Having loved 'Girl on the Edge', I was curious about 'Watch Our for Her' by Samantha Bailey. Although I really enjoyed the overall storyline, I found myself getting bored with the details from page to page. It was still an enjoyable read to see what the ending would bring, but the story and the execution aren't unique or very thrilling. It could also be that I found it less enjoyable because I didn't care for any of the characters. I'm hoping that the next Bailey will excite me more.

Sarah Goldman and her husband Daniel are thrilled when their six-year-old son Jacob takes so well to his new babysitter, Holly. While Holly, a twenty-two-year-old med student, is thrilled to have a job that is separate from her family's pharmaceutical company. But as the summer wears on and they grow closer and begin to learn each other's secrets, things start to unravel.

The book begins at the end of the summer when Sarah and her family have moved abruptly from Vancouver, BC to Toronto ostensibly for Daniel's new job, but mainly to get away from Holly. Sarah thinks she's getting a new start until she finds hidden cameras in her new house and an overly-friendly next door neighbor with, conveniently, a son just the same age as Jacob.

Told in alternating POVs that flip back and forth between past and present, this is a gripping and tense read that will keep you up too late saying, "Just one more chapter." The characters' motivations are not always what they seem and are revealed slowly. I did guess the big twist at the end before it happened, but was hooked throughout the entire book. If you're a fan of suspense and psychological thrillers, don't miss this one!! Definitely recommended!


Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I wish to thank NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for this intense, riveting psychological thriller. I felt menacing vibes throughout that kept me wondering what was going on and kept me on the edge of my seat. I found that the characters ranged from the unsympathetic to the annoying but still were fascinating and memorable. Many were yearning for recognition, attention, and love. All had hidden secrets, and who could be trusted? There were issues of surveillance, stalking, suspicion, blackmail, obsession, and excessive intrusion into the lives of others.

Sarah and Daniel Goldman are a couple in their 40s with a 6-year-old active son, Jacob. They both love their son intensely, but perhaps Sarah worries about him too much and is overly protective and hovering. This is only one of her very pessimistic concerns. She believes she is failing as a mother and has no time to pursue her talent in photography. She feels exhausted from her daily life as a housewife, and Daniel agrees to hire a nanny, Holly.

Holly is from a wealthy family and feels pressure to get a medical degree for future work in her father's profitable drug research company. She feels no love from her cold stepmother and feels desperately in need of a mother's love. Holly is expected to charm wealthy middle-aged men who are prospective investors into funding new medical research. How far her family expects her to go to influence them is uncertain. Holly wants no part in the company and no desire to return to university for a medical degree. She takes out her resentment by stealing and, when caught, is disowned by her family, except for an older, less attractive stepsister. Her stepsister is overly protective, loves her sister and demands more attention from Holly.

Hiring Holly as a nanny seems the perfect solution. Their son, Jacob, adores her. Sarah lacks trust in people's intentions and previously spied on Holly. Holly feels that Sarah is the mother she never had and hopes to be considered part of this family forever. She is curious about family secrets and snoops through Sarah's and Daniel's private papers and belongings. She will use extreme means to remain a part of the Goldman family. One day, Sarah sees something unsettling on her nanny camera. The family leaves Vancouver for a rental in a Toronto suburb to get away from Holly. Jacob is devastated to lose Holly, and Holly is upset and angry to be left behind.

With her lack of trust bordering on paranoia, Sarah always thinks the worst of people. Her newest neighbour has a son Jacob's age, and the boys become best buddies. Sarah would prefer to avoid this woman whom she considers overly friendly. She finds her suspicious and too pushy and intrusive. The neighbour probes Sarah with questions about the Goldman's lives but becomes upset and angry when Sarah asks about her household in return. Sarah becomes suspicious about the women's motivations and secrets but cannot ignore her entirely because of the boys. Another neighbour is an older man who sits quietly in front of his house. Sarah thinks he is watching her and finds him creepy. Are both people watching Sarah's family, and why? She is horrified to find hidden cameras in their new home. She receives cryptic menacing phone messages. Who is sending them? Is it someone in her new suburb or the horror? Maybe Holly has followed them to Toronto for revenge.
Her fear is growing, and everyone is suspicious. Her husband is too often at work and seems to be keeping secrets from her. Is her family in danger?

This story of family dynamics and dysfunction kept me riveted and in suspense throughout. I never guessed the twist at the end. A very stunning, puzzling plot. It is recommended to those who like psychological thrillers if they don't mind some melodrama and a somewhat unbelievable resolution with flawed characters.

Thank you SImon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. IFYKY, my reviews are ALWAYS honest.

Writing: 1/5 | Plot: 1/5 | Ending: Thank god it's over

THE PLOT

Sarah saw her babysitter, Holly, doing something foul and decided to move her fam from Vancity to the 6ix to start fresh. AHT AHT, Sarah, not so fast. No fresh start for you—there's cameras in your new abode! Who's watching? And WHY???

MY OPINION

....................... BYE. I was really excited to be approved for this ARC after reading her first book, Woman on the Edge. Although the writing quality flip flopped like a dead fish in her debut novel, I was hoping she would find her stride with book #2. SIKE!!!! Somehow the writing quality plummeted even further, making it a cringeworthy read.

I won't lie. I skimmed most of it. I really gave it my all for about 50% but then I just needed to get through it because it's a NG read. Otherwise, immediate yeet off my Kindle. Not only was the writing absurdly amateur (ex: "That's when Holly realizes where her stepsister is. She's at work.") but the plot was L O L. So you moved your whole fam across the country because of THAT???? Simple communication wasn't a solution?????? Sounds like your old fashioned sense of morality led you astray.

All in all, this read was a dud. I enjoyed the mystery of her first novel, even if the ending was equally as L O L excuse moi??? But this was just a story of self sabotage and extreme helicopter parenting. Congrats, you played yourself.

PROS AND CONS

Pros: I was approved for this ARC
Cons: Everything else

I really enjoyed it - i also enjoyed Woman on the Edge. I am always happy to read and support a new Canadian author!
This was a real page turner - i couldn't wait to see what happened next, and the ending was so thrilling and surprising!
If you enjoy a suspenseful thriller, that takes place in Canada!, you must read Watch Out for Her!

Watch Out for Her was my first book by author Samantha Bailey, and it won't be my last! This domestic thriller was everything I needed right now.... It had strong female leads, deception, obsession, the past coming back to haunt you and twists that keep coming.

It had me second guessing everyone and rooting for characters you can't quite trust. I didn't see the ending coming and this made for the perfect read to escape into in the evenings. I look forward to seeing what Bailey writes next and I highly recommend adding this one to your late spring reading list! 4.5/5 stars.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for my review copy.

This book was worth the wait! With two strong female characters, neither of which seem entirely stable, this novel is full of emotion and harrowing suspense. A story of the complexity of female relationships, obsession, and what we take for love. This novel both surprised me, and broke my heart. #NetGalley #WatchOutForHer

Good book! This book had suspense ,intrigue, action, heartache and heartbreak! There were a few crazy twists and turns! I definitely recommend reading this book! Its well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

I did not go into this book having looked up anything - so I was able to avoid the pitfall of being disappointed that it didn't 'live up to my expectations' further - I haven't read anything else by Samantha Bailey. I have to say I did not enjoy reading this. Too often, the characters motivations would be spelled out and repeated, and I felt like it was overly redundant. Further, because our perspective was outside of both, I had a hard time connecting with anyone, except that there was a whole section written in first-person - which threw me. Moreover, people don't act like that. The making each other's braid, putting on makeup, touching a pendant on a chain - it doesn't happen and especially not that fast. It made the book 'un-believable' to me, which detached me from the story.
The actual premise was gold. I loved the idea that Holly "worked" for her dad getting investors into the business - this could have been explored further and I would have been hooked. I also liked the getting into the family aspect, but it wasn't well executed here. I did enjoy the twist at the end which I did not see coming which bumped up my rating.

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and opinion. I started this right before I went to bed and had only planned on reading a few pages but ended up staying up way too late as it's impossible to put down. This book is a terrific read that’s sure to be a huge hit!

Samantha M. Bailey’s Watch Out for Her is an addictive read from start to finish. It will have you second-guessing everyone you meet and rooting for characters you don’t necessarily trust. The story alternates between the two main characters, which I love! Bonus if it's full of twists and shocks me at the end. If you like domestic thrillers, it’s perfect for you.

Not familiar with this author but great thriller! Took me a whole to start it but the plot kept me guessing and I loved the characters. Super twisty! Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

What a very pleasant surprise. Thank you to Netgalley as well as Simon and Schuster.

Holly is a college student unsure of her future and herself as she begins to babysit for the Goldman family whom she sees as the family that she's always wanted to be a part of. She desperately wants acceptance and unconditional love that comes from being a part of a family and will go to any lengths to get that.

Fast-forward to Sarah Goldman, recently relocated along with her family across the country. All she wants is a fresh start and to forget about their babysitter, Holly. But soon she starts noticing things aren't quite what they seem in her new neighborhood. Is she just being paranoid or is someone watching her?

With alternating timelines and characters, this is an amazing story of love, acceptance and family. I couldn't put this one down and would highly recommend toy fellow readers.

Wow! Couldn’t get enough of this book. It kept me guessing and hard to put together clues. Very interesting story with my mind trying to figure out where is this going in the end. A few suspicious things which one panned out but boy oh boy what a ride. Love this authors work. Great psychological thriller with really good characters. Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for all the ARC

Holly Monroe desperately seeks approval from her father. She is getting people to invest in her fathers company Health Pro X and she thinks she will be praised when she gets home. Her parents kick her out of the house that night and disown her from the family.

She shows up at the Goldman's house in the middle of the night and Holly lets her in. She feels like she finally has a family and people who care about her. She loves babysitting Jake and feels connected to Holly. Danielle is hiding things from Sarah but Holly discovers the truth. Now she has a plan to fix things and save the family.

Sometimes when you have the best intentions things can still go terrible wrong.

This was a fantastic mystery/thriller. I kept thinking that I knew the secrets. Then I tu4n thr page and was proven wrong. I was enthralled from page 1

Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for an eARC of Watch Out for Her! I loved Bailey's book Woman on the Edge, so as soon as I saw she wrote another thriller I absolutely couldn't wait to start it. As soon as I was approved in dove in to this enthralling read and was not disappointed in the slightest!

If you're a thriller lover, Samantha Bailey needs to be added to your auto-buy author list. She captivates you from the first page, each and every chapter more binge-worthy than the last. I loved the dual-timelines and multiple POVs in this book. I was constantly changing my theory and had no idea who was reliable and who could be trusted. This one has everything a good thriller is made of. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Five major stars for this one!

Absolutely loved this book! A great thriller/mystery that will suck you in and keep you entertained throughout. We could not figure out what was happening until the very end! Great characters and a perfectly paced book. Highly recommend!

I really enjoyed this domestic thriller by Samantha M. Bailey. I couldn’t put it down. It’s a great fast paced, suspenseful book that has you questioning who you can trust. A big plus for me was the final twist at the end that I didn’t see coming.
My biggest complaint was that it all seemed a bit far fetched and Holly, one of the main characters, seemed immature for her age.
However, even with those complaints I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone that loves a good domestic thriller.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is the first book I’ve read from this author. I enjoyed it though it seemed to lack a bit of depth. There was suspense & mystery, which you may or may not figure before the ending but I like a “thicker” storyline. I did enjoy the book & finished it in under 2 days. I’ll read more from her.