This was a very interesting and topical book involving social media and the world of reality celebs,, except the fact that behind all this is a murder mystery, The unfinished type was a bit difficult at times but I managed to overcome these. Vincent deals with violent death and those who loved and left behind very well although at times it seemed a bit chic lit and for a younger market.

I'm not sure whether I enjoyed this book or not.  As a YA book i would have expected it to be snappier.  The story was good, but there were several times that, in my opinion, it meandered when it could have gone straight on.  Saying that I didn't guess who it was until they were identified and it did keep me going back to it.

I read an advance review copy of the book.  This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

I really enjoyed book. It was current and up to date with the use of social media. It kept me gripped and I didn’t guess who the baddy was. Will look out for more by this author

I never got the opportunity to truly get involved in the story due to the formatting of the ARC Kindle copy. It was atrocious, the typos and incomplete words were infuriating. Making it difficult to progress with ease through the novel.  What should have been a tense thriller was reduced to a start stop motion, that hobbled progress and interest.  Annoying as that was, is wasn't my only reason for this 2 star rating.
 
I like and enjoy reading YA, but it got to a point - early on this book where I thought, 'Is this how kids behave nowadays?' 'Nah, really?  Because it seems like nonsense'.  Then there's the recklessness and thoughtlessness lumped in too.  Altogether just put me right off. 
 
But I digress, as I haven't explained why I think the plot is attempting to be convoluting but really is stringing so many red herrings along that you feel you're in a fishmongers and to mix metaphors, until eventually, you can't see the woods for the trees or fish pie for fillets.
 
10 years ago, Jess's mum was murdered.  The killer hasn't been caught and has kept on killing.  Her life has never really recovered from this tragic event, her dad is now a shell of himself, her friendship groups have changed and she herself is haunted by what was lost.  Thus, when Jess gets the chance to star in a YouTube reality show, she grabs at the opportunity to flush out the killer. Jess want to find this serial killer - The Magpie Man - and get justice for her mum.   

Sounds good I thought and I'm all onboard with this - a little bit like a true crime episode and bang up to date using the internet and social media. 

Yet is wasn't 
 
I found Jess exasperating perhaps it was the attempt to make her bold then reticent and then shrug it off on her being a teen.  This is someone that's grown up with the internet, knows about scary movie tropes and yet does all the things most likely to terrify or get herself killed. Why? Is her quest worth it at any cost?
The justification given for her Dad allowing her to participate in the show and continue to do so given the events that occurred is baffling. Yes, justice is need but at the expense of more trauma or another life?
 
And the mystery is?
 
That got me thinking about who Jess's mum was.  We know she's important to Jess and her family and ultimately to the police as she was the first victim of a serial killer but what do we really know about her?  That clearly is the crux of the matter. She is held up on a pedestal which is to be expected, so it took a while to realise there was no context to the mum: good relationship with the dad, few friends, nuclear family plus her own mum.  It is a sliver of a person, why kill her.
 
So, it's either a stranger or someone in her life, a character we've already met or someone on the periphery of her life.  There is no obvious reason to kill her.. That's when the subterfuge really began to get on my nerves. How many individuals - men -  can you set up to be the killer before it gets to the point that you really don't care who it is - you just want the name?
 
 All you want to know is the name; motivation, the back story isn't even a consideration.. And to get to that point, you had to go through scenes that added no value other than padding the story.  One example is the big build up to the school trip as this mystical event, was a let-down, it proved only to be a plot device. Another is Mr Collins story, I can't even.  It makes no sense - the motivation is idiotic and implausible coming from a teacher who interacts daily with children. Gah!
 
Final thoughts
 
To conclude, I liked that it contextualised grief because it was easy to forget that whilst Jess' life is the one on display - the most obviously broken -  thrust front and centre, it takes a while to think that she's not the only one with heartache, who’s received devastating blows as a consequence of life's vagaries.
 
So, it's an okay read in my opinion, I don't dislike it but there's nothing that I really like - I didn't even care about this senseless death.. Maybe it's because I'm not a massive fan of reality shows as that angle when read, really held no interest for me which was a shame, as it was the drawing point from the synopsis.  Or maybe because I'm not down with the kids and don't know how they behave, and my expectations were way off.  Either way, anyway.... that’s it and like the book, my pacing comes to an abrupt stop. 
 
My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House UK Children’s for an ARC of this book in exchange for a candid review.

The whole world is watching, but are you?

When five teens with something to prove are given a coveted spot on a new reality YouTube channel, Jess is both thrilled and nervous to become one of them. She is the daughter of The Magpie Man's first victim. And now she wants justice.

Ten years ago Jess' mother was murdered less than a minute away from home. Her young daughter was still innocent to the evils of the world and so her father conjured a more whimsical story to account for her mother's disappearance. This new version of the tragedy painted her mother as a shiny and coveted object that a mysterious man took for his own. And with this explanation he unwittingly gave birth to the name of a serial killer, one who would go on to steal many more of families' brightest women.

He is still murdering and he is still unknown, but Jess is convinced that someone somewhere knows something and that her new found fame will help to shine a fresh light on a cold case.

This was a thrilling tale that combined navigating the tricky world of internet fame with the harrowing focus of a family torn apart by grief. Linking the two is Jess' mission. Her friends are on board but her father less so. The world too is divided, by opinions on her and the case, but none of this matters to Jess and her focus remains on the mother she never got to truly know.

Raw emotion dominated the story-line, as I had anticipated, and Ralph approached this subject matter with a sensitivity yet never shied away from broaching the darker side, such as anger and neglect, that was also born in the wake of it. I also appreciated the focus on how this tragedy impacted the father Jess has left, the relationships with her peers, and her treatment at school

Alongside this, the story had some truly chilling moments that had me wishing I had not chosen for so late an hour in which to consume this story! The author really allowed the grief and the horror to simultaneously shine through and both depicted and allowed the reader to relive both emotions for an ultimately chilling puzzle to be slowly pieced together.

The grand reveal might have felt slightly implausible but it was such fun to get there and the book was one that had my heart racing as fast as I could turn the pages. Addictive writing and a compulsively readable story-line made this a first-rate YA thriller!

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the publisher,, and the author, Vincent Ralph, for this opportunity.

A different take on social media and catching a killer which I guess makes sense with the amount of podcasts nowadays trying to batch a killer. I feel the book could have been a bit shorter it meandered in places but it was interesting.

This was a very interesting and topical book involving social media and the world of reality celebs,, except the fact that behind all this is a murder mystery, The unfinished type was a bit difficult at times but I managed to overcome these. Vincent deals with violent death and those who loved and left behind very well although at times it seemed a bit chic lit and for a younger market.

An interesting storyline but just didn't grab my attention and seemed to go on just a tad too long.

I liked the whole idea of the book, especially in today's age of everything being on social media platforms but the characters and storyline need alot more planning and execution. 

Definitely a teen read!

2*

Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

Are You Watching? By Vincent Ralph was a very engaging book. I received a copy for review on my kindle which had some formatting issues and was missing ‘fi’ on all words beginning with those two letters, but I persevered because the book was so good. All I wanted to do was to read the book every moment of every day.

Jessica was just 7 when her mother was brutally murdered just a few minutes from their home. She was the first victim of a serial killer who has yet to be caught ten years on. Jessica has a plan to change that. She enters a competition to be the star of a reality tv programme called The Eye streamed live on YouTube one a day for three months. This is outside of her comfort zone, but she isn’t doing this for the fame, she is doing this to catch a killer.

“My mum was killed by the Magpie man.’

The guy nods and I wait for him to reply.

When he doesn’t, I say, ‘Fifty-one seconds from home she was strangled to death and left to be rained on all night.’

They say to start with a bang and that’s the biggest bang I’ve got.”

There were definitely times when I wanted to shake Jessica for the foolish things she did and her dad for the foolish things he continued to let her do. This continued lack of action was probably the only criticism of the book, but I chose to suspend my disbelief and just enjoy the story.

“I want to catch the Magpie Man and this is how I’m going to do it…It was Dad who gave the murderer his name. He said the Magpie Man liked shiny things and Mum was the shiniest of all. He said she’d been borrowed.”

Her dad was broken after her mum died. I thought the author did particularly well at illustrating their grief and the way it had an effect on every aspect of their life. It felt real.

“Your grief journey changes when you aren’t looking. It moves in fractions; black shifting through a thousand shades of grey. Eventually, it transfers into something else: a dull ache; a numbness that becomes the norm.”

Both Jessica and her father were very well written characters.

“Some broken people look fine from the outside, but not my dad. He wears his heartbreak like a second skin, his eyes grey and heavy, his grief shouting over everything else.”

I loved everything about this book and I did not for one minute guess who the killer was.

I haven't read a YA mystery in a while so this made a change for me. This book was amazing! It gripped my soul and I couldn't put it down. 
The story follows Jess, a 17 year old girl who uses social media and is on a show where she tells the story of her mothers murder by the Magpie Man. Jess wants to use the show to help people gain awareness about this case and to try and catch the killer. 
The mystery was good and it kept me guessing throughout the book. It had tension and I enjoyed the writing style. The characters are realistic and I did enjoy following them in the story. I didn't really connect with them but I still enjoyed the book. 
The book isn't realistic to real life as the school is okay with the filming and my school wouldn't have been. Also a lot of the decisions were reckless which is usual for YA and it did lead to consequences which was nice to see. 
Overall this is a fast paced, fun YA mystery that I recommend if you like YA mystery books.

A good story which kept me gripped. I read this in one go. It is an easy read with a few twists thrown in.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

I really wanted to read this book as the description looked amazing and right up my street! However, when I came to read the e-copy at least 3-4 words on each page were missing two letters which made it very difficult to read so unfortunately I couldn’t finish the book as it was too distracting.

Could not connect with this book, the continuous typo missing fi assumed intended as there was so many? So not a book for me

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher’s for letting me read this book early. I really enjoyed this book and loved how there is a morden twist by using social media. I loved the world building and the characters.

Ten years ago, Jess's mum was murdered by the Magpie Man. She was the first victim of the Magpie Man but not the last. Jess is now the star of a YouTube reality series which she is using to try and catch the Magpie Man once and for all. The whole world is watching her every single move and so is the Magpie Man!

I have been excited about reading this book ever since I heard all about it at YALC, but was quite worried it would not live up to my expectations. It actually exceeded my expectations! It is an addictive, well-written and quick-paced YA thriller that I flew right the way through.

I loved the modern twist that is the centre of this thriller, the use of social media in catching a killer. Jess being a part of a YouTube reality series adds such an interesting aspect to the story and makes you really think about the good sides and bad sides of social media and its uses. It is packed full of twists and turns and always keeps you at the edge of your seat.

Being interested in true crime made me even more interested in this book as a whole. It really draws into the big interest that there is around true crime at the minute and I would love to see more books like this one in the future.

To say it is only a debut novel, it is incredibly well-written, well-paced and keeps your attention all the way through. The characters are all interesting and well developed. I could honestly have read from Jess' perspective for a whole lot longer if it was possible.

Are You Watching? is an addictive, well-written and fast-paced thriller that I am sure so many people will fly right the way through. You will be kept on the edge of your seats whilst reading this thats for sure! I cannot recommend this one enough so make sure you pre-order it before its released on the 6th February 2020!

I'm always nervous when reading a book from a female narrator written by a male author. This book had some of those bits that I didn't enjoy and felt were unnecessary however I enjoyed it overall. Jessica is a smart and interesting protagonist. The story itself discusses trauma in-depth and does not shy away from the gruesome details. I did think the villain was this or that and did not find out till the end which was really interesting. The reasons behind the monstrous acts were also not properly explained until the very end so the audience has time to make up their own theories. I genuinely found this book very interesting. Especially how it incorporated social media to someone's benefit for the good. Will definitely read again.

Jess' mother was murdered when she was seven by a serial killer who has never been caught.  Ten years later, despairing of the police she enters a competition to be in an on-line TV mini series which she hopes will catch the murderer's eye and throw up clues to his identity.  it's modern, fast paced with a thrilling denouement.  A good read.

Thank you Netgalley for the loan of this book.
I really enjoyed this book and raced through it. It was so addictive i just coukdbt wait to reach the end. with a strong female character and other characters you feel for this is a fantastic read.
A young girl who's mother was murdered by a serial killer, sets out to try and "capture" him by taking part on a YouTube show online and goading him so he will make a mistake and be caught. She soon starts to receive sinister messages, but are they from the killer (aka The Magpie Man) or someone closer to home? Sometimes, those you seek are closer than you think. Excellent book, go and buy it now!

I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. I really enjoyed this cleverly written book and I will be recommending it to everyone I know.

This was a gripping, nifty piece of YA and I read it fast. It was hugely enjoyable and entertaining if a little implausible at times.