Review: Watched by Cindy Hogan plus a Giveaway!

When Christy wins a school trip to Washington D.C. she is sure this is just the thing that will change her life.  Christy longs to be accepted and popular instead of stuck in the smart, poor girl category and this trip is her chance to be with the crowd she longs to be a part of.  Things don’t go exactly how Christy imagined and when she witnesses a horrible murder, her life is definitely changed, and not for the better.  Christy and her friends are being hunted by evil men who want them dead.  Can the FBI protect them?  Can Christy make it out of Washington D.C. alive?

Generally when I get a new book in the mail or from the library, I open it up right away and start reading the first page.  I don’t know why I do this, I guess to just get an initial feel for the book.  To see if I’m going to be interested in it right away.  If the book really captures me I end up reading more, even though I’ve already told myself that I can’t read the book until I finish with whatever other books I’m working on for reviews.  Watched was one of those books that I started reading and didn’t put down even though I should have because it wasn’t its turn!

Christy is definitely a typical teenager with all the insecurities and desires I think many fifteen year old girls have.  Her plight to fit in and find acceptance was relatable, even to me as an adult.  Her nighttime exploits of sneaking out made the mother in me cringe though!  After the first horrible outcome, you would think those kids would learn their lesson and not sneak out in the middle of the night, but no.  They continue to do it, going to clubs and the like.  It’s amazing what a teenager will do for a hot looking boy.  Christy finds herself in all kinds of sticky situations.

I haven’t really read many YA suspense novels and I found myself really enjoying this one.  Watched was fast paced and exciting.  It had the tension that moves the story along and a bit of teenage romance too. 

One thing that didn’t quite jive for me was Christy’s relationship with her parents.  She often spoke of the rules in her home of not dating until she was 16 and even some thoughts on religion.  Yet she spoke of parents who were distant and uninvolved in her life.  She never called home on her trip or had contact with her parents in any way.  Her parents were supposedly contacted to inform them of a “bus accident” in which she was involved yet there is still no contact between Christy and her parents.  Really?  I find it hard to believe that parents that give rules like no dating until 16 and teach their child religion as Christy explains it would be so uncaring or uninvolved in her life.  Especially when something traumatic happens.  I guess I just didn’t understand that element of the book very well.

Aside from that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  I pushed through it so quickly because I just had to know what would happen.  I suspected everyone, my heart was pounding, I forgot to write my review notes.  That some good story!  It sure was left wide open in the end, so I’m hoping for an exciting sequel to come.

My thanks to William Hogan (Cindy’s husband) for sending me Watched to read and review.  How awesome to have your husband helping to promote your book!  William was kind enough to include an extra print copy for me to give away.  Yipee!  If you'd like to win, just leave me a comment telling me why you'd like to read Watched and your email address so I can contact you.

You can find out more about Cindy Hogan here and even read the first chapter of Watched here.

You can purchase Watched here.  Watched for the Kindle is only $.99 right now!  How cool is that?  It is for sure worth a dollar to read!