This is the second book I've read by this other. I absolutely loved The Overnight Guests so I tried to go into this one with no expectations and a clean slate. I really enjoyed the game show aspect and it something I haven't read before. I loved the multiple POVs and felt it really helped bring the story together as a whole. Over all it was compelling and unique.

This was a fast paced thriller that kept me hooked. I loved the reality tv/influencer concept in this one! As well as the different POVs, and how everyone was connected. I did however, guess the twist pretty early on, which is no big deal, I still absolutely binged it and couldn’t wait to see how it all ended!

Woo I absolutely loved this one!! It was such a fast paced, gripping, locked room style popcorn thriller and I flew right through it. It was totally binge-able with twists and secrets galore that kept me hooked from cover to cover. I loved the reality game show aspect and loved learning about all of the characters and how their lives intersected. It was such a fun and entertaining read that kept me on the edge of my seat and shocked me with the ending! I loved this author’s writing style and will absolutely be going back to read her other books.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HTP Books/Park Row Books for the early digital copy for my honest thoughts and review!

This is why Heather Gudenkauf is one of my favorite authors. I love her books and once I reached the halfway mark this book was unputdownable. Loved the book and the ending. Thank you to the author and the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

I really loved this thriller spin on a reality t.v. show novel. I rated this one a 4. I wanted a little more to a few of the characters back stories. But it was a good page turner and had some nice twists and turns. Congratulations on another great novel!

I would like to thank Net Galley for allowing me to read this book ahead of its March 26th publication date. This was my first book by this author, despite two of her other books sitting on my shelf. I have to admit, I am not into reality TV but I loved this book. It drew me in from the first page and the author really did an amazing job of giving a good plot twist as I tried to figure out what tied everyone together. I really enjoy a book that does a great job of alternating timelines. Sometimes it can be a bit confusing if not written well, but this was phenomenally done.

3-3.5 stars. I didn’t love this book but I didn’t hate it. I’m very conflicted. I liked the premise of this book, very much giving big brother vibes with bits of squid games wrapped up in revenge. However, I was hoping for more. Something was missing but I can’t pinpoint what. The pacing? The characters? Implausible, eye rolling moments?
It took way too long for anything to happen. I saw no reason to spend 25-30% of the book just for the contestants to show up and start the game. The types of characters participating in the game made no sense. Am I to believe a former senator with presidential hopes is going to blindly participate in a game like this?

I really liked the author’s easy to consume writing style. If I had the time to do so, this would be an easy 1 or 2 sitting read. Although a bit predictable, I enjoyed the ending and how everything was wrapped up. I did feel satisfied at the end.

This was a really fun read. Loved the game show aspect, all of the secrets and challenges in this book. Lots of action, written in different POVs and timelines but never confusing. I rate this one 4 stars because I had such a great time reading it, however I had the plot twist figured out from the beginning and the ending felt a bit rushed. I still recommend this read, thank you Netgalley and HTP books for the arc!

This book was Survivor meets Fear Factor meets Squid Games. It is about revenge, secrets, and what you'd be willing to do for $10 million. 5 people are chosen to compete on a new reality TV show that will entail challenges, secrets, and live feeds. What the competitors don't know is that they are all connected in some way. A few of these suspicions are clear from the beginning, but ultimately, there is one thing they all have in common. I really liked the idea of this book, and had trouble putting it down, but I wanted a little more answers at the end. The ending seemed a bit abrupt and I felt like I still had questions that needed answering. Overall, a fun read.

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a free, electronic ARC of this novel I received in exchange for an honest review.

Expected publication date: March 26, 2024

This was my second book by Heather Gudenkauf, and unfortunately, I didn't love this one quite as much as the first. It was still a fun read though! I think a lot of people will enjoy this one because it felt like reading a story about Survivor contestants, but it was Survivor on steroids. I think it was just a little too over the top for my personal preference, but I still recommend it if you're looking for a fun, fast-paced read. 3.5 stars!

I assume that the creators behind any reality show can only hope that everyone is watching and talking about the show. This show is a bit different though. There are only five contestants on One Lucky Winner vying to be the last one standing and walk away with $10 million. Each one of them has a nickname,The Senator, The Executive,The Best Friend,The Confidant and The Boyfriend. Except for a small crew and the host, Fern, the participants handover their phones, and have no contact with the outside world.
But from the first challenge, something about this show is off. The challenges are, shall we say odd, and someone seems to know all the contestants deepest, darkest secrets. But the public is hooked, and for reasons that will become clear as you read this book Fern is just thrilled. Why were these people chosen and will any of them survive this game?
Told mostly in the present with several chapters from the past, explaining more about what each player is hiding, this was a fun read. I was trying to put the puzzle pieces together and did not guess how it would end. Very different than the last book I read by this author.

I didn’t love and didn’t hate it but I felt it wasn’t as good as many of her others.
This one seemed far fetched and just didn’t hold my interest. I loved The Overnight Guest
Thanks to Netgalley and publisher

The author does not disappoint with her newest psychological thriller or reality game shows gone wrong. What would you do for 10 million dollars? Five people receive invitations to participate in a new gameshow called One Lucky Winner where they will compete for that title and the huge cash amount. However, when you're playing for 10 million dollars don't expect easy competitions and don't expect safety either. I enjoyed the twist of the show being broadcast on the internet not on a network which led to viewers comments that could be read and added to the storyline. An interesting commentary on society's hunger for consuming shows that push boundaries of both physical and mental safety. I enjoyed all the action in this book and the twists that would come. Some were predictable but some caught me off-guard. Overall a great thriller! Thanks to NetGalley and the editor for a a free copy for an honest review.

Five people are invited to be contestants on a reality TV game show with a $10 million prize. The only catch? There are no real rules - is that a real taser? Is that gun loaded? - and it seems that there’s a connection between these five seemingly unrelated people.

Gudenkauf is a good writer and she kept me guessing the whole time. I was reminded at certain points of Will Dean’s The Last One, as well as Small Game by Blair Braverman with a dash of Squid Game.

The narrative jumps from present day (as the five contestants are competing against each other) to flashbacks from different (female) characters’ points of view, which is when you learn that everyone’s backstories are somehow connected. There were a few times where the plot became a little unbelievable, but Gudenkauf somehow made it work. I did like the end and how the plot came together and I liked the underlying message of feminine power.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Park Row for sharing an early digital copy of EVERYONE IS WATCHING in exchange for my honest feedback.

My sincerest thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for sending an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. (I cried when I received this! No, really!!)

Five different people, each with their own dark history, compete to win $10 million in a gruesome reality tv show that unfolds in front of a live audience. The Boyfriend, the Confidante, the Best Friend, the Senator and the Executive. What are they willing to do to win that money? Buckle up, because these 5 are about to take you on a very twisted ride!

4.5 stars. I enjoy shows like Big Brother, Survivor and The Challenge, so this was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024. Even my husband was enthralled with the premise and had me giving him updates after every chapter I completed. Had I not been able to predict the connection prematurely, this would have been a 5 star read for me. (There is one specific omission I would recommend that, in my opinion, would have been better at the conclusion of the story instead of near the beginning. This would contribute an additional element to the story’s suspense and keep the reader consistently guessing.)

The characters and their development have really stayed with me. These are some pretty terrible people who are able to grow and transform into better versions of themselves and I found myself rooting for each of them at some point in the story.

If you enjoyed The Overnight Guest by this author, or are a fan of faced paced, suspenseful mysteries, this is a book you won’t want to miss!

Publication date: 26 March 2024

This is my favorite book of the year! If you love reality shows and suspense thrillers, you will love this book! Five contestants are chosen to participate in a reality show, competing for a grand prize of ten million dollars. The show appears to have a Survivor type format, with daily challenges and the audience voting off one person at the end of the night. The difference, however, is that these challenges are intense! The producer of the reality show is also aware of secrets from each of the contestant’s past and provides clues to the secrets during the game. I have heard comparisons to Squid Games, but I have never seen the show.

I couldn’t put this book down as I tried to figure out why someone wanted revenge against these contestants. This is a fast-paced thriller that is my first five-star read of the year. Some of the twists are predictable if you read thrillers, but I think the overall story is unique enough that readers won’t mind guessing some of these twists. There’s also the “what would you do for ten million dollars” theme that I really enjoyed. The character of “the best friend” vying to win the money so that she could try to save her ill daughter’s life was intriguing. I enjoyed seeing how far she was willing to go to win.

I highly recommend this book and rate Five stars out of five! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance review copy. E

This book is wild.

I watch a lot of reality TV, so Heather Gudenkauf’s premise for Everyone is Watching definitely piqued my interest. Five contestants come together to an estate in California to compete for a $10 million prize. They all have their reasons for wanting the money, and the realization that they’ll do whatever it takes to be the winner.

Early on, it becomes very apparent that this isn’t your average reality TV premise and that these folks weren’t randomly selected. Each of these contestants has something to hide, some have connections to one another or folks behind the scenes, and the competitions within the show are deadly.

The chapters were focused on each contestant in the present, and for some, their past. There’s also chapters focused on some of the people watching the show (though I didn’t think many of these added to the story outside of the very first one). Knowing how heavily reality TV is produced, mixed with how elaborate many of the set-ups for the challenges were, the number of people who were on set/involved on the production side was a bit unbelievable. Fern was clearly very competent and resourceful, but her pivot to be the host (without any direction or coaching) really felt like a stretch. Initially I felt a lot of empathy for Fern and all that she faced, but as time went on she became complicit and deeply woven into the destructive events of the show.

That being said, the book was compelling and I kept reading furiously to find out how the story would come together and understand the why behind this complex and harrowing show. There was a lot of tension, twists & turns and unexpected moments. It definitely had that can’t look away quality of reality TV.

Content warnings: gun violence, mentions of sexual assault, stalking, child illness

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Five people have been invited to partake in a special new reality show; one in which they have no idea what to expect. Not only will there be extreme physical and mental challenges, but it will also be live streamed all over the world.

Who will the winner be?

The Best Friend.
The Confidant.
The Senator.
The Boyfriend.
The Executive.

Then, we also have The Assistant, a woman named Fern who is tasked with not only being the assistant to the producer of this show, but also the host. As the contest goes on, it becomes clear these people were not selected as randomly as they thought.

Reality TV isn’t necessarily my favorite thing to watch but it sure was exciting to read about! I had an idea that there was more at stake here than just the prize money, but the way it was revealed was twisty and fun. Told in dual timelines, bits of the character’s pasts were revealed and it was fun trying to figure out how they fit together.

“Everyone is Watching” release March 26, 2024! Thank you to Park Row Book/HTP for the ARC!

This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

I really loved this book! If you like reality tv, you’ll enjoy this book. It was a quick read, I couldn’t put it down, I was dying to know what happened next! There were a few twists here and there and it all came together in the end. Finding out the real identity of the person behind the “show” and the reasoning behind it was a “what?!” moment! I loved every minute of it! Definitely recommend reading it!

5 stars! This hooked me from the beginning and got better along the way! A great locked-room mystery with a satisfying conclusion. Definitely reccomend!