Lisa Jewell’s latest, Watching You, is set in an upscale English neighborhood where everyone knows everyone and someone is always watching. When one of the resident’s is found murdered, the police are called to investigate. In doing so, they discover the long buried secrets of people who are not who we think they are. Told from multiple viewpoints and alternating between past and present.

Lisa Jewell is one of my favorite suspense writers. Her works consistently have an easy flow to them as well as being fast-paced and suspenseful. This was no exception. The many personalities of the multiple characters were well-described and enticing and there was an unexpected twist at the end. 4 stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley, Atria Books and Lisa Jewell for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

From the beginning Lisa Jewel’s new book Watching you had me captured. I love her writing and how she develops the characters in her books. I wanted to know where this book was going with the twist and turns it keeps you guessing. Would definitely recommend this book.

This was a great read. I flew through the chapters because I honestly had no idea where the story was going or how it would end. The author did an incredible job keeping all the main characters straight and unique to one another which can be challenging with so many people in the mix. I thought the interviews by the police that were sprinkled throughout really kept the plot moving forward (and your mind spinning!) I enjoyed the intertwining of the characters and how their relationship played out in the end. This is a great read and I would add Lisa Jewell on my list of authors to watch. Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC. All opinions are my own.

From the opening scene in the prologue, Jewell’s new book captures the reader and keeps them guessing straight through until all is revealed. There are too many suspects to count AND the reader isn’t even quite sure who was killed until much later in the novel, making this a true page turner! Would have preferred a little less language as it didn’t add anything to the story and was offensive at times. Otherwise, it was well done.

A compelling, twisty mystery with a "Rear Window" feel, this novel had me guessing well into the book. I loved the neighborhood feel, that everything was taking place within a few blocks, and there were a perfect number of altering perspectives to keep the book moving, interesting, and twisty. A worthwhile mystery to add to the cannon of good reads that aren't exactly formulaic or gruesome.

Tom Fitzwilliam is the new fifty something school headmaster who seems to be a magnet for the attentions of many of his female students as well as a young newly wed neighbor. He also is the focus of the ravings of the paranoid mother of one of his students as his son spends much of his time recording the comings and goings in the neighborhood. There is a murder; who is it and who did it?

While the characters may not be the most likable, I did enjoy the book which is a quick read. There are teases and hints that are dropped as the story progresses from different points of view in this well written novel.

This is the second book I've read by this author and I have to say I have become a huge fan of her!

4.5 watching stars!

A cozy picture perfect neighborhood with bright colors that makes anyone want to live on this street. Behind closed doors... someone is watching and is watching always.

Joey and her husband Alfie have recently moved in with her brother to help get their lives sorted. Joey I feel like is going through something as she stumbles across her neighbor Tom Fitzwilliam. Tom is the headmaster of the local school and lives with his wife and son Freddie. Joey becomes OBSESSED with Tom... watching his every move and somehow trying to come up ways to run into him.

Sadly, someone is found murdered in this cozy neighborhood. Who is to blame and why? Everyone is forming their own opinions and a darkness is hiding behind one of these homes. A darkness that NO ONE will expect.

This book was fantastic. It was so addicting and kept me intrigued the entire story. Sometimes if there are too many characters... I tend to get confused. But Lisa Jewell did a very nice job painting each character and how in the end the stories were brilliantly interwoven with each of the characters.

I spot the final twist and murderer but the author gives you small hints that are played out nicely. This only intrigued me more to find out if I was right! :)

AND... that final final twist in the last page was just epic! :)

I highly recommend this novel!

Huge thank you to Atria and Netgalley who provided an arc in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Publication date: 12/26/18
Published to GR: 11/18/18

As many compelling psychological thrillers do, this one begins with a crime scene. Soon we observe the discovery of a red tassel and a bit later the owner of said tassel. . . and dun, dun,dun . . . we are hooked! Told from the POV of a young woman, a teenage girl and a teenage boy we view events leading up to the horrendous event alongside transcripts of police interviews done directly following. With a neighborhood that harbors so many secrets, many a plot twist is in store.

Rounded up from 4.5 stars. Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this exciting thriller.

Wow! The very last page chilled me to the bone. This book was terrifically and terribly frightening on so many levels. Lisa Jewell immediately had me in her grips from the very first page until the very end!

Passion, paranoia, and obsession- In her novel Watching You, Lisa Jewell depicts the tragic misunderstandings that can result from their controlling influence. The main character, Joey (Josephine) Mullen, thinks she may have finally escaped her impulsive tendencies now that she has married and returned to settle down in her hometown. She hopes that a rewarding career and all the trappings of a stereotypical suburban life will propel her into mature adulthood. She soon discovers, however, that personal change is not so easily attainable. Forced to live with her successful brother and expectant sister-in-law, Joey takes an entry-level job while her husband tries to drum up work as a home painter. Dissatisfied and disappointed, she yearns for the excitement they had during their whirlwind courtship. When Joey sees an elegant, attractive older man during her commute, she feels an instant but unwelcome attraction. She keeps running into him, since he lives nearby and is the new headmaster at the local public school. Tom Fitzwilliam emerges as a central figure in the book, and much of the action revolves around him. Joey is not the only one drawn to this man. The schoolgirls are besotted with him, a paranoid neighbor is convinced that Tom is spying on her, and his wife seems to acquiesce to his every need. Only Tom’s own son and one female student at his school seem to be resistant to his charms. Tension builds as these two teens begin to uncover secrets from Tom’s past and temptations between certain characters prove irresistible. Interspersed throughout the book are police interviews, hinting that a deadly crime has occurred. Jewell uses the different perspectives and flashbacks to tantalizingly reveal the details. She keeps the reader guessing all the way to the end and turns assumptions upside down in a satisfying resolution. Watching You is a welcome addition to Jewell’s already admirable collection of fast-paced and deservedly popular novels.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for an Advanced Review Copy of this book.

It was hard to put my finger on why I didn't enjoy this book, particularly because there were so many aspects of it that were well-done. The author masterfully chooses her point-of-view character to maximize the suspense and mystery of the story and plants future gotchas well throughout the prose. The endings, both of the case at hand and the epilogue, are great and very satisfying. The pacing, for the most part, is also good.

My problem I think was that I didn't start off well. I found the beginning section to be pretty slow and it wasn't helped by my never really connecting or even liking Joey. All of the characters were interesting but I didn't feel invested in what was happening to them until much later in the story, if at all for some of them. (I did really like Jenna and Freddie though.) There are parts of the novel that seem dragging and/or repetitive to me, which slowed my pace and my interest. It's odd because the other, bigger pieces of the novel are very good but overall I found the book to be okay more than great. However, others seem to really like it and I would still recommend it to others based on that.

Note: I received a free Kindle edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher Atria Books, and the author Lisa Jewell for the opportunity to do so.

It is amazing what you think you know about your neighbors. You watch them come and go. You read about them in the paper. You chat at the local pub. But do you really know them? Freddie wants to be a spy and makes notes about many of his neighbors. But does he really know his own mom and dad? Spouses have been married for years and seem like they do not really know each other. There were so many twists and turns in this book, I never knew who could be watching at any given time. At times I loved many of the characters and then I would despise them soon afterwards. The world has become a crazy place and the people in Watching You have taken crazy to a whole new level. This book kept me riveted from beginning to end!

This is the second book from Lisa Jewell that I have read. I had high expectations on this novel since I loved Then She Was Gone. Lisa Jewell’s newest thriller follows a group of neighbors who live in this nice posh little area, but something isn’t right. The head school teacher, Tom Fitzwilliam, is loved and adored by everyone, but there are a few people who question his character. Overall, this was a mediocre book. The plot was intriguing, however, I wasn’t a fan of the writing style. The first half of the book was extremely slow. Some of the characters were outright irritating and I didn’t really care to know more about them. The ending was pretty good even though I felt like it was a bit predictable. I wouldn’t recommend reading this novel as there are so many other great thrillers out there.

Tom Fitzwilliam is the kind of guy that men want to be and women want to be with. Everyone loves him, he's a brilliant educator with the power to turn a school around just with his mere presence. He's amazing to just about everyone--including all the girls in his classes at school, all their moms and his new neighbor, Joey Mullen. From the beginning, the reader has to wonder. Is he really all that and more? Is that possible for anyone?
Joey is a an attractive young women who has just moved in with her brother and his pregnant wife along with her new husband, Alfie. Joey had thought Alfie was an Adonis from afar when she would watch him at the tropical resort they both worked at. But now home in the UK, he's kind of an under-zealous, dumb hunk of a man that she no longer knows what to do with. So of course she is in love with her accomplished, handsome and charming older neighbor.
Jenna is a young girl making the best of her situation. Her parents split and her mother is slowly--or not so slowly--descending into madness. Jenna spends her days trying to be both a normal high school girl and a caretaker to her crazy mom.
Then there is Freddy Fitzwilliam, Tom's high school age son. He's far smarter than his years academically, but quite unable to communicate with his peers. So instead, he watches everyone in the neighborhood from his attic window. He observes the comings and goings of the neighborhood and knows all the secrets.
I could go on. There are so many other richly drawn characters in this novel. Of course there is Tom's seemingly unhappy wife, Jenna's best friend Bess who may have more than just a schoolgirl crush and Joey's unfriendly and standoffish sister-in-law.
Some authors make a mistake by having far too many characters that blend together. However, Jewell has flawlessly drawn all these characters. Watching You really shines when the reader gets to sit back and watch all the interactions.
One thing I slightly had issue with is Tom's perceived attractiveness. I know the type of man he is, I mean, we've all seen those guys. But it seems like all the female characters are actively lusting after him at all times unless they have a good reason not to. I thought that was a little strange. I mean, most people have a specific type. It's hard for one man to fit that for everyone. But hey, maybe he's the pants to this Sisterhood of Traveling Pants.
Watching You is a quick read, mostly because you won't be able to stop turning the pages furiously, with lots of satisfying twists and turns. This one is available December 26. So gift a pic of it to someone who loves a good thriller and it will arrive the next day.
Special thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for a complimentary e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This review will be published on my blog, Women in Trouble Book Blog on November 27, 2018,

I had the fortunate chance to read this early thanks to #netgalley. It is going down as one of my favorite suspense thrillers for 2018.

Watching You takes place in suburban England. Where the upper class live and nothing bad happens. It's a place where you may not know everyone, but everyone knows you because they are Watching You. What secrets are you keeping from your neighbors? Who was murdered and who could've committed such a crime in a place that is meant to be safe and for family?

From the very first page with a diary entry dated back in 1996, the plot that is set up is quite intriguing. It's forbidden and already brings into question an older English teacher. Then we fast forward to 2017 and all the "players" are introduced chapter by chapter. All the characters had me a little confused because each character really had their own story within the story of the murder. While the murder happened in March, we go back in time with the characters, building up to the climax of the murder. And each chapter is really a different POV of all our players. You must pay attention to each person and each detail. The murder in suburbia is what is at the core, but each character and their connection to one another is what ties the whole story together.

The English teacher (who is now in charge of turning around schools), his wife and son, a brother and sister living together along with their spouses, a few students from the school and neighborhood and their mothers and the investigators along with a few friends of the characters all come into play in this "whodunnit". We don't know who was murdered or who may have done it until the near end. But you will definitely keep turning those pages with bated breath waiting for the clear answer to pop up in the clues.

Lisa Jewell keeps you captivated with little teases and twists all throughout the story. Just when you're sure that one person holds all the answers, we find more secrets being kept by people that you least expect. Secrets are meant to be kept, but when love and family overrule that, what are you left with?

Watching You is a perfectly paced suspense that lays each thread down for us to tie together all the clues. It will keep you guessing until the end. And even if you figure out parts of the truth, I guarantee some aspects will not be complete until the very last page. While the epilogue was not exactly perfect and felt a tad bit rushed, it tied everything together and connected the past to the present.
I highly recommend this entertaining suspense novel with all the twists and turns.

Newlywed couple Joey and Alfie met while working in a resort abroad. Now they've come home to Bristol where they're temporarily living with Joey's brother and his wife in a prestigious neighbourhood. Tom Fitzwilliam, a headmaster who resurrects under-performing or troubled schools, his wife and son are also new to the block. Joey, who has concluded her marriage may be a mistake, becomes attracted to Tom. She is not the only one interested in the teacher. Student Jenna's best friend Bess has a crush on him. Jenna's paranoid mother is also fixated on Tom believing that he is responsible for a past crime.

While Joey and Jenna's mother are watching Tom, Tom's son Freddie is watching the neighbourhood and soon a shocking crime is committed.

It is a real page turner and is somewhat different from other suspense novels. No one in the book is villainous; the characters are mostly relatable people who are on the brink of making terrible (or just regrettable) mistakes.

I will suggest it to library patrons who are interested in domestic thrillers.

This is my second book from Lisa Jewell. I have read and really enjoyed I Found You. Unfortunately, I wish I could say the same about Watching You but I can't. I found it to be boring and drawn out. It got to the point where I wasn't sure if I would pick my Kindle back up to continue reading it. In the beginning, we know someone is dead but we don't know who or why. The rest of the book, it's a back and forth between all the characters with individual stories that should have given me the suspense I wanted but it fell flat to me and became predictable. Being a thriller addict, I really wanted to love this book but couldn't find the suspense I needed to get consumed with the story or the characters.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This is one of my new favorites! I’m a huge thriller/suspense lover (as you’ve probably gathered) and I’ve run into a lot of prolific authors whose books can by hit or miss. Lisa Jewell is an author that’s always consistent to me. A murder takes place in a neighborhood full of voyeurs and everyone’s a suspect. There was a twist or two along the way that got me and I loved the way the story was told. It opens with a police officer coming upon the scene, and then the story unfolds from the viewpoints of several neighbors. There are police interviews interspersed in the narrative, which I thought that was a fun addition. This struck me as a read alike for Big Little Lies. I’m giving it a 5!

Alfie and Joey (Josephine) met and married in Ibiza. A whirlwind courtship? Or on impulse due to infatuation?

The two go to live with Joey's brother and (pregnant) sister-in-law, Rebecca. Eventually, Joey (27) settles for a menial job at Whackadoo. Soon, Alfie bartends and does some painting and decorating. While at home, Joey takes notice of a man (Tom Fitzwilliam), a woman (Nicola - Tom's wife,) and their son, Freddie, as they arrive home.

At this point, the book brings police reviews (that will happen in the future) into the mix. Sometimes this can be quite annoying, but it works well in this read.

Joey develops a crush on Tom Fitzwilliam; he is 51 and the headmaster of the school in the area. From social media, it seems as if he is an excellent troubleshooter for underperforming schools. And... according to Joey's brother - a lovely man. After always seeming to run into him, Joey realizes that they may have a mutual fascination.

Freddie Fitzwilliam is at genius level, but not so much on the social front. He likes to take pictures through his binoculars (especially of pretty girls). This, in particular, of Bess and Jenna who live nearby. Then, he falls for Romona who becomes his new obsession. He finally gets the nerve to invite her to the big dance.

Jenna's mum is a picture-taker, too, but she is a member of an online conspiracy theory group. "Gang-stalking" - She most likely should be sectioned, but Jenna wants to complete school where she is at - her dad lives too far away.
Jenna remembers something about where she had seen Tom before. It was at the Lake District on a tour (when Jenna was 10). She recalls a woman shouting at Tom and cannot remember any more. Freddie remembers the trip, also.

Everything starts to come together when Tom tells Joey that her had to meet her at a hotel and "get it out of his system". This is where the whole world goes haywire!

Fascinating characters, exceptional plot and twists. This read is a MUST!

Many thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for a superb read!!!!!

Just who is Tom Fitzwilliam? Does anyone really know?

To the outside world he is a handsome, popular, successful man, but is he really all that?

Strange things always happen in the neighborhoods where Tom lives, and Melville Heights is no exception.

There is spying in the neighborhood by his son, there are women in love with Tom, and there is a neighbor, Mrs. Tripp, who thinks Tom is the cause of numerous strange things happening to her and has remembered something about Tom that happened a few years ago.

Could Mrs. Tripp be right about Tom and everyone else wrong thinking he is perfect? She doesn't give up.

Tom’s son, Freddie, is definitely odd and frightening.

There are other characters that play some major roles such as Joey who is a suspect in a murder investigation that occurred in the neighborhood and who has a crush on Tom Fitzwilliam.

WATCHING YOU is definitely a study in human nature with nosy neighbors being the focus. It seemed that everyone was spying on someone with Freddie being the major one.

As the book continues, the mystery about who Tom really is and who the murdered person is at the beginning of the book are slowly revealed.

WATCHING YOU has a lot of unlikable and odd characters, but that is what made it good and typical Lisa Jewell.

I was asking myself just who is anyone in this twisty, strange, but excellent thriller that had me wondering about all of the characters and what was happening.

If you enjoy Lisa Jewell’s books, you won’t want to miss reading WATCHING YOU.

The ending revelations are GREAT!! 4/5

This book was given to me as an ARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.