My Rating ~ Four Stars

RELEASE DATE:  6 February 2019

Format: Paperback

Pages: 371

Publisher: Penguin Australia

 

Blurb

Ten years ago, Jess’s mother was murdered by the Magpie Man.

She was the first of his victims but not the last.

Now Jess is the star of a YouTube reality series and she’s using it to catch the killer once and for all.

The whole world is watching her every move.

And so is the Magpie Man.

 

 

Review

Thank you so much to Penguin Australia for providing me with a copy of Are You Watching in exchange for an honest review!

 

“It was dad that gave the murderer his name. He said The Magpie Man liked shiny things, and Mum was the shiniest of all”

 

The Magpie Man has never been far from Jess’ thoughts, after he murdered her mother when she was young.  Her mother was the first in a line of serial killings that have never been solved.  The Magpie Man has never been brought to justice.  But Jess has a plan to change that.  She hopes by participating in a reality show, where she’ll be on camera all day, once a week, she might draw The Magpie Man out of hiding, maybe force him to make a mistake and reveal himself.  As the show starts to air, Jess realises she may not have understood just how dangerous her plan could be.

An exploration of the pros and cons of social media and life in the spotlight, Are You Watching is definitely a book fitting for the time we live in.  With a focus on YouTube, social media and reality TV, coupled with the popular true crime genre, the setting is quite realistic and engaging.  I enjoyed the way the book explored the different challenges Jess faced, navigating being the centre of a video based show – including the reactions of her peers and teachers at school, and other’s in her neighbourhood.  A fast paced and atmospheric narrative, with plenty of twists I didn’t work out before the end, this was a very cool YA thriller I wanted to read all in one sitting.

 

 

 

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