn't quite reach as far as it could have for several reasons:

--It is obvious who the murderer is. Like, they basically exist to be the murderer and it's frustrating because if you bill a novel as a thriller/mystery, then I expect some element of that to be there. And while Watching You is amazing as a study of appearance and perception, there's no ta da! moment/twist like I expect in a thriller/mystery. There's an attempt at one, at the very end, but it was expected as both an explanation/justification and while it worked okay, again, neither mysterious or thrilling.

--Freddie. He's my other problem. His behavior gets really, deeply creepy and then a reason for said behavior is presented and I was deeply uncomfortable with how it was wrapped in a romantic subplot. Because while yes, the reason behind Freddie's extreme interest in certain people can happen with those who have his explanation, it's something that actually needs to be addressed by more than just saying "look! explanation!" and moving on. (Of course, ymmv on this)

Having said all that, I do think Watching You is worth reading, because Ms. Jewell writes smoothly (has done for almost decades now--I still remember tearing through Thirtynothing back in the day (!)--and manages to keep a large cast of characters moving nimbly through a fast paced plot, which is no small feat. *Plus there's something so satisfying in reading about people making assumptions about each other's "true self" and finding out that everyone is a mix of who they say they are and who they really are, while realizing that you, of course, made assumptions too.

Although I had a little difficulty following all the characters and the back and forth, I found the storyline interesting and compelling. And I certainly didn’t guess the ending, or at least the last chapter. A hit for Lisa Jewel for sure. Thank you for the opportunity to read it!