I’m a big Heather Gudenkauf fan, but I also felt that Everyone is Watching was pretty different from her other books that I’ve read. Check out my Review with Spoilers for Everyone is Watching and I hope I can help you figure out if this book is for you!
Jen’s Quick Take on Everyone is Watching
- A popcorn thriller with a fast pace and multiple POVs
- A locked room setting and an I Know What You Did Last Summer Vibe
- A reality TV plot involving a small group competing for $10 million
- A fun, quick read for those who enjoy a lighter book
Everyone is Watching by Heather Gudenkauf
Published by Park Row Books on March 26, 2024.
320 pages. 3.75 Goodreads rating on publication of this review.
Review with Spoilers of Everyone is Watching
I went into Everyone is Watching very excited. I really enjoyed The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf, which was a great slow-burn suspense. Also, you know I love a good Locked Room premise.
I’m not always a fan of book with Reality Show premises, because as a HUGE reality show fan, I find them hard to pull off. They often involve a lot of characters and I always keep feeling it would be more fun to watch. (The Hunger Games is about the only exception I can think of. Even The Tri-Wizard Tournament did not work for me.)
Everyone is Watching required some BIG adjustments of my expectations.
To enjoy this book, go in expecting a fast-paced popcorn thriller. The game being played, One Lucky Winner, seemed a bit like a cross between Survivor (with outdoor physical challenges and special tokens to find) and Big Brother (as the contestants were trapped in a luxury villa together. Sort of.)
Don’t nitpick everything, because there are things that will make you go, “huh?”
It was interesting to me that what I thought made the book good also made it implausible. You go in thinking that the five contestants (yes, only five) are strangers to one another.
Nope, many of them have connections from the past. Some recognize the people they knew right away. Others do not. This was something I tried not to think too hard about. I also tried not to think about how the person running One Lucky Winner was doing it with a staff of three people and using a vast fortune she made as an Instagram makeup influencer.
There was an “I Know What You Did Last Summer” Subplot I Enjoyed
I have a rule about true thrillers: they usually can NOT include flashbacks. A thriller needs a fast pace and escalating tension, and flashbacks work against that. So I’d argue this book is a bit of a hybrid. But the flashbacks helped develop two of the characters, Maire and Samuel, more than the others.
But overall, I think if you’re looking for a fun reality TV thriller, this is a good choice.
Spoilers for Everyone is Watching
- Why (and by whom) were the characters in Everyone is Watching gathered together?
- How did the characters in Everyone is Watching know each other?
- What was the ending of Everyone is Watching?
- What were the motivations of the person who masterminded all this?
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