I loved how this is like two books in one--first, almost a treatise on race relations, racism, gentrification, white privilege, etc., and then a thriller that reminded me of some of Robin Cook's books. I read in other reviews that some people found this jarring, but--maybe because I was prepared for this change--it didn't bother me at all. I thought that getting to know the characters and understanding the issues slowly in the beginning made the ending all the more heart-stopping. I particularly enjoyed the relationship between Sydney and Theo, and the doubts that crept into her mind at some points had me questioning everything also. I listened to the audiobook version of this novel and thought that both narrators were absolutely first rate. Many thanks to NetGalley and the always wonderful HarperAudio for an advance electronic audio copy of this excellent book.

I'm sure there is an audience for this book, I'm just not it. I know these are important issues but I think this still could've been a great story without constantly ramming it home. Felt like it was really slow and I was just waiting for the good parts to start. Didn't get that far DNF.

Took me awhile, and a number of rewinds and a reread of the description of the book, to get into it. Guess it would be a slow burn. There were so many questions, which keeps the reader on their toes. Is Theo a good guy or not? Is Sydney imagining things or not? In the end it was an enjoyable read that I will recommend. Interesting take on gentrification.

All I can say after reading When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole is holy sh*t. I can’t remember the last time I read something so completely engrossing. The paranoia and tension that makes this book so effective is powerfully tangible. My heart raced, I held my breath, I clenched my jaw – I’m pretty sure I even gasped aloud a couple times. At one point I hit a twist so artfully delivered that I squealed, immediately paused the audio, and sat for a few seconds to absorb what I heard before rewinding a minute to listen again and make sure I heard what I thought I did. This book is an absolute roller coaster and I was along for the ride the entire time.

It takes a very talented author to take topics as weighty as gentrification and systemic racism and craft them into something approachable and understandable for the average fiction reader. While this book is incredibly eye-opening and informative, it never reads like a history lesson or a lecture. Cole never steps away from her fast-paced fictional world or veers into dry nonfiction territory. She somehow manages to weave the two into something that leaves the reader feeling like they learned something very important and had a ton of fun while doing so. 

And that really is what this book is – a ton of fun. The twists and turns are like nothing I’ve read before. I never guessed what happened next. Even if I thought I knew, I was wrong. Cole throws punch after punch and my head was spinning. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next. 

Aside from the outstanding storytelling, the audio experience was amazing. I appreciated having two separate narrators giving differing voices to our protagonists. While both voice actors were perfect, Sydney’s reader really stole the show. Her voice conveyed so much expression and emotion that I felt like I could see her standing in front of me. Susan Dalian may be my new favorite narrator. It was phenomenal.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Harper Audio for offering an advance listening copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. That ending! It’s classified as a thriller but the first half of the book felt more like fiction. But I loved the 2 main characters so I was all in even if I was expecting a thriller. But the ending was amazing!

The book was just okay for me.  I found that story did not flow as nicely as I expected.  The premise was there - maybe it was because i did listen to it on audio and I feel as thought the narrator impacts the story itself.

This was going to be a four star book until I got to the ending, more about that later.

I have never read this author before and I was interested in where she would go with this premise. The blurb for this book already tells a large part of the first half of the book. “ Sydney Green is Brooklyn born and raised, but her beloved neighborhood seems to change every time she blinks. Condos are sprouting like weeds, for sale signs are popping up overnight, and the neighbors she’s known all her life are disappearing.” What others called gentrification of the neighborhood she views more as destruction of the community. And where are all of the older black neighbors disappearing to???

I enjoyed the first two thirds of the book. I liked getting to know Sydney, a young black woman, what has brought her back to Brooklyn, her loves and losses. While overhearing part of a “walking tour” in her neighborhood she feels that there is no real history being talked about. She decides to organize her own tour which will delve into the real history of Brooklyn. She needs to do a lot of research and she has a lot of other things on her plate. She is still reeling from a recent betrayal and trying to keep up her mother’s garden which she has let go to weeds. The first point of view is Sydney’s.

Theo is white and has rather recently moved into an overpriced house that he and his girlfriend plan to renovate. The last few months have been stressful. He is recently unemployed and his relationship with his girlfriend is eroding. She comes from a background of wealth and doesn’t have much patience with Theo and his struggle to figure out his next steps in life. We will learn later that he has some secrets even she doesn’t know.

When Theo meets Sydney he is immediately captivated by her enthusiasm, determination, beauty and strength of character. When Theo learns that Sydney needs help with her research for the walking tour, he volunteers and she reluctantly agrees.

The middle third of the book reads a little bit like a romance, but the narration was good and I went with it. Some of the history that this duo reveals is very interesting, the white people who originally founded Brooklyn, the slaves who helped to build it, and the people who are living there now was insightful. I’m sure that many of the issues of racism and white privilege are authentic but then she begins to veer into speculation.

This was still a four star read for me until the dystopian like ending. I wasn’t prepared for the violence and completely unbelievable ending. I have now read more about this author and her background writing sci fi romance and then this ending makes some sense. It was, however, too far fetched and unbelievable for me.

I am reviewing the audiobook which I received from the publisher through NetGalley. The narration was well done and seemed to match the characters as I would picture them.

I was hoping for a more fast paced story this one felt like not much happened until the last few hours of the audiobook and honestly by then I had kind of lost interest. I didn’t get thriller out of this book it did not grab me like a good thriller will. I also did not understand comparing this to Rear Window I didn’t get that either. Honestly the description and reviews of this book I saw I thought this was going to be a fast paced thriller and that is not what I got. This was an okay story but it wasn’t a thriller until the end. 
The narration was well done.
Maybe it’s me and I just didn’t get the subtleties of this story but it just seemed like I couldn’t get invested in this story.

2 ½  stars

I received this book from the publisher Harper Audio and Netgalley for a fair and honest review

Great story! The story was eye opening for me and thought provoking. It depicts the other side of the story when revitalization happens and the greed involved. I will be recommending this book for book club and to customers.

Thank you to NetGalley for this advance listen copy.
Sydney is a black woman in a black neighborhood in Brooklyn...trying to care for her mothers property and hang onto all of the crazy things going on in her life. Something is happening in her beloved neighborhood though. When a white couple moves in across the street, things don’t seem out of place, but soon one by one neighbors disappear, weird noises happen, and Sydney wonders if something sinister is going on or if it’s her imagination because of her undue stress.
This was fun for me on many levels, but mostly because the vibe of the book was expertly narrated by the two actors. I really felt the rise and fall of the storyline, and had sharp emotions when some of the happenings unfolded. I was gripped to the end. This is one I would definitely offer to my patrons for something a little different in a thriller.
4*

It reads like a movie (they should make a movie out of this) and was very intriguing. I don't think it is so much a thriller as it is a social drama. The book is a very useful introduction to gentrification, sociology, and systemic racism. I enjoyed very much the narration through 2 characters and their development.

This was my first Alyssa Cole book, but I am definitely going to read some of her historical romances now.  When No One Is Watching is the perfect title for this book.  This is a cautionary tale about what corporate greed and privilege could do to a neighborhood, if no one was paying attention.  There are so many issues that Cole highlighted in this story (institutional racism and gentrification to name a couple) which she seamlessly weaved into the plot.  The relationship between Sydney and Theo was believable and the heat between them was a nice addition.  Both narrators did an excellent job and I would definitely recommend listening to this on audiobook.  I did feel like the ending was rushed, which is why I gave this 4 stars instead of 5.  Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC of this book!

I love thrillers and mysteries.  I was excited to see this author branch out from romance into new territory.  However, I think this book is a bit over the top. I felt the vulgar language was unnecessary.  Given the current situation in our country, I feel that the author could have structured this book differently.  Some of the glowing reviews make me wonder if we read or listened to the same book.  She is a talented author, but some of the things in this book made me uncomfortable.  Perhaps that is what she was aiming for?.

*An early edition of this audiobook was provided by Harper Collins and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Thriller

POV: Sydney, a Black woman upset by the rapid gentrification of her neighborhood; Theo, a white man who recently moved in and seems interested in getting to know his new neighbors



By probably less than 30 minutes in to the audiobook I found myself rolling my eyes at the caricatures of the white characters, but at the same time I recognized that the author was deliberately trying to provoke this kind of discomfort in me, as any necessary conversation about race must do. Jabs about potato salad aside, the many micro (and macro) aggressions displayed by the new white residents as well as the pure greed and callousness of the realtors, bankers, and corporate executives serve as an education as subtle as a two by four to the head- but as the state of race relations in the US shows, the time for subtlety is over. As far as the story goes, I was definitely pulled in to the paranoia and fear Sydney experiences as she suffers from loneliness and a desperation not to lose everything she still holds dear. As her trust of Theo rapidly vacillates, so did mine as the listener, even when hearing his POV.

Final thoughts: Those who most need to hear a story like this, and would benefit from that discomfort of having their role in both the present and past economies examined, will likely never read this due to: A. They don’t read. B. They don’t read books by POC. And most of all, C. They won’t allow themselves to be characterized and will immediately call “reverse racism” in defense of their fragility. Personally, I read all the time, I seek out #ownvoices books from all perspectives, and I deeply desire to be challenged on my own biases or prejudices. Yes I squirmed, but I also listened and learned. #sitdownKaren

For all those reasons, as well as just appreciating an excellently crafted thriller/ conspiracy/ current events novel, I rate When No One is Watching 4.5/5 stars. I would love to see this as a Netflix series starring Issa Rae. And I hope I’m wrong about how many people will stop reading when they start to feel “attacked” like ponytail lululemon...

A story of a neighborhood that is being gentrified and the neighbors, old and new that are part of it but is there more than houses in a traditionally black neighborhood being sold to white buyers? Why are people selling and what happens to them when they move out of the neighborhood? Told in 2 voices, Sydney a long time resident who is trying to hold on to her Mommy's apartment and Theo a new resident who doesn't quite fit in with the gentrification crowd. together they begin researching the neighborhood and discover more than they imagined. Did what they discover put their life in danger?
The narrators do a good job of capturing the voice of their characters.

This book was a wild ride. The pain of people living through bewildering change wrought by gentrification and the entitlement of outsiders is viscerally illustrated by Cole’s prose. The craziest thing about this plot is that it could happen, and things similar to it are happening, all over the country. This is a good recommendation for anyone who wants to add antiracist content to their fiction list.

Well, it is 1:37 in the morning and I just finished listening to When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole. The book was read by Susan Dalian who was sharing the story through the eyes of Sydney Green and Jay Aaseng who shares the story from her neighbors Theo’s perspective. I enjoyed both of the narrators, but felt that Susan Dalian had a perfect throaty quality to give voice to Sydney who was Brooklyn born and raised. It rang through as an authentic voiced and a voice that I wanted to continue to listen to.

I found it very fascinating to follow Sydney and Theo through the maze of clues. Alyssa Cole kept me on my toes as a reader. I learned a great deal from this book even though it is a work of fiction. So much of what was written required me to think things through and to see it from an alternative perspective. Alyssa Cole did a wonderful job leading you from wondering if something was really going on, you question the reality right along with the characters through to a satisfying conclusion.

I have read a few of Alyssa Cole’s romances  and between that and the premise for this book I knew I wanted to read it. I am happy to say that I greatly enjoyed it even though it was not a genre that I usually read. I loved Stephen King’s The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon because I never knew if it was the psychological toll of being lost in the woods or if there was something truly out there. I had the same feeling as I was reading this book and I personally feel this is the mark of a gifted writer when you have to question if it is truly happening or something psychological is going on. I highly recommend this book.

When No One is Watching was a mesmerizing book. I was completely hooked. I heard it pitched as Get Out meets Rear Window, and it delivered on that promise. The story is told from dual points of view, and I appreciated that it used two narrators to reflect that. When No One is Watching integrates Black history, the problems of gentrification, systemic racisim, and classic thriller moments. It's dual points of view gives us an unreliable narrator. The twist and turns of the plot were very reminiscent of the best of Hitchcock's films. Overall, I loved it! I'll be recommending it to everyone.

Fascinating premise. The duel narrators added a lot of depth to the story and the pacing kept me on edge of my seat. In true Cole fashion there’s a bit of romance, but wow is it not the focus. This story has a slow eerie build, and once the pieces fall into place its unreal. 

No seriously, it loses me once things get too serious. It’s just so chaotic!

But I still recommend. The writing, the characters, the history. It’s worth it.

Sydney has recently-ish moved back in to the brownstone in Brooklyn that she grew up in after her ex-husband turned out to be a gaslighting control freak. But things aren't kosher in Gifford Place, and Sydney's anxiety is through the roof: there is more crime than ever before, her longtime neighbors are up and moving after money-draining experiences happen, a new pharmaceutical company is moving in to the old hospital, and  more and more white folks are moving in and driving up the property taxes. RACIST, white people-- and Kim, Sydney's across-the-street neighbor, is one of them. But with the Labor Day Block Party coming up, Sydney has to focus any energy she can muster up researching the history of Gifford Place's Black people. When Kim's (white) boyfriend Theo agrees to help Sydney research, Sydney doesn't expect much. But then more and more suspicious things happen around Gifford Place, and soon Theo is the only  one Sydney can trust-- or can she?!?! 

This psychological suspense builds slowly: you think it's just Sydney and some paranoia and stress-induced anxiety, but then WHAM-BAM! We are on roll! Give this to your mystery lovers who want something a little different than you're average murdered-woman-of-xyz that's popular right now.

I listened to the audiobook version, and it is well done. There are two actors, one male for Theo and one female for Sydney, which I always appreciate when the narration is split like in When No One Is Watching. 

If you have an older/more mature teen reader who doesn't mind genre-hopping and read Pride by Ibi Zoboi or The Education of Margot Sanchez by Lilliam Rivera and wants to read more about  gentrification, this book might work for them. 

Diverse reads:
- Sydney is African-American, as are the majority of the characters in  the story. Gentrification plays  a huge part. 

For those who are squeamish about sex scenes, there is one rather graphic sexual encounter between two characters. Cole's experience as a romance author shines in this scene! *winky face* On the chaste-to-steamy scale, I'd put it at a 6 out of 10.