I read this for "Free Space/Creepy Raven". "I am Watching You" by Teresa Driscoll which is a thriller/mystery. I did like the alternating POVs but in the end they were unnecessary. I guess the author was going for character study, but none of the other characters really contributed to the plot. It was just a lot of catch up between POVs to build suspense. It was clear Henry was just a manwhore, not a murderer. It felt like Sarah was assigned some rando trauma so you wouldn't be annoyed she ditched her friend for an ex-con. I kinda liked "the watcher"—spooky vibes. And I guess the PI POV was "necessary" because the mystery had to be solved by a credible character and not one of the regular degular townspeople.

The next day one of the girls, Anna, is reported missing, and Ella is beside herself, wondering if she could have helped the girl instead of turning away. Anna's friend Sarah is saying much about what had happened to them the previous evening and the police soon run out of leads. But what is Sarah hiding? Who else in the girls' families are keeping secrets? And who is sending Ella anonymous postcards? A year goes by from that fateful night with Ella still upset that she hadn't done anything and possibly stopped Anna's disappearance and with the girl still gone someone else decides Ella is at fault and begins sending her threatening letters. Ella hires an investigator to look into the letters and with the anniversary of the disappearance a public appeal is planned but before long it becomes clear that others are also hiding secrets about that night and just what happened to Anna. A fairly well done mystery that takes place after a teenage girl goes missing while on a trip to London. It shows how everyone suffers the ripple effects from a single event. Told from multiple points of view, we hear from the parents, a friend, a witness and a private eye. All the immediate friends and family have secrets they are hiding which we are let in on bit by bit. So, did I at least get a good payoff for my investment? NO!!!! When we finally find out what happened it was so ridiculous! It felt like it came out of no where, there was no build or set up to even think that would be the outcome. 😤😤😤We’ve had a look at the CCTV, Sarah. From the club.’ It is the detective’s voice now – firmer. ‘Some of the cameras weren’t working, unfortunately. But there are some things we’re not quite understanding, Sarah. Also, we’ve had a call from a witness.’ Because once you become a parent, you learn that love can involve more fear than you had ever imagined, and you never quite look on the world in the same way again. The Characters Simple. Rhythmic. Showing not telling. You can feel the disdain of Henry. You can feel the apathy toward Tim's dad for being a cliche absentee father who pops up at the end in hopes of narcissistic redemption. THE WATCHER — An unidentified person who had been watching Ella and was involved with what happened to Anna.

It keeps you on the edge of your seat (somehow) as well as in the dark; so that you don’t know what happened until the end. Well, unless you can read between the lines and take hints OR unless you are super intuitive. When Ella Longfield overhears two attractive young men flirting with teenage girls on a train, she thinks nothing of it—until she realizes they are fresh out of prison and her maternal instinct is put on high alert. But just as she’s decided to call for help, something stops her. The next day, she wakes up to the news that one of the girls—beautiful, green-eyed Anna Ballard—has disappeared. The ending. As usual, it is always nice to feel that I am wrong about the villain. This book gives me that. However, it feels like the author rushed to reveal the villain and did not give enough time to give more plot about it or explore his character. Final Thoughts

The narrative. This story is from multiple perspectives. It was a bit all over the pace in the beginning, but it weirdly becomes enjoyable as the story flows. We get every character in the third POV while Ella told her own story in the first POV. My Favorite Quotes

Ella (The Witness) is taking the train and noticed two young girls. She immediately decides she should keep an eye on them when two young men board the train and start talking to them. She eavesdrops and realizes the two men are fresh out of jail and the girls and the men end up talking and drinking together. She overhears the one girl's name (Anna) and is able to piece together that she lives on a farm. Ella is tempted to call Anna's parents or warn the girls for talking to these men. When she walks to get something and overhears one of the girl's having sex in the bathroom (Sarah) she gets upset that she thought they were nice girls and washes her hands of them. That's the feeling I got which reading this book! The creepy crawling sense that someone is watching....Anna’s sister had been sending the postcards at first, angry at Ella for not stepping in. Tim found out and started sending more, as well as watching Ella’s house. Anna had met Ella’s son Luke at some kind of camp, and Tim was afraid that Anna was interested in him. He applied for a job at Ella’s flower shop to kill Luke. Ella and her PI got there in time to save Luke. Anna was dead. The Review: HOWEVER; some ppl just don’t want the details. The gory details or the interesting stuff. I don’t know all that many of those ppl, but this is perfect for ppl who want to skip the grit. :D