Book Review : I See You by Ker Dukey and D.H. Sidebottom
I watch you, I see you in ways no one else can, and though my lens I create a life of you for someone to dissect. I capture you in your vulnerability; that smile, your laugh, those tears. I document you and sell your secrets.
When I watch you through my lens you’re mine until I pass you to the buyer. I, like most people, have a fetish for pretty things and in my job I get to be around a lot of pretty things. They pay me to watch them and capture them in a frame for many purposes, and sometimes I like my profession a little more than I should.
I took a job to capture her… I wanted to capture and keep heroine more than just the image. This time I will take myself away from the lens and become the client because I cannot resist her, she reminds me too much of my first, I need to have her.
Traumatized from a vicious attack, Nina Drama finds herself shut off from the world until her neighbour brings her out of more than just her nightmares. Even after moving and changing her name, she still can’t shake the feeling of being watched. The memories are so close.
And so is the shadows of the creator or them all.
Author warning :
This title contains scenes of extreme depravity; this book is not for the sensitive reader.
Before reading, please place a condom over your head because it’s about to be fucked.
A Sneak Peek Into The Story :
Noah and Devon are brothers who happens to be contracts killers. They kill people that their clients want dead, with detailed instructions given on how to do it. Noah will be the one meeting the clients, and designing how to carry out the plan. While Devon on the other hand, will be the one to observe the victim’s daily activities, take pictures and document them for their clients. So when Devon gets an email from Noah detailing that they have a new contract, he is more than willing to document and observe their new victim, Nina Francis Drake.
Nina Francis Drake is sexy, she is good looking, she has long legs and blonde hair. Her lips, her breasts, her eyes, her curves, everything about her just screams perfection. Although she is so wonderfully perfect and has guys hitting on her like there is no tomorrow, she is single and lives on her own with her beloved cat, Ginger. For career, she works in a bar with her best friend Tricia, who happens to be a trust-fund baby.
Review :
I usually never have anything against main characters in books. All the books I have read so far that I didn’t quite enjoy were the books that have half-cooked plot but I usually still love the hell out of the hero and heroine. However with this book, I find myself unable to stand either of them. First of all, Nina is described to be this perfect and kind-hearted woman. Someone who is nice and polite to everyone. Yet she doesn’t seem to have any kind of friends other than her neighbor, Mr. Ilavich and Tricia – her coworker. For someone who has all the good looks and personality, it is kind of odd that – other than the men who flirts and tries to score a date with her – she has no-one to hangout with. And barely any human interaction at all throughout her daily activities. Also, I think it is worth mentioning that Nina is downright obsessed with her cat. I get that people get protective over their pets, but with Nina, her damn cat fills up basically 70% of her brain.
For someone who gives off the image of being attuned to her surroundings and people around her, I find it hilarious how she doesn’t realize how rude her so-called “best friend” is treating her. It is as if she is begging to be verbally abused by Tricia. Tricia would say the rudest thing possible to Nina and she would either ignore it as if it’s not a big deal, or even worse, reflect on herself and wonder if what Tricia said about her is true.
“My best friend used to be the dirtiest tramp on the block.”
What kind of person say things like that about their own best-friend while having conversations with other people? Tricia, that’s who.
Devon isn’t that great of a character either. Devon comes off really strong and independent at first. However, as the story progress, he starts to change into this wimpy character who feels like he always needs Noah, his older brother. While his character isn’t that interesting, I must admit, being inside his head is way better than being inside Nina’s head.
Towards the middle of the book, the story starts to drag and there is barely anything happening at all. It is as if I am reading someone’s daily activities. You wake up, eat breakfast, and then go to work, come home, eat dinner, fall asleep and repeat. It is the same thing over and over again until the middle of the book. I can’t say I feel any connection to the hero or heroine at all. Just like the story, the main characters are plain and boring, it is just all so predictable. Moreover, the romance in this book is also way too rushed and it feels way too forced. It is as if the authors want to speed things up as fast as they can. I don’t think the authors take into account how important those little moments are. It is all those little moments – the way they looked at each other, the way they touch – that gives character life and make them more believable. Not those moments where they are having sex like bunnies.
This book is based on 3 people’s point of view, Devon, Noah and Nina. And you would have thought that would make things a little bit more interesting and make it easier to connect with the characters when you know what is going on in their heads, but no. The writing, while there are not a lot of misspelling and grammatical errors like the last book I read (thank god), it just somehow feels flat and boring. There are some parts of the story where the author was being overly descriptive and some parts where details are very sparse. It was interesting in the first few chapters, but as the story progresses, it feels as if the author gave up on trying to develop these characters and plot.
At the 54% mark, I gave up on trying to read the book and just skimmed it to the end. The plot itself was pretty boring and predictable throughout the middle, but it did pick up pace towards the ending. While the ending itself is mildly interesting, it feels way too rushed. Not to mention, the mysteries surrounding Devon and Noah are uncovered in the span of a few pages. It just feels off to me, when the authors wasted the whole book trying to build and prolong the suspense only to end it like this.
The Verdict :
Was my head fucked? Definitely not.
Was I disappointed at how this book turned out? Yes, big time.
Do you know that moment when you look for new books to read, and you happen to stumble upon a book that piqued your interest? And all the reads rave about how good the book is and how everyone should read it? That results in you having high expectations for the book. And when the authors doesn’t deliver and the story plot just tanked? It sucks.
I wasn’t exactly interested to read it at first and the book cover does little to catch my curiosity. However, it changes once I read the reviews for this book. The reviews are filled to the brim with 5 stars rating everywhere I see, and I mean everywhere. So, undoubtedly my expectation sky-rocketed and I was eager to get my hands on the book and start devouring it. And I must admit, at first this book actually started off pretty strong and it instantly grabbed my attention. But then it just gets worse and worse as the book progresses.
For the people who said this book is “dark”, it really isn’t. Granted, there are some disturbing scenes, such as violence and sexual abuse, but that is as far as it goes in this book. I love books that has really dark and twisted story line. I enjoy story lines that are able to make you feel conflicted whether to love or to hate it. And I adore authors that can make the characters come to life, those characters where you just can’t tell their motive and where you can’t tell if the hero is up to any good at all but can eventually win you over. Books that keep you on the edge of your seat, excited yet anxiously waiting for the twists and turns at every corner. Those are the kinds of books that I live for. And despite all the promises that the authors give, “I See You” is sadly not one of those books.
I haven't heard of these authors before but the book does sound a little twisted. I love a dark storyline – what's your recommendation for your favourite book?
If you want something really twisted, then try reading Captive in The Dark by C.J. Roberts
That is one of my favorite dark reads 🙂
Oh, its so disappointing when a book is just not what was promised. Here to future and better reads!
Cx
Oh its a shame when you are disappointed by a book and its not as good as you were expecting. I've not heard of this author before but I do love a good crime/thriller read.
Shame, I find the cover creepy but it doesn't sound like it delivered anything close to what it promises with that author warning. To be honest something like that would put me off – it's really unprofessional and nothing you'd see Stephen King or someone put in their books.
I’m not a massive reader but for Winter I want to watch less tele and read more what is a good true life easy read if you know of any
I appreciate your review. I wouldn’t want to waste time reading a bad book.
It is disappointing, especially after the author promised that it will be good. Oh well, what can you do about it haha
Thank you for visiting! xx
It depends on what kind of genre you are looking for, maybe I can give you some book recommendations 🙂
This book sounds dreadful, not my cup of tea at all. Shall avoid it, thank you
Sounds like I'll give this one a miss. Life's too short to spend it reading terrible books.
It's a shame when a book isn't what you hoped it to be. I've had this recently with an author I like and it's so frustrating. I do tend to read them until the end even if they are bad as it feels unfinished otherwise. It's annoying because the blurb sounds really good!
It is such a shame the book was a let down for you, especially when you have high hopes for it. I'll perhaps leave this one myself as I think I would end up feeling much the same as you.
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I haven't heard about this book before, but thank you for sharing your views. It's disappointing when a book is boring.
sad that you got disappointed , but one good thing is you made a free publicity of that book and you explained well. Once again , you reviewed perfectly
Oh no! This doesn't sound good at all! I hate when a book is disappointing!
I like thrilling plot lines. Thanks for the heads up on this one! On to the next read!
That's such a shame that this didn't turn out as good as the other reviews, strange how some people can love something and others not x
Oh no, I know that feeling when you get to a book that's been so hyped up and it turns into a huge disappointment! Bet you're glad you skimmed the last half 😉
It’s such a shame that this book did little for you in the way of keeping you on the edge of your seat and hungry to read more! From the description it sounds like something i’d read but sounds like a big let down and I often feel let down by the end of books so this would have annoyed me!
This is one honest review. I love how honest you really are writing along with describing your dislike for the book and characters. To be honest I would love to read it to see how I feel about it. Thanks for sharing a honest review.
I haven't heard about this author. and the storyline of this book is a quite interesting. I am looking forward to reading this book.
Sometimes we can't see the trees for the forest, or that's what my gram would say (in regards for her not seeing how her 'friend' is treating her). Thanks for the book intro!
I've heard about this author. But I never tried to read his books. I will definitely give it a try.
I like dark, psychological thriller-esq books, but they have to have a strong plot and likeable protagonists, otherwise they really don't work.
The author's warning is a little off-putting. That alone makes me want to not read it. After reading this review, I want to read it even less.
There was such a flap over one of her recent books – that sounded rather vile but I don't know, I didn't read it, but anyway that may be one of the reasons for the dire warning.
aww too bad the book didn't live up to your expectations! The book sounds kind of creepy and twisted!
That is so true. there are many books now that are very disappointing. it seems like the standards are slipping downward