Review: I Am Watching You by Teresa Driscoll

Title:  I Am Watching You

Author:  Teresa Driscoll 
Publisher: Thomas And Mercer

Publishing Date: October 1st, 2017

Pages: 302
Genre: Adult Mystery Suspense

Series:  Stand Alone
Source: Audio

 

What would it take to make you intervene?

When Ella Longfield overhears two attractive young men flirting with teenage girls on a train, she thinks nothing of it—until she realises 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.

A year later, Anna is still missing. Ella is wracked with guilt over what she failed to do, and she’s not the only one who can’t forget. Someone is sending her threatening letters—letters that make her fear for her life.

Then an anniversary appeal reveals that Anna’s friends and family might have something to hide. Anna’s best friend, Sarah, hasn’t been telling the whole truth about what really happened that night—and her parents have been keeping secrets of their own.

Someone knows where Anna is—and they’re not telling. But they are watching Ella.

I don't remember where or when I discovered this book but when I did I knew it sounded like the book for me. It wasn't as thrilling as I imagined it would be but the mystery was really good. I loved the point of views that were provided and how they were all connected in a way. I really enjoyed this read. 

Two girls were on a train to visit London. They were flirting with some boys that looked liked trouble. Ella, another passenger was very observant and worried these two girls might be in trouble. However, she felt others would say she was just being nosey and crazy... so she said nothing. The next day she finds that one of the girls is missing and goes to the police with what she knows. Fast forward a year later. Anna, the missing girl, still missing. Anna's best friend is having issues, Anna's parents are still crazy with questions about their daughter's disappearance. Ella is still beating herself up over not interfering before Anna went missing and is now receiving threats from someone. As things unfold, the truth will be revealed. 

This was definitely a slow burn mystery. Not a lot happened in action but a lot did happen with thoughts, interactions, conversations, memories.  There was so many things going on in Anna's life and the lives of the others involved in this story. It was quite interesting how everything kind of connected in the end. 

Even though the read was a little slow, I was never bored. It was very interesting and of course I was hoping to find out what happened to Anna. And it is revealed in the end. I was really glad to know the book wasn't going to end with no conclusion for Anna's story because this story is less about Anna and more about Ella. 

Ella is a kind soul but she likes to interfere. She has been told multiple times to mind her own business and that is why she didn't speak up or interfere that day on the train. She feels it is her fault Anna went missing. She hears this inside her own head and from many others that send her hate mail. A year later she is just trying to get through her life when threats start to show up when the anniversary of Anna's disappearance is coming up. Ella is smart. She knows something is off but she tries to figure it out on her own or at least ignore it and hope it goes away. Of course this doesn't happen, it never does. I liked Ella though. Really enjoyed her point of view the most I think for character likability. 

Anna's best friend, Sarah, is an interesting character. We find early on that she is harboring secrets. Secrets that may help find Sarah, but secrets she is not ready to tell. She is afraid what she is thinking may just be what really happened. This would involve someone she is close too, and really doesn't want to go down that road. She is also dealing with some stuff on her own that really should be addressed with some help. She is emotionally unstable and I felt for her, really I did. I wanted to hug her and tell her it would all be okay. Even though she had secrets that shouldn't stay secrets, I always saw her as a victim too. She was just young and naive and confused. 

There are other points of view too. One is from Anna's father,which is very interesting but not as exciting as Sarah or Ella's. There is also a point of view from the watcher. This point of view was interesting and I feel it should have given the story more of a thrilling aspect but I don't think they were long enough to really give that tone. 

All in all I really liked the mystery, the characters, the unresolved issues, the puzzles. It kept me interested from page one to page- the end. I will look forward to more books by this author. 

A wonderful mystery that I really enjoyed watching unfold. 

Teresa Driscoll is a former BBC TV news presenter and now international #1 bestselling author. Her debut psychological suspense I AM WATCHING YOU hit Number One on Kindle in the UK, USA, and Australia and sold more than 200,000 copies in its first 5 months. It will be followed in Spring 2018 by THE FRIEND.Teresa's women's fiction is already published in six languages. Her debut in this genre RECIPES FOR MELISSA was auctioned at the Frankfurt book fair between seven German publishers and her second women's fiction title is LAST KISS GOODNIGHT.During her long career as a journalist, Teresa worked for newspapers, magazines, and television, including 15 years presenting the BBC TV news programme Spotlight. Covering crime for so long, she was deeply moved by the haunting impact on the relatives, the friends, and the witnesses and it is those ripples she explores now in her darker fiction.Teresa lives in glorious Devon with her husband and two sons and blogs regularly about her "writing life" at her website