Cover Image: Are You Watching?

Are You Watching?

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Member Reviews

A long-ago read book so apologies for the late review!

A YA thriller that I found totally gripping from start to finish - so much so, I read it in 2 days. Really hard to put down and the author keeps you guessing throughout. Yes, there are some unrealistic elements - some storylines in particular - but the characters are great; it is fast-paced and a great final conclusion. Kept me fully engaged.

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Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

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My review: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

What if you could have the opportunity to trap your mother's killer? You just need to become a reality TV star, along with others with similar backgrounds, with the person with the most viewers getting more time!

This is a YA thriller, with a serial killer being hunted.

I really enjoyed the story, and thought the twists and turns were great!

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Penguin Random House.

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This book was fantastic and love the change in title which makes it even better I think.
This book was fun and interesting with a new take on searching for a serial killer. I would totally read more from this author!

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Fancy a book for your hollibobs then this is the book to pack in your case,
Well written with short chapters, fast paced. All in all a good read.
I found it a quick read.

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A good read, which kept my attention throughout. I would recommend this as a good holiday reading book. Very enjoyable.

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Whilst I did enjoy the premise of the book, I think I would have probably enjoyed it more if I were younger. The age of the characters meant that I couldn't relate as well as I had hoped, but that is on me and not the book. Great short chapters and easy to read, I managed to read this in one sitting.

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This book just wasn't for me. I think it would be perfect for a younger audience. The chapters were very short and that didn't work for me.

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I'd forgotten i'd read Vincent Ralph's other book (Lock the Doors) and that I LOVED - so as I found myself thinking, this writing style feels familiar, I looked it up. I liked this one just as much! I found the premise so gripping, and quite grounded in its matter. The twists made sense when little subtle things were dropped throughout the story, and they all came together in the end. Atmospheric, scary, and emotional.

I can't wait to read more by this author, as this is two 5/5 books in a row.

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I managed to read this in one sitting pretty much. The short chapters and writing made me fly through this.
Other than the fact there was a serial killer this didn't feel like a thriller just a mystery. There was something missing to cross it over to both genres for me.
Despite flying through this I wish there was more suspense. More of me asking questions. I felt some things were solved a little too easily and those reveals felt a little underwhelming.
The final reveal I didn't guess correct. Although I knew some twist was coming. The scenes with Jess and the killer at the end were somewhat intense. But then the story just moved on.

I probably would have enjoyed this more had I read it years ago before I got heavily into adult mystery thrillers.

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Fast fun ya read about a 17 year old called Jess who is in a reality show. The characters and story were decent and I did enjoy the story, would I read more by this author probably not but I’m sure plenty will.

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Fast-paced and punchy this is a great page-turner for young readers looking for something a bit more gritty. Jess has signed onto a brand new online reality show which will film every minute of her life for 24 hour periods. She has become part of this show for one reason - to catch the serial killer who murdered her mother.

A classic thriller mystery, this book is packed full of red herrings, twists and suspicions. And while some are fairly typical, it keeps the reader engaged and guessing. The reader will be engrossed in the near-obsessive motivation of the main character but there sadly isn't much depth to the story beyond that.

This is a book that does what it set out to do well - give a thrilling story for younger readers. It may not be deep or memorable, but it's a damn good time during the moment.

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Jess lost her mother when she was only a young girl, the first victim of a killer who went on to be a serial killer. The police have never caught the killer and there are now many victims. Jess has the chance to become a media influencer and takes the opportunity to try to connect with people to try and solve the murders herself.

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Jessica's mum was murdered when she was seven, the first victim of the Magpie Man, a serial killer who has gone on to murder twelve other women. The police haven't come close to catching him so Jessica has decided that she's going to do it herself by competing on an online reality tv show and getting her story in the public domain. She hopes that by doing so she can draw the Magpie Man out into the open and expose his identity once and for all. Soon she has a huge following and it seems like she's on her way to achieving her objective because she starts getting texts and messages with cryptic clues regarding her Mum's murder, things only the killer would know. And there's one thing for certain, she might be closing in on him but he's always known about Jessica.

Whilst this was an easy and entertaining read I wasn't hugely struck with the story and found it to be quite unrealistic. That said this is a debut teen\YA book and I feel that the writer is on his way to honing his craft.

Many thanks to Penguin Random and NetGalley for letting me read this book in exchange for my honest review.

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I really enjoyed this book. It had great characters that really resonated and there were lots of twists and turns that kept me guessing. Definitely worth a read.

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A really good book, not brilliant as it was unbelievable in parts but a real page turner none the less.

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This book had a really refreshing premise with an interesting story, I thought it was a good new twist on the “cold case” mystery. The story and the ending were satisfying (I didn’t guess who did it before it was revealed); my only gripes would be that the cast of characters was sometimes a little too long to keep track of who was who, and that a lot of the male characters would “stare a little too long and intensely” at the main character - by the second half of the book I was pretty sure most of them had done it and it was getting a little tired. However, I enjoyed this book and thought it was something new and interesting.

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Jessica's mother was murdered 10 years ago by The Magpie Man, a serial killer. Jess has decided to take matters into her own hands to catch him and to do that, Jess signs up to be on a new reality show in the internet where her every move will be watched.

Before long Jess receives messages and old articles regarding her mothers' murder have turned up in her schoolbag.

What Jess hadn't realised, what that when you're being watched at all times, snooping about and trying to discover who is behind this all, isn't easy.

This was an easy, predictable read. I didn't really feel anything for any of the characters though which was the main downfall for me.

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I’ve tried a couple of times to read this one but I just couldn’t get into it. I’m really struggling with the format and writing, so unfortunately I’m having to DNF it and give up with this one.

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Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

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