Mr. Watcher

by Jim Ody

As a child, Gideon spent too many nights stuffed in a wardrobe watching his mother entertain men. He soon learned just how much he liked to watch. He got a job in a sleazy motel, but sometimes watching wasn’t enough. Mila was a girl neglected by her parents. Clever and dedicated, she gave up a social life to focus on becoming a scientist. Soon Mila and Gideon find each other. Gideon realizes that his wealth is now down to a deal made by his mom all those years ago. And what is expected of him. Now, it’s the watcher who is being watched…

219 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 8, 2019

About the author

Jim spent 10 years writing music reviews and interviewing bands for a rock music website. He also contributed lifestyle and comedic features and poems to a number of websites.

Jim writes Horror, YA and Dark Mysteries that often end with his trademark twists! He doesn't believe in being restrained by genres and looks to blur the lines between them.

He has had eighteen novels, and well over a dozen short stories published, and re-published by Question Mark Press, Question Mark Horror, Hambrook Press, SpellBound Books, Wolfgang Press, Limitless Publishing, Zombie Cupcake, Crazt Ink, and Bloodhound Books.

Obsessed with writing, Jim has releases planned throughout 2025 and 2026. These include ...From The Stars, Little Miss Evil 3: The Last Evil, a Release of Mr Watcher and a spooky novella.

He's also the author of the comedy/crime caper ...Just South of Heaven written under his pen name Caper Juggins.

Reviews

[Peter Topside · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an odd read. It resembled, in a lot of ways, Chad Lutzke’s The Same Deep Water as You, but just more vicious. Gideon is a very complex and unique character, but I felt like the plot went in so many different directions, that it got lost in itself. And he, unfortunately, was lost with all that, too. The ending served to pull all the loose ends together, even adding in a few swerves, but, by that point, I was feeling some intense reader fatigue. I understand that the author was trying to disorient the reader time and time again, to make you feel like Gideon, but the story just never found its footing. It shifted gears from starting out like a troubled, abused child to creepy, aspiring killer to an aimlessly floating, emotionally devoid sex addict, and ended as a corporate science experiment. Just way, way too many pivots. It would have been better served sticking to a less convoluted plot, and better focusing on the things it did well, rather just just continually piling on more and more tidbits. The writing itself was great and there were some interesting plot points and characters, but it was just too hard to appreciate those things with all the other messiness taking your attention.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm always interested to see what kind of wild, twisty ride Ody will take the reader on next.
The prologue of this book totally piqued my interest and made me want to continue reading.
Chapter Two seemed a bit more vulgar than necessary, but I guess it did help to demonstrate the beginnings of his habit. Leaving a little dirt to the imagination would have been okay too, though.
I found the mystery of this book and its happenings pulled me into the story, but the overly crass descriptions put me off a bit along the way as well.
As I neared the end, things had taken a few very unique and interesting turns, and I really wanted to see how everything would conclude. I anticipated there would still be a few more jaw-dropping moments to come since I know how Ody loves to throw in twist after twist, and I wasn't wrong. All in all, I enjoyed the book, but the raunchiness of some of it made for a lower ranking than I have given to some of his previous books.

[Dawn Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought provoking. Very dark a real page turner. Gripping storyline that keeps you interested

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book and I got everything I could want and more.
The key item of a great book is that it makes you feel something.  This book just creeper me out and I love that feeling when reading books. 
It shows a lot that I loved this book as my tastes have really changed over the years.  This book evoked such strong emotions.
I really was pleased when I found this on Kindle Unlimited and I just loved this book and I am looking forward to reading many more books from this author.

[Adams Loretta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a dark and unsettling story in the best possible way. Gideon is a fascinating character because you understand how his childhood shaped the way he sees the world, even when his behavior makes you uncomfortable. The dynamic between him and Mila kept me hooked, and the twist about the deal his mother made adds a chilling layer to the story. Definitely not a light read, but very compelling.

[Andrea Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was warned before I read this book that it was dark and sexually explicit. I was not disappointed.
I have come to expect dark and twisty from Jim Ody, both in his characters and his plot lines. Giving a plot synopsis in my reviews generally doesn’t work for me, and especially in this case, as I read it sometime ago, yet forgot to leave a review. But I don’t think the decision to read or not read a book should be on my ability to do a plot synopsis.
I will say, as a native Chicagoan, his brief vague description of Chicago was fortunately vague, as it did not evoke Chicago for me.

He is an extremely talented writer and I can’t wait for many of his early works to come back from his previous publisher, as they would really sparkle and shine.