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The token genre pick on this year‘s #CanadaReads shortlist. I‘ll bet it gets voted off first or second.

I bailed on this about 50% thru. I only finished it because it was shortlisted for #CanadaReads2025. The ending 10% was the best part of the book and the only reason I'm giving it 3 ⭐ instead of 2. The ending makes the reader feel guilty for disliking the rest. 😆

This is probably fine for a psychological suspense novel. I read it because it is a contender for CanadaReads this year. Is this the book every Canadian should read? Does every Canadian need to think most of the people in their lives are awful and untrustworthy?

Canada Reads. Book 3. How did this even make the list?! I almost bailed, but I thought no, there must be more to it. Maybe I‘m wrong. So I read it all. I was not wrong. It fits the formula of a thriller. But it‘s not thrilling. It‘s boring and predictable and I regret wasting my time. I also have no idea how it fits the theme of changing the narrative.

Third book for #CanadaReads and so far I'm not overly impressed with this year's contenders. I'm all for genre fiction in the Canada Reads list, and I know that there are domestic thrillers that can contribute and propel discussion forward with regards to nationally important topics, but this certainly ain't it.

Taken alone, this still didn't work for me. I actively disliked characters that I'm pretty sure I was supposed to feel for. Cont'd

Here‘re this year‘s Canada Reads panelists and their selections, for anyone who missed them! For the first time ever, I lucked out; I‘ve already read three of the finalists (the tagged book, A TWO-SPIRIT JOURNEY, and DANDELION; I‘d rank them in that order), and the other two ( ETTA AND OTTO AND RUSSELL AND JAMES and JENNIE‘S BOY) came in for me last week. I‘ll definitely get everything read by the time the debates start on March 17!

There are a couple of domestic thrillers on the Canada Reads Longlist, so I figure there‘s a good chance one of the panelists wants to bring the genre to the table this year. Even if WATCH OUT FOR HER doesn‘t make the cut, I won‘t regret reading it. It‘s creepy as shit! I‘ve got so many theories already and I can‘t wait to see how everything comes together.

Reading on the dock for the evening. Perfection. Hope everyone's weekend has been a good one!

3.5 ⭐/5⭐

This is a classic suspense novel. Sarah Goldman, middle aged mom to Jacob, is stuck in a relationship rut, and since the birth of her son 6 years before she has really given up everything else to raise him. When the gorgeous med school dropout named Holly is offered up as a babysitter, Sarah is eager to get some help. Insecurities arise and secrets are exposed and Sarah fires Holly and moves her family away, but Holly is unable to let them go.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The psycho babysitter is a bit cliché so I worried it would be another “been there, read that” situation, but nope; this book is written well and plot advanced quickly. The “domestic thriller” has become a difficult one to navigate since Gone Girl but Watch Out separates itself by being a bit less “shocking” and more character driven with constant questioning of which of these well-painted characters are trustworthy. Full ScrappyMags.com

Watch Out For Her is a twisted novel. The story is told through the eyes of two women–Holly and Sarah–along two timelines; one tells about the events in the past and the other covers the present, and these two timelines come together so well by the end of the novel. I liked how Bailey ended many of the chapters with little cliffhangers, making me want to go on and read more to see what would happen, creating a serious page-turner of a novel.

This is a psychological suspense told from two points of view. Sarah who is a very nervous mother of a six-year-old and Holly, a young woman from a wealthy family who Sarah has hired to babysit. The story revolves around Sarah's mistrust and Holly's willing to do anything to help out the family. All of the adults, including Sarah's husband, are keeping rather large secrets, that eventually become public. This was a fun, easy read - 3.5/5 stars.

Sarah moves her family from Vancouver to Toronto to escape Holly, the babysitter she hired to watch her son for the summer. When a series of weird events start occurring; Sarah realizes that she can run but she can‘t hide. The ending to this one is totally bonkers but I was fine with suspending disbelief for the entertainment value. Thx to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

#WatchOutForHer #SamanthaMBailey #20in4 #BookSpinBingo

Sarah, Daniel and Jacob Goldman move from Vancouver to Toronto to get away from their babysitter, Holly Monroe. The relationship started when Daniel suggested that Sarah needed more time to herself for her photography. Jacob adored Holly and Holly found in Sarah a mother she never had. When Holly gets too involved in the Goldman's lives, they decide to suddenly move to Toronto. I

Full review here: http://girlwellread.blogspot.com/2022/01/watch-out-for-her-novel-by-samantha-m.h....