I absolutely LOVE novels by Heather Gudenkauf and this one was no different. A master storyteller I cannot recommend this book enough. A great plot with great characters that are complicated and not all so enjoyable, this was a great read. Highly recommend!

Let me start off by saying that I enjoy Heather Gudenkauf's books, so I was really excited to be on the list to receive an ARC to review.

With that said, I don't know how I feel about Everyone Is Watching. Is it fast-paced? Yes, Did it keep my attention? Yes. Was I annoyed by the plot the entire time? Yes. Are all of the characters unreliable and obnoxious? Yes and yes.

This is the second book I've read this summer that has a Squid Games-ish vibe to it, and it's just not my cup of tea. I have no doubt that this book will be successful based on the fact that there is a huge part of the population who enjoy that type of premise though!

3.5 ⭐️ - a quick easy bingeable whodunnit reality tv murder mystery. This is perfect if you’re looking for a book to switch over from summer reads to fall spooky reads. A topical location and aspect, but add a few twists, turns, and thrills.

Five contestants are chosen for a new reality TV show: One Lucky Winner. The winner wins 10 million dollars. No one knows what or who to expect, they’re told they cannot contact the “outside world”, they’re living in a secluded villa, and it will all be live streamed in real time. When long kept secrets are exposed, contestants realize this is no longer just a tv show… someone is out for blood.

I liked this one. It was quick, addicting, and a fun puzzle to put together. I’m a little bit over this reality tv show murder mystery trope, so I think this could be a me thing. I need to take some time away from it. I did like the way the story and the characters connected in the end, even if I saw some of it coming. The characters were easy to keep separate which was good because there’s quite a few. If you’re looking for something quick and easy to jump into thriller/mystery season, this is it!

Review posted: 3.22.24

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

I’ve read a few of Heather’s books and have really enjoyed them. And the ones I’ve read- well either a child is in danger/hurt/dead or a family is. And while that may sound creepy that I say I enjoy those books- that is just the subject matter she writes about.

So Everyone is Watching is a def departure from books like This Is How I Lied, Before She Was Found, and The Overnight Guest.

The second thing to know is that I am not a fan of Big Brother. I had no idea what Squid Game is until I Googled it. But I have enjoyed Heather’s books in the past and I was ready to see where we’d go here.

And for me, it was just ok. I read this book in early 2024 but am just now writing my review and nothing really remarkable is jumping out at me. Maybe it’s because I’ve read a handful of lackluster books this year, books that looked to be AMAZING, but left me wanting more. IDK. But 2024 has not been a year that I’m raving about books so far.

What I Liked:

I did love the cover.

I liked the secrets between the contestants and the tension between them as they began to see how far each would go for 10 million dollars. I also liked the secrecy in the when the show was going to air.



Bottom line: For me, some of the twists were over the top. The secrecy of who was behind the whole show and why their identity had to remain top secret. Some of the things that happened as the book unfolded felt more for shock value (and might would have played better if this was an actual TV show.)

In the end, while I think it’s good to stretch out of your comfort zone when writing, I do hope that Heather’s next book is more like the ones I mentioned and linked to my reviews than this one. However, that is just my 2 cents.



*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*

What I liked about the book:

1. Loved the premise of the live streaming show for a lot of money - people do some crazy things for money!
2. The setting was well done - creepy/eerie yet beautifully done in the wine country.
3. Fast paced, fun read.


Thanks to Net Galley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Park Row for the ARC.

I love reality tv with challenges, such as Survivor, The Challenge, Big Brother, so this book was right up by alley. Five people are invited to star on a reality tv show where they could potentionally win 10 million dollars at the end, but it comes with reveliving your secrets to the world. I enjoyed following the characters of this book, trying to figure out what was going on and who was behind it and guessing what was going to happen next and the challenges they had to compete in wowza!

Thank you Heather Gudenkauf, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

For fans of reality tv, revenge, and selfish characters. I found this entertaining although I did get annoyed with the characters at time as they were so self-centered (I think that was the point though). Slightly predictable, but it didn’t take away from the enjoyment of reading it.

This is my second book by this author and its still not for me, i dont know if its the writing style or what but i just cant get into it. The contest, the winning of ten million dollars i understand but everything else is a bit out there. I love the game clue its by far one of my favorites but this wasnt clue like to me, no offense. I dont know if i would read again or even recommend to someone else, its just a 3 for me.

Game shows, reality t.v. and big money prizes seem to be all the rage these days and Heather Gudenkauf has capitalized on our love affair with this new media monster in her current offering. What would any of us be prepared to do to score the "big bucks" seems to be the underlying question in EVERYONE IS WATCHING.

Some of Ms. Gudenkauf's competitors need the money, some just want it, some have met before and all have secrets they are not inclined to share. EVERYONE IS WATCHING does everything a good mystery should do: divulge clues in measured and surprising ways and interweave the lives and woes of its characters without becoming conspicuous.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc! This was a great thriller and a fast read. I was guessing until the end for out of five stars.

Heather has never let me down and I knew she wouldn’t when I went into This book. I try not to start books like this late at night because I know I will end up reading it and staying up and you know adulting is a thing at times and I still made that mistake and was up all night and went to work the next day with my mind reeling

Okay this is not fav, I kinda don't like it. It has a great premise, reality show competing for a lot of money, it's really interesting and I'm intrigued, but unfortunately I kinda lose interest somewhere in the middle.
The repetitions bothered me a lot, sometimes it's kinda dragging, sometimes it's confusing and weird, the plot is predictable and in the end I kinda don't care about the characters.
Overall I didn't enjoy it, but if you're interesting with this premise, try it, maybe you will like it.

This deadly, "Survivor-esque" novel, was a solid WIN for me! I was constantly on the edge of my seat and got a bit angry when I was interrupted or had to put it down. A glorious, fast paced story that will have your heart pounding with each turn of the page. What are you willing to do for money? Where would you draw the line?

This was a good book but didn’t wow me like her others. Something’s seemed a little far fetched and over the top but still fun quick read.

Thank you #netgalley for the early copy

This one took me a minute to get into. It started and it just kept reminding me of something else I’d read but I couldn’t think of it. Then it just kept getting deeper and darker with the secrets and lies of these people that were playing for 10 million dollars. Each of them has something to hide but is letting that secret out into the open worth the prize? Based on the challenges, not for me, lol!

I thought when this one eventually picked up momentum, it became compulsively readable…and to know someone actually did end up with a hefty prize when the dust settled was pretty cool so I loved the ending most of all.

•••𝘿𝙉𝙁 @42%•••

𝘼 𝙢𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙜𝙝-𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚-𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧.

I almost got halfway through this book, so I genuinely don’t feel terrible for DNF’ing this book… I had such high hopes with the Big Brother comparison, but oh man, I was extremely bored.

The “games” in this book were incredibly dull in my honest opinion. I loved the reality TV aspect - not enough for me to finish though.

The characters were so dull and lacked depth to them… the story itself never felt like it was picking up.

I wasn’t a fan of The Overnight Guest by this author, but I was really hoping this one wasn’t gonna be a flop too - welp that’s a bummer!

Thank you so much NetGalley, HTP Books, and The Hive for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

A binge-worthy thriller that showcases the true nature of people and how far they would go to win when a large amount of money is involved. The premise is based on somewhat sketchy reality competition television show, where the story is told in multiple points-of-view of the contestants vying to win ten million dollars. The backstories of each character proved to be added value to the plot and led to overall five intriguing and unreliable narrators and one pretty shocking twist/reveal.
I started this as an ARC (thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing and The Hive) and then switched to audio later that day on my road trip as I was impatient and needed the conclusion!

I loved The Overnight Guest so I was excited to read this book. Unfortunately I found myself struggling to get into this book. Maybe it was the whole game show storyline. I'm not a fan of reality shows and I guess I don't like that storyline in my books either. I tried to push through but I i couldn't do it. I ended up DNFing this book. I'm rating it 3 stars because while it wasn't the book for me it might be the perfect book for someone else.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the E-ARC.

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

One of my favorite types of thriller- not quite a locked room mystery, but a group of people thrown together in a secluded place, and it turns out nothing is what it seems. Well done!

I think the concept of this novel was better than the execusion, but it didn't completely flop! I'm not a reality tv person whatsoever but the idea people watching a Squid Games/Big Brother type show wouldn't surprise me. I think my biggest complaint is that I wanted more people to die, which is probably not the general feeling of this book. I also didn't love that all of the players were interconnected but they never really talked about it until it was a super suspenseful scene and it was a "big reveal". But overall, I do enjoy this author's writing and I still had fun, especially during the games the characters had to play! This was a fun and fast paced thriller but I wish it leaned more horror, which is definitely a me-thing and not a true issue with the book.