Saturday, April 11, 2020

Just Watch Me by Jeff Lindsay - NO

Just Watch Me by Jeff Lindsay, 368 pages. Dutton (Penguin Group), 2019. $26.

Language: R (491 swears, 215 “f” + foreign swear words); Mature Content: R; Violence: PG13

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - NO

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Riley Wolfe is a master thief. Having successfully accomplished another job that was too easy, Riley decides to challenge himself by doing the impossible -- something even he isn’t sure he can pull off. But if anyone can do it, Riley Wolfe will.

Through the entire book, I was at war with myself. In watching Riley’s schemes unfold in the roundabout way that only makes sense to him, I wanted to see him pull off the impossible; but, at the same time, what Riley was doing wasn’t right, and I wanted the FBI agent tracking him down to succeed in catching the bad guy; but how could Riley be caught without implicating his forger friend -- I didn’t want to see her get caught! The constant conflict of interest within myself kept me on the edge of my seat, even when the timeline didn’t always seem clear and consistent. Surprisingly, Lindsay ends Riley’s story in a way that feels satisfying to me and all my conflicting interests. The mature content rating is for alcohol and drug use, references to pornography and masturbation, brief discussion of pedophile activity, nudity, and sex. The violence rating is for criminal activity, including stealing, forgery, and murder.

Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

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