Kate Youngblood is a professor in her late 30s who, after a successful debut novel, has not written anything of note. She has recently been through a divorce and is starting to feel unattractive and invisible. When her new student Sam Grist starts showing a deep interest in her, Kate is both attracted to him and aware that a relationship with him would destroy her career. But as she gets to know Sam more, she comes to realize his obsession with her might threaten more than her job.

Watch Me can be described as a "stalker book". I have not read famous examples of this genre such as You, so I can't compare, but Watch Me really worked for me. It was a fast and thrilling read, with chilling moments and interesting chracters. Jody Gehrman played really well with several themes, making them overlap: forbidden attraction, toxic relationships, dangerous obsession.

The story is told from Kate's and Sam's point of views and I enjoyed both of them. Sam was creepy but also disturbingly fascinating. Most of the time his thoughts and actions made me shudder, but he also had a dark sense of humour which was amusing. While reading I knew he was bad, but sometimes I almost felt sorry for him. Kate was also quite good: she was naive and made some very dumb decisions, but I could understand her way of thinking and acting. I also liked the fact that she had a darker side, which explained her attraction to Sam.

Another thing I liked was the thematic of writing. Both Kate and Sam are writers and there are many parts which deal with this passion, its problems and allures and so on. Their interest felt believable and was very interesting to read about.

Overall, a solid thriller, good for a fast and entertaining read. Recommended.

Interesting twist on a stalking scenario. Written in alternating first-person narratives, we get inside both the main characters' heads---College prof Kate Youngblood and her student Sam Grist. To say their relationship is strained---and disturbing---doesn't quite cover it. These are flawed characters who battle through mixed emotions, needs, fears, and complex past histories. A fast read and a fascinating story

DP Lyle, award-winning author, lecturer, story consultant

Kate Youngblood is a young professor at Blackwood College teaching Creative Writing. She is in her 30’s and has had 2 novels published. The first a complete success, her second much less so and she is now on her third which she fears is also lack lustre. Kate is newly divorced after being replaced with a younger, prettier woman; struggling with the publication of her book; worried about gaining tenure at the college and to top it all, concerned about her identity. Sam Grist is one of her students to the Creative Writing course, but more than that, he is the brightest of her students and from the moment he read her first book he has become obsessed with her.

Kate and Sam are the two voices which carry the story. Kate is fairly dismissive of her students, she has disparaging names for them and her focus is on Sam who she recognises as being a talented writer with great potential. It doesn’t hurt that he is very attractive. It certainly is more intriguing when he clearly admires her and not just for her talent, he makes her feel alive again, attractive. Kate’s best friend is pregnant and when the baby arrives Kate realises that she has effectively lost a friend as her sole focus becomes her son.

Sam’s point of view clearly reveals his obsession with Kate. He is totally dismissive of advances made by a pretty student in his group deeming her stupid and vacuous. His behaviour reveals that he is dangerous.

I didn’t really like either of the characters. To a degree Sam was more interesting as his back-story is revealed and he starts to unravel. Kate irritated me. She bangs on about tenure and knowing that a relationship with Sam is fraught with danger, but hey-ho she still allows him to dominate her thinking and to a degree her actions. Get a grip! She is totally self-absorbed – more than that, she just seems to take reckless risks. As for the closing section…

Having said all that, it is a good book that holds your interest and it is well-structured. I would recommend the book because Sam’s obsession does provide tension. Don’t read it if you are offended by bad language is my only warning. I have given it 3 stars but would have made it 3.5 if I could


Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

I didn't care for this book. From the beginning there was just too much cussing for me. I dicided not to finish the book after my second try.

I was kind of underwhelmed with this book. I was expecting something like The Boy Next Door movie with Jennifer Lopez being a teacher and having relations with a young man. I was also expecting it to be sort of my guilty pleasure kind of book but something was missing. Sam Grist, an overly obsessed student , will do anything it takes to ensure that he and his professor Kate Youngblood end up together. After Kate finds out the things Sam does like ruining her career, and murdering a guy she went on a couple dates with, she still has some kind of feelings for him because he makes her feel wanted?? I can see where attracting attention from any hot guy when you've gotten older and don't seem to have anyone to impress can be fun and all, but to feel some attraction towards a psychopath is just nuts. That would be a turn off to me. I was hoping for a little more intensity from this book. Not necessarily having some crazy blowout sex scene between Sam and Kate but at least more tension between a forbidden love. I don't know how to put it, but this was just kind of meh...

Watch Me by Jody Gehrman has two main characters and deals with obsession. One character was crazy and I just couldn't connect with the other. Early in the story Kate says "I recognize shit when I read it." That pretty much sums up my feelings about Watch Me. I was given an early copy to review.

First, I have to say this book felt kid of surreal reading about an author and her stalker ;)

While the premise started off great, the dual 1st person POV, was a bit distracting and I really only cared about Sam's POV. His mind is fascinating and makes for a real page turner. While Kate's sections just fell flat to me as she came across a bite too naive and unintelligent.

This book was a good mystery story. The author did a good job of weaving together two storylines. However, I did not find the story to have a lot of suspense. A good, easy read for those who like police stories.

I gave up on this after a few pages. The characters were cliched and boring.

I was sent this book to preview so I tried it. I was not impressed.
The stalker view bothered me, made it difficult for me to read.

As a victim of a stalker, I could not read this nor feel for his view.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

From the first page, this book hit the ground running. There were several times where I had the urge to look over my shoulder to make sure someone wasn’t watching me.

The story follows a young man who is overly obsessed with the author of his favorite book. So much so, that he enrolls in the school she teaches, hacks her email, and many other steps to insert himself in her life.

I enjoyed this story, and can’t wait to read more from this author.

Kate is a professor in her late 30s, divorced and not happy in her life. A student takes a liking to her and becomes obsessed. I could not believe how much he talked to himself about his feelings and he was doing everything he did for them. I really felt bad for her and then realize towards the end that maybe she is just as messed up as he is.

Great novel! Be prepared to be unsettled each time you enter the mind of Sam. After years of planning he's finally acting on his obsession. Outwardly he seems normal and it gives me the shivers thinking how easy it would be to simply accept what he says and does because he is so convincing. Kate is vulnerable at this time in her life and I worried about her the entire time I was reading this book. A feeling of unease just built and built right to the thrilling end. I couldn't put this book down!

So, I’ll give this a 3.5, rounded up.

I was pretty interested in the beginning. I kind of wish it was only Sam’s POV bc he’s crazy af and I like that. In a book, at least.

Anyways, so... we have Kate, the other main character. She was kind of annoying to me. Pretty dumb. Like duh, girl. But what do I know?

Basically, Kate is a professor and teaches a workshop for aspiring writers. She’s also an author but a one hit wonder. Her husband left her for someone younger. We don’t get much info on that which I was kind of interested in. But Whateves. She has a stalker. I’m not spoiling anything, as it’s applied to the blurb.


Anyways, Sam’s POV was better.

Thank you, Netgalley.

Watch me is an intense novel with a gripping plot and fantastically written characters. It's been quite some time since I have read anything like this one and it kept my attention from beginning to end. The author has a flawless novel right here and I can imagine it soaring to the top of the bestsellers list once published!

This was a very intense suspenseful read. Kate has no idea what to do about the increasing feelings that she has for her student Sam, fighting the attraction wasn't as easy as she thought. The twists and turns in this book left me guessing more than once and the ending was something. Sam knew that he loved his professor Kate even before she knew who he was, what would happen; would she return his love or will he be fighting for ever for it. Thank you NetGalley and Jody Gehrman for allowing me to read this ARC and write a honest review.

I received an ARC from NetGalley to read and review. The below is my honest, unbiased opinion. Thank you, Jody Gehrman, the publisher, and NetGalley, for allowing me to review.

WATCH ME is a standalone psychological thriller with mystery, suspense, and dark elements. Told in dual, first-person point of view, WATCH ME questions just how far an obsession can take someone. Kate Youngblood is a thirty-something creative writing professor with a struggling writing career. Her last book tanked, her husband left her for a woman ten years younger, and she feels like she is literally disappearing into a world of chaos.

Sam Grist is Kate's best writing students. His stories are dark, but Kate wishes to nurture his writing until he becomes the success even she's trying to become with her own writing. As Sam makes his way into Kate's life, the two enter a deadly game of forbidden desire.

I am a HUGE fan of books about writers, and I absolutely loved this one. While this isn't a horror novel, it does have dark themes, including romance. There are also mystery and psychological elements at play. This was a quick read for me, and once I started, I couldn't put it down. I thoroughly enjoyed Gehrman's take on forbidden desire and the life of a struggling writer.

Okay, so the chemistry between Sam and Kate was steamy! Not just because they were physically attracted to each other but because they unknowingly complimented one another by sharing the same gritty, raw, and selfish perspective of life. Just in varying degrees. Sam reminded me of a slightly watered down version of "Ryan" in Ker Dukey's Empathy. They shared that same kind of dark humor, charm, dangerous edge, and magnetic draw. Some of Sam's thoughts?

I move the binoculars up to your face. I’m not a pervert, a Peeping Tom. I am Romeo, gazing up at Juliet by moonlight. And yes, okay, so I’m crouched in a urine-scented alley. That doesn’t make my mission any less noble. To study you. Understand you. Observe you in your natural habitat.

I loved the female protagonist in this story! I didn't agree with all of her viewpoints but she kept me chuckling from page to page with her unapologetic ways of thinking. Some of Kate's thoughts on motherhood?

▣ It’s not my fault every woman rounding the corner of thirty goes crazy and gives up everything for a tiny shit factory. Being the only sane one might make me lonely, but it shouldn’t earn me pity from the bitches who lose their minds.

▣ Kids find me compelling. Their chubby hands reach for me in grocery stores, in parks. They sense life in me. Surrounded all day by their parents’ rotting husks, their nannies’ dead eyes, they see me and grasp for the living.

So why not five stars?

This book was a solid four-star read for me up until the 97% mark. An incident occurred there that had me rolling my eyes with disbelief, disappointment, and shame for being fully invested in these characters, only to watch the ending amount to...that?

Disappointment doesn't begin to cover how I felt after reading that scene, but hopefully other readers will feel differently.

Minor issues?

It took me several chapters of reading to adjust to the writing style because Sam's POV read like a private journal addressed solely to Kate. After a while, I didn't mind. Also, I strongly disliked how Sam addressed the reader at the start of this story as well as at the 39% mark. I'm not a fan of narrators speaking directly to the reader, but that's just me. In addition, the characters sometimes used the exact same terms/ phrases within their inner monologues.

▣Overall, I enjoyed these characters!

Fav lines in Kate's thoughts?

No wonder Fifty Shades of Shit charged to the top of the bestseller lists. Young American sensibilities are as refined as raw sewage.

Think Fatal Attraction meets You! I had to read this in one sitting as I literally could not put it down! Creative writing teacher, Kate Youngblood has a successful novel under her belt and enjoys her writing workshops even though her personal life has fallen apart as her ex found a younger woman. When twenty-two-year-old student, Sam Grist seeks out her attention for his short story, she is immediately attracted to him but repelled by their sixteen year age difference. But Sam is obsessed with Kate and will stop at nothing to prove his loyalty to her. This might have you peering over your shoulder at night!

After penning one successful novel, Kate Youngblood has failed in her attempts to write a worthy second book. Having lost her street cred as an author and her husband to a younger woman, Kate makes a living teaching creative writing at a small college.She feels as if the best years of her life are behind her and despairs at having anything really exciting or noteworthy happening to her again. But she has an incredibly gifted student in her class. Sam Grist may choose somewhat disturbing topics for his writing endeavours, but his talent is obvious. Kate has no idea how fascinated Sam is with her. She doesn’t know he watches her, follows her…. Kate will have something exciting happen to her now. Sam will make sure of it. I love a good academic thriller, and this one was exceptional. Creepy and intense