Book review: Watch me by James Carol. A criminal profiler, a serial killer and a small town in Louisiana are the key ingredients for a novel that I thought I would never read, but devoured in 48 hours

 I recently read an interview with Ann Cleeves in the Radio Times where she talked about how banal real life murder can be.  She knows what she’s talking about as she’s met a number of real life murderers and describes most of them as pathetic inadequate people.  Like me she’s not a fan of the serial killer genre, which I think is now pretty clichéd and a too unrealistic for my liking.  So when I picked up Carol’s novel Watch me, shortly afterwards, I pretty quickly decided it would go on the “ditch pile” – conflicted ex FBI profiler, serial killer, small town in Louisiana?  I had much more promising books to try.  I thought the two page test would be enough to prove that, but instead it convinced me to put it in my holiday suitcase.  I read it quickly, snatching any time I could in my first two days on holiday to finish the book.

So, a quick run through – Jefferson Winter is an ex FBI criminal profiler, with a rootless existence living in hotels as he goes from case to case, with nothing in his life except work.  He’s sent a video clip of a murder, which is followed by a countdown clock, with the inescapable conclusion that this is the countdown to another gruesome murder.  Winter immediately decides to take the case and detours to Eagle Creek.  He soon concludes that the killer is a policeman and the only people he decides to trust are Taylor, a bright policeman who doesn’t share his first name with anyone and Hilary, who chooses to hide her relationship with Taylor from everyone.  Winter and his makeshift team have to track down the killer before he strikes again, but when he does, the crime is far more complex than it first seems to be, putting Winter on the back foot trying to regain the initiative.

A little clichéd? Well, based on what I’ve written in previous posts about the serial killer genre and the ingredients in the story, this book shouldn’t have stood a chance.  What did I like?  Well, the golden thread that runs through the book is the protagonists’ voice.  Not all authors can find one that’s both unique and genuinely captivating, but Carol’s got it right in this novel – it’s absolutely on the money and it was Winter’s voice that kept me on the page and wanting to finish the book.

The small town setting works well and it was interesting re-reading Cleeves’ Radio Times interview where she talks about murder putting a community under stress, particularly small town communities with their secrets and skeletons that are well hidden in cupboards, which nobody talks about.  That’s certainly true about Eagle Creek and again, that might seem a little clichéd too, but for me this novel just worked.  I’d thoroughly recommend this book, but if you’re a sceptic like I was, I suggest you try a sample from Kindle to help you make your mind up.

Romancrimeblogger