Hello Friends.  It is December-the tree is up, the lights on the house have been hung, and a fair amount of shopping has taken place.  Am I close to being done-absolutely not. There is just not enough time in the day (or enough money). That said, I managed one book this week via Audible.  It’s not a new release, but a mystery/thriller that popped up as a “if you liked…then you’ll like…”. I never thought I’d be a fan of ‘listening’ to a book, but I was wrong. AND the really cool thing is that I can listen, while doing my work!  That’s a huge WIN for me!

I Am Watching You by Teresa Driscoll
Mystery/Thriller
October 1, 2017
Thomas & Mercer

Ella Longfield is on her way to a floral convention via train, when she happens to notice two young girls getting a little too friendly with two men.  It’s clear that the girls are teens and that the men are at least in thier early 20s. Ella can’t stop herself from observing and eavesdropping, all the while her worry for the girls growing. When she hears the men say that they have just recently been released from prison, she continues to argue with herself about what she should do. In the end, however, she does nothing.

The next day, the news reports that a young woman, Anna Ballard, has gone missing.  Ella is just beside herself with guilt, knowing she was right there and did nothing. She decides to make it right, and reports what she saw on the train to the police.  A year later, Anna is still missing and there are no new leads.

I enjoyed this book for the most part.  There are a lot of characters introduced and the story is told in alternating points of view. The author lays out a strong central plot and then begins to weave the backstory.  In this, we are led down several different paths and though you might initially assume the obvious as to what happened to Anna, the author continually offers additional possibilities until you have no idea what happened to Anna Ballard.

The last big push to keep the reader firmly on the edge of their seat was dragged out a bit too long in my opinion-but serves its purpose as the crime appears to come full circle.  The big reveal is a bit disappointing, unfortunately, but in the end everything falls into place.

Since I listened to this book via audible, I thought I’d mention a few things.  The book takes place in England and while I love, love, love a British accent, I did not care for the narrator’s accent though she read with great feeling and enthusiasm.  As I mentioned, there are a lot of characters-so I struggled just a bit in keeping everyone straight. I kept getting the dads mixed up, who was divorced and who wasn’t and who the siblings where.  Around the last 20%, I managed to stay in the moment with the characters. There is an enjoyable epilogue that gives the reader a little view of life after……

Grade: C+

It’s a busy time, but I hope to read these two books before my next post.  

Christmas Lane by Amy Aislin

Chasing Forever by Kelly Jensen