Hello hello! Today’s blog post is burning hot and I am super excited to be part of this blog tour. Make sure you click the link or the photo above and check out Rockstar Book Tours incredible fall blog tour line up. They always have the most smokin’ books and believe me, you don’t want to miss any!

“Twigs pop and crackle under my feet, like I’m walking on a field of old brittle bones. I kneel and scoop up a handful of dry leaves. They turn to dust as I rub them between my fingers. One match–one tiny spark–and they’d go up.”

After Jenny survived a traumatic childhood fire, it’s the one thing that terrifies her. And fascinates her. It’s like she has a compulsion that only fire can answer. But her compulsion is threatening to take over, which is why Jenny has to leave her home and go live with her dad. A new start. A second chance.

But getting rid of her compulsion isn’t as easy as moving away. Her need to control fire, to spark a flame and watch it burn stays with her. As a string of fires in the woods follows her, Jenny feels like someone is following her. When her instincts prove right and she is threatened with exposure, Jenny realizes too late that she’s been led into a plot more complicated and twisted than she ever imagined.

“He looks completely nonthreatening. But that’s what dangerous people want you to think. I should know.”

Watch You Burn is a very fun read, full of twists and turns and wracked with suspense. Searcy does a good job giving us just enough information about Jenny and her past to keep us on edge the entire time. One of the things I really enjoyed was how many different mystery plots are woven into this suspense novel.

First, there is Jenny. We know she had a childhood trauma, but what we don’t know is what she’s running from. She has a secret, one that her stepdad knows about, but we don’t really know the details. As they unfold though, we also get glimpses of her childhood, and that perhaps even that traumatic event isn’t as cut and dry as we were led to believe.

While all that is going on, Jenny is also trying to figure out the various dynamics at play with the people in her new town. Ro, the troubled girl who makes herself at home by coming in and out of her window. Cam, the older and troubled guy who works for her dad to keep an eye on her. Ben, Cam’s cousin with secrets of his own. And then there’s Kara. The quiet girl who befriends her at school. Who has a mysterious past with both Ben and Cam, and plenty of secrets that she’s keeping from Jenny.

“Maybe we’re the kind of friends who hide things from each other. I’m certainly hiding things from her.”

I really liked watching Jenny grow throughout the novel. She makes a lot of assumptions about the people around her, based on her own secrets and lies. I love that Searcy presented this so realistically. I feel like this is the one aspect that builds not just the suspense, but the tragedy behind the story. It’s so tricky to see outside of yourself, and while on the surface it can make Jenny seem unlikable, in reality it makes her a very vivid and complex character. And one that can help teens realize how frequently they may place their own behaviors on the people around them.

My only complaint is how easily the ending wrapped up. It was very quick, and there were a few minor plot details not wrapped up. I wish the ending had been a bit more messy, or given us a little more depth, but honestly, it didn’t take away from the story. Another part of me likes how uncertain everything is. We aren’t quite sure what Jenny is going to do with her future. There’s something very real and true to Jenny’s journey in that ending, which is probably why it doesn’t bother me as much as I thought it might.

“We merge onto the interstate. It’s not the sunset we’re driving into, but it’s the end of my story here. Now I start over.”

Fans who love a novel full of complex characters that are less about good and bad, and more about real, you’ll find a lot to like in Watch You Burn. There is plenty of suspense, along with a heavy dose of tragic, to make fans of thrillers, suspense, and mystery novels feel satisfied. And with all YA, there is a compelling journey towards self discovery that feels very realistic as well. In all, this is a fast read that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Thank you Rockstar Book Tours and Delacorte Press for including me on this blog tour and sending me a review copy!

Be sure to check out all the links to your favorite retailers below! Watch You Burn is available next week. And don’t forget to enter for a chance to win a finished copy!!!

 

 

Title: WATCH YOU BURN

Author: Amanda Searcy

Pub. Date: October 23, 2018

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Pages: 352

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, iBooks, TBD

 

 

Jenny didn’t want to move to the creepy, possibly haunted town with her dad. But the cops are on to her, and the only way she can protect herself is by moving as far away from her hometown as possible and staying out of trouble.

But even after she moves, Jenny still gets the itch. The itch to light a match and then watch it burn.

It’s something she hasn’t been able to stop, ever since an accident years ago. Now, in a new town, Jenny has the strange feeling that someone is watching her every move. Will her arsonist ways be exposed? Or is the burning truth deep inside her a greater danger?

 

Amanda Searcy has a BA from New Mexico State University and an MA in human rights from the University of Essex in England. She works in collection development for a public library system and loves chocolate, cats, and curling up with a good book. She lives in New Mexico. 

Visit her online at amandasearcybooks.com and follow her on Twitter at @aesearcy.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

 

 

3 Winners will receive a finished copy of WATCH YOU BURN, US Only.

Before you go, make sure you enter to win! And then head over to the rest of the tour stops for more reviews, excerpts, and giveaway entries!!!

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

10/15/2018- Rhythmicbooktrovert– Review

10/16/2018- Moonlight Rendezvous– Review

10/17/2018- Patriotic Bookaholic– Review

10/18/2018- Jena Brown Writes– Review

10/19/2018- A Gingerly Review– Review

Week Two:

10/22/2018- Riddle’s Reviews– Review

10/23/2018– Do You Dog-ear?– Review

10/24/2018- Pacific Northwest Bookworm– Review

10/25/2018- The Pages In-Between– Review

10/26/2018- PopTheButterfly Reads– Review

Week Three:

10/29/2018- The Clever Reader– Review

10/30/2018- BookHounds YA– Review

10/31/2018- Rainy Day Reviews– Excerpt

11/1/2018- Here’s to Happy Endings– Review

11/2/2018- Liezel and Angie’s Book Blog– Review

Week Four:

11/5/2018- Bookish bibliophile– Review

11/6/2018- Eli to the nth– Review

11/7/2018- Smada’s Book Smack– Review

11/8/2018- Taylor Fenner’s Bookish World– Review

11/9/2018- YA Books Central– Excerpt