From the memory of the wall: I AM WATCHING.

I Am Watching by Emma Kavanagh

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Isla found the first bodies by the wall when she was only fifteen--four bodies lined up. Only one survived, teenage Ramsey. His brother, Zach, was among the dead. Three weeks later, another body is found. Then, two weeks later, another. Terror and fear run rampant in the small town of Briganton until Isla's father, Detective Sergeant Eric Bell, brings the killer, Heath McGowan, to justice. Now Isla is a professor of criminal psychology; she specializes in brain function and its influences on criminal behavior. Maybe she can figure out why serial killers are what they are. Maybe she can prevent what happened in Briganton from happening in another town. She and her partner, Connor, have scanned and studied the brains of twelve men--all serial killers. Now, they are on to their thirteenth: Heath McGowan. Meanwhile, Mina a detective on the Briganton force, was drawn to the department by the thought of working with the famous Eric Bell. She answers a routine inquiry for Victoria Prew, who feels that someone has been inside her home. But later that night, a call comes in. They've found Victoria at the wall. It's happening again in Briganton. With Heath McGowan in prison, who has killed Victoria--and will they strike again?


"It began with the bodies."


This was a really good book--just an enjoyable, dark thriller that kept me guessing until the end. I totally thought I had it all figured out, but... nope! Putting all the puzzle pieces together was actually really fun, even though a lot of this one was really gruesome (think: lots of bodies, lots of death, and many piling up at said wall). I kept telling my wife about the plot, and I'm not sure enjoyed the thought of all those bodies-ha!

The characters in this one are not always the most nuanced, but Isla is great--she finds the bodies at age fifteen and now she's a grown woman, struggling to decipher the minds of serial killers. Her father, meanwhile, made his career on the apprehension of Heath McGowan, whom Isla herself is now interviewing and examining. And Mina, new to the small town, is wary of how the case was handled so many years ago, but hesitant to confront her idol.


"She was a thirty-five-year-old woman, and she was afraid of the dark. Heath McGowan was the reason."


There are lots of red herrings in the story and plenty of twists and turns to keep you puzzling and guessing. Despite it being a small town, there is no shortage of suspects. If you enjoy a good, dark thriller, I recommend this one. 4 stars.

I received a copy of this book from Kensington Books and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review (thank you!).

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