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.

I'm between 4-4.5 STARS

My love affair with the Lisa Jewell novel goes back years, and I actually have my UK blogger friends to thank for it. Before her books really took off in the US, I received copious recommendations from Facebook groups stating that Jewell's novels had become a staple in their reading repertoire, so I hastily headed over to Book Depository and searched through her blessed backlist. I believe my first of her books was The Girls in the Garden, but I've also enjoyed I Found You, And Then She Was Gone, The Third Wife, etc... Well, you get the picture. To say that this latest book was my most anticipated 2018 release would be an understatement; I would say I'm relieved that it delivered, but there was never a doubt in my mind that I would enjoy Watching You

In typical Jewell fashion, this book begins with a bang, and questions are immediately arisen in the readers mind. A large cast of seemingly unrelated characters doing seemingly unimportant things follows, but as expected, these individuals are drawn into a sinister web of lies, trauma, and murder. The chapters alternate between various POVs (mainly Joey, Freddie, and Jenna), interspersed with police transcripts of varying interviews for the murder described in the prologue. While the first 2/3 of the book is a slow burn, it is far from boring or dull; the tension slowly ramps up to the point where I had sparks coming from my finger tips turning the pages so fast in the final countdown (err. 100 pages that is). The letter written just prior to the epilogue was a truly wonderful touch; it answered many questions I had throughout and added an emotional touch that gave credibility to a certain character's actions.

As always, Lisa Jewell has provided a satisfying character study into the darker side of human nature. There are lots of twists and turns, and some that are easier to spot than others, but it is such a satisfying read. Can I humbly recommend this as a post-Christmas/holiday purchase for my North American friends? It comes out on December 26th and would be THE best use of those gift cards that you know you'll be receiving. <3

Lisa Jewell is one of my favorite authors. I was so excited to be approved by Netgalley and Atria Books to be able to get my hands on this eARC! Once again Jewell did not disappoint!

This book was different from the others. It was a slow start for me and it seemed to take me awhile to actually get into it, despite the fact that from the get-go we knew a murder occurred.

This book alternates character viewpoints along with quite a few characters, so I quickly learned that reading it 15-20 minutes at a time when I had a chance was not an option. Normally I have no issues picking up where I left off in a book, but with this I was confused and had to re-read a few pages back from where I left off.

Once I found bigger chunks of time to devote to this thriller it was fun and exciting reading! The cast of characters is diverse, interesting and I think every reader can relate to one or more in the story. Over the course of the book we begin to see how all the characters relate to the murder and the wheels start turning as to who could have done it. The plot was complicated enough to keep me intrigued but not so much that it overwhelmed and confused me.

I was surprised to learn who the murder actually was! I had no clue up until the end! Once the murderer was revealed it was fun to think back on all the hints and clues that were dropped throughout the story.

This was a solid 4 stars for me. Not my favorite Jewell book, but a very good read!

Thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for allowing me a copy to read and give my honest review.


Watching You is set to be released December 26, 2018 here in the United States! It makes for the perfect after Christmas reading so pre-order it now!

Happy Reading!

Tom Fitzwilliam is the charismatic handsome headmaster of a school in Bristol. He has a reputation as a teacher who is able to fix things, get schools on the right track, and attain the respect and adoration of parents (especially the women) and students (especially the young girls). Tom and his family have moved many times as Tom's achievements rack up in school after school. Tom his wife, Nicola, and son, Freddie, an odd young man who has a penchant for picture taking, binocular viewing, and keeping both eyes glued on his neighbors (especially the women) and others populate this book.

The neighborhood is ritzy and the neighbors like Frances Tripp, who is obsessed with the notion she is being gang stalked, to Frances's daughter, Jena, who seems to be drawn into Tom's Fitzwilliam's aura. Jena suspects Tom is luring her best friend, Bess, into an inappropriate relationship so she distrusts Tom. Another neighbor is Joey Mullen, newly married to Alfie, but casting her eyes upon Tom as she feels an overwhelming attraction. Adding to all of this creepiness, there had been a death twenty years ago that hinges on a young girls obsession with.... you guessed it.......Tom.

Another death occurs, a horrible stabbing, and all eyes are turned to Tom who has seemed to be a catalyst to the goings on over the years. Is Tom the murderer and what have those prying eyes seen? Do they have the key that holds this mystery or is the killer one you would never suspect?

This tight thriller was an energetic read allowing the reader to become comfortable and relaxed into thinking they knew who the murderer was but wow that ending! It had all the twists and turns that make for a well contrived thriller making it such a conundrum. So much for thinking you had it all figured out!

Many thanks to Lisa Jewell who keep me up late at night reading, Atria, and to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this upcoming book.

There's something about the way Lisa Jewell writes that sucks you in and doesn't let go. I love the character development in this one and although I had some parts figured out, I still enjoyed this read. It's character-driven, and I loved the way the multiple perspectives had me changing the way I viewed everything. There are twists until the very last page, which I really enjoyed. This book is a quick read that is well written and filled with red herrings. 3.5/5🌟
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Thank you @simonschusterca, @atriabooks and @netgalley for this one. It releases December 26, 2018.

This is the perfect book to read if you like twisty plots and characters that surprise you. Tom Fitzwilliam may be masterful as a headmaster but will his past catch up to him? So fun to see the different secrets be peeled away page by page. Don't miss out on the suspense!

Lisa Jewell writes another fabulous thriller! I loved this book so much! The perspective changes, and just when I thought I had it figured out, the twist was really surprising.

Compelling and compulsively readable, fans of I Found You will devour this newest novel by Lisa Jewell. I couldn't put it down.

Not so sure about the integrity of the whole lot of Jewell's characters but she does bring them to life - flaws and all. The story is full of twists and it bounces from one character to the next so you have to pay attention as you read. Jewell's short chapters help with that. Tenison builds as you read. I enjoyed the twist at the end and the lesson of the long-reaching effects of bullying. All in all, it is a good psychological mystery.

Joey Mullen has just returned home with her new husband Alfie after four years abroad. To save money they are living with Joey’s older brother and pregnant wife. Joey still considers herself something of a screw-up but trying to be more mature. So, finding herself infatuated with her 50-something headmaster neighbor Tom Fitzwilliam is not what she should be doing. But, as she is watching him, someone is watching her, too.

This is a fascinating character-driven story that delves into the dark side of human nature. Just when you think you have things figured out Jewell adds that final twist!

Do you ever finish a book and you're not entirely sure what just happened or if you liked it? While I LOVED Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell, I can't say that Watching You lived up to my expectations. I struggled to get into this book, but was cheered on by a few friends on bookstagram who had deemed it un-put-down-able.

Nestled in a nice suburb, where all eyes are on all of the town's citizens, a gruesome murder happens. The book switches between perspectives as well as time periods and police depositions, which helped to keep the plot moving. Most of the characters seem like they could be guilty, and the reader is strung along until the very end to learn who the real killer is. This book left me wondering why the author waited for the last 50 pages to piece everything together, and some of the characters seemed a little flat, and at times not necessarily relevant.

I feel like this is more 2.5/5 stars than a 3. Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read Watching You in advance.

This is a solid 3.5 star thriller, yet nothing special. As always, Lisa Jewell gives us a page-turner that involves some secrets amongst the characters, a British setting, and some twists in the end that are intriguing. In her latest book, an interesting collection of people live in a fancy neighborhood in Bristol, up in the Heights where a young boy takes pictures of everyone, a mother with mental illness haunts the streets, a sister tries to get her life together as she lives with her brother and his wife, a girl tries to protect her friend, and a school head is either a compassionate kindly teacher who wants to help students in trouble, or he's a creepy pedophile who should know better. Good for a beach read if you're looking for a quick page-turner, but not nearly complex enough to keep my brain thinking or deep enough into development to care for these characters.

I will be honest the first 80% of the book is about a village and four of its citizens. It tells a story of adultery, a coming of age teenager who has Aspergers, a teenager who is living with a mom that has a mental illness. I was fine with the story exploring each aspect of these characters. However at the 80% we find that there is a murder and it may be related to an event that happened years ago.

I will be honest, if we follow the characters involved in the murder along with what happened to the original event that would make it an interesting story. But alas that was not the case.

This book was disjointed. It felt like I spent most of the time reading a red herring only to discover that there was a different story altogether that we should have been paying attention.

This was a middle of the road book for me when it comes to rating. I enjoyed reading despite the problematic plot points.

A gripping page-turner with intriguing characters and no shortage of twists and turns. Another great read from Lisa Jewell!