Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - When No One Is Watching

I really liked this. Yes, the pacing could’ve been more even, but the concept was solid and I enjoyed the story! I, like many other reviewers, could’ve done without the romance subplot; but those issues aside, I thought the story was well done and it certainly drew me in quickly and thoroughly.

The history was fascinating and I have a new appreciation for how difficult (and horrifying) living with the remnants (and current iterations) of slavery and redlining and stolen land must be 😞

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krys_kilz's review

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dark tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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sophie1_xox's review

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challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Summary
I found this book intriguing. The concept was very interesting and I loved the complexity of the conspiracy but I feel like there was not enough depth to the plot. There was no real surprise aspect and without that, I really struggled with feeling gripped. Sydney was confusing as a character and some of the side characters motivations (looking at you ‘best friend/sister’) really didn’t make sense. Theo was also interesting and I enjoyed reading about how Sydney and Theo rationalised their differences whilst also remaining wary of each other. Though, this did make their romance seem unfounded. It was a fine read, I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it as much as I could have.

Characters
Starting with Sydney, I remember feeling that her paranoia was unjustified. Not that she was paranoid entirely but the extent of it confused me. Also, why didn’t she tell anyone about the Uber incident??? I understand why she didn’t tell the police but no one in her community that she felt safe with? I also feel like she didn’t really have any development. Other than falling in love with Theo, which she said herself was typical, I don’t really feel like there was any resolution to her character. If I’m being totally honest, I don’t really remember much…
Theo is very much in the same boat. A naïve white man who is blind as a bat. The amount that he disliked his girlfriend (whose name I can’t remember but think it might be Kim?) for him to spend SO LONG believing that she wasn’t racist? It was just unbelievable. I could relate to some aspects of his development, particularly where he tries to show support for BLM in very white people ways and I loved how Sydney dealt with that. Again, he wasn’t really memorable in other aspects. Though, my favourite bit is how he dealt with the man who seemed to attack him. That felt super realistic and when the conspiracy was revealed and he realised what he had done, it made me consider my own biases – which is always good when reading about an experience that is not one I know.

Plot
As I mentioned, the plot seemed predictable. Some of the characters motivations were questionable and it was unclear where it was going at times. I feel like the ending got simultaneously wrapped up conveniently and left so many strings disconnected. I did appreciate the ties with current topics such as gentrification and reading about it from a different perspective to my own really expanded my world view and helped me to see things from other viewpoints. There were definitely times when I related to characters or events that I wished I hadn’t and that knowledge is something that I hope to take away with me.

Overall
This book was fine. Standard plot, average characters, fine. I appreciated the expansion of current topics and the unique take on situations, however I do not feel that the experience of reading this was worth any more than 3 stars.

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sagittariusreads_'s review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

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tillysg1's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark informative reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I feel that one character had a fair amount of growth and development while another didn't. Overall, the story was good, the twists were interesting. The character of the neighborhood and the personal look at race issues is what really caught me here. Great look at neighborhood culture and what that loss can look/feel like.

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vaguely_pink's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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