Title: The People Watcher
Author: Sam Lloyd
Publisher: Bantam Press

Synopsis:

Mercy Lake likes to fix things. To fix people. Trapped inside during daylight hours, hostage to her phobias, she uses the cover of night to watch the people in her town. And if someone needs her help, she steps in – secretly and with compassion.

When Mercy meets Louis, her lonely, unusual life is suddenly filled with excitement. Because Louis likes intervening in other people’s lives too, only he prefers a more direct – even violent – approach. As they grow closer, Mercy is enchanted but frightened by his actions. How many lines is he willing to cross? And how much is he prepared to risk?

And then there’s Nadia. Nadia knows she’s being watched, even if the police think differently. But with her own secrets to protect, she’s not going to wait around for the watcher to make their move. She’s going to stop them dead.

My review:

The People Watcher is a twisty, dark and intriguing book that kept getting cleverer!

I think the less you know about this book the better, but the main premise is we’re following Mercy, who watches people and helps them secretly if they need it. However, Mercy has a dark past – something she keeps to herself until she meets Louis, who she finds also has a penchant for ‘helping’ people – but a lot more violently…

The People Watcher swings between various viewpoints, which I really enjoyed. The person we get to know the most is Mercy, as her chapters are told in first person, but we also join other characters who keep us wondering who we can trust – their chapters are told in third person, which gives the reader a different perspective on the events of the story and makes us wonder who we can trust. Although questionable in their actions, these characters are very engaging to read about and I got a real sense of satisfaction as we see some of them get their comeuppance!

The plot is brilliant, with surprises and satisfying ‘aha’ moments that kept me completely absorbed. It starts off a bit slower with some great character building and continues to build the tension as we find out more and more about the people in this novel, and how they may – or may not – be connected.

The People Watcher is a well-written and suspenseful thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end. I highly recommend it to fans of the genre, and now I want to read a lot more from this author!

My rating: 5/5

Buy The People Watcher on Waterstones, Bookshop.org or Amazon.

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Many thanks to the publisher, Bantam Press, for providing a copy of this book on which I chose to write an honest review.

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