Book Review: "When No One is Watching" by Alyssa Cole
“When No One is Watching” by Alyssa Cole
Synopsis: Sydney Green is Brooklyn born and raised, but her beloved neighborhood seems to change every time she blinks. Condos are sprouting like weeds, FOR SALE signs are popping up overnight, and the neighbors she's known all her life are disappearing. To hold onto her community's past and present, Sydney channels her frustration into a walking tour and finds an unlikely and unwanted assistant in one of the new arrivals to the block--her neighbor Theo.
But Sydney and Theo's deep dive into history quickly becomes a dizzying descent into paranoia and fear. Their neighbors may not have moved to the suburbs after all, and the push to revitalize the community may be more deadly than advertised.
When does coincidence become conspiracy? Where do people go when gentrification pushes them out? Can Sydney and Theo trust each other--or themselves--long enough to find out before they too disappear?
Rating: 4.25
Trigger warnings: drug use (casual, forced), racism, gore
Review: Hi, Elizabeth here - She’s Full of Lit’s resident chicken, reviewing an unnerving sociological thriller. I’ve seen this book (correctly) described as a mix of “Get Out” and “Rear Window", and given that the one of those I’ve seen gave me nightmares for weeks, it’s a little strange that I was so eager to read this one. Maybe I was so enthralled the the idea of a book exploring the murderous side of gentrification? Maybe I knew good things about Alyssa Cole’s writing? I’m not sure exactly the motivation, but I’m so glad I read this one. Even if it scared the shit out of me.
“When No One is Watching” is told from two perspectives: Sydney, the neighborhood local, and Theo, the dude who comes into flip a house in her neighborhood. They end up working together on a project about the history of Brooklyn, and in their quest to put together a booking tour of their real space, uncover something incredible dark and sinister. You see, Gifford Place is rapidly being encroached by white gentrifiers, who will do whatever they can to make their homes “safe” — even abduction, crime, and…murder.
I knew any book that opened with “History is fucking wild” would be a trip, but I didn’t expect half of the adventure that Sydney and Theo would have. As they go deeper down the rabbit hole, the depth of corruption and evil just magnifies. I was astonished with the history lessons that Alyssa Cole wove into this book, but also not at all surprised at how depraved “nice white people” can be.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure how the hell Alyssa Cole was going to be able to wrap up this book in a way that made sense with the themes and the pacing, and she blew every expectation I had out of the water with the last 75 pages. We are spoiler-free, so I won’t give anything away except for “white people find new and amazing ways to be the worse” and “oh my god, she really went there.” Buckle up, friends, it is a wild ride.
Finally, as a white woman living in an urban center, this made me think a lot about my city and the space I occupy. I live at the intersection of three historic neighborhoods in DC, and I have for the last 5 years, and the amount of changes that I’ve seen come to this space make me sad. I listen to the sound of large scale commercial construction happening daily, and several of my favorite hole-in-the-wall restaurants have been replaced with upscale athletic boutique studios and juice bars. If I, who am an interloper at best, feel squicky about this, how do the long term residents feel? One of the things I’m trying to do this year is lean into my personal discomfort in order to grow, and this book pushed me more than I expected a mass-market thriller to - in the best way.
TL;DR: An incredibly timely (and unnerving) look at the dangers of “nice white people” and gentrification — and the upheaval both cause.
If You Liked This, Try These:
“Grown” by Tiffany D. Jackson (Bookshop | Kindle) (okay, I haven’t read this one yet, but I think there’s a lot of overlap!)
“The Invention of the Brooklyn Brownstone” by Suleimon Osman (Bookshop | Kindle)
“Whisper Network” by Chandler Baker (Bookshop | Kindle | Shannon’s Review)
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