Review: Always Watching by Chevy Stevens

Title: Always Watching

Author: Chevy Stevens

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Publication Date: June 2013

Genre: Adult Fiction

Series or Stand Alone: Stand Alone


Synopsis can be found here.
NetGalley review.

Review:

Nadine Lavoie is a doctor in a psychiatric hospital when she meets a patient named Heather, whose story starts bringing up long forgotten memories from Nadine's past. As Nadine uncovers the memories she lost, she finds the truth may be more sinister and terrifying than she could have imagined.

I really enjoyed Chevy Steven's Still Missing, so I jumped at the chance to read her newest book.

Nadine is a smart woman who can do some really dumb things. Oh, I don't know, like poking around and asking about the dangerous cult she used to grow up in. Telling strangers she spoke to once about what was going on, what evidence she has obtained. A few times I wanted to scream at her - Seriously, woman? But of course, it's like watching the girl run upstairs when the killer is in the house. You're watching them and powerless to stop it.

That said, through the whole book, I couldn't trust anyone. Everyone seemed shifty like they were hiding something. And usually, they were.

There are a lot of scary moments, where I found myself holding my breath, waiting to turn the page. I really enjoyed the overall tone and unease of the book. I felt uncomfortable reading it, especially about the commune/cult that Nadine was a part of and that Heather came from. The most terrifying thing is that these cults are real, which adds a certain menacing quality to the story.

It's a page turner and grabbed my attention early on, but I didn't feel a real connection to Nadine. And all of the smaller stories winding through the book felt forced or unnatural. There's one storyline in particular that is revealed at the end and it just seemed unnecessary for it to have been that way.

I would recommend this book to people who like Harlan Coben or other thriller authors. 

Rating 6 Good