The Stalker
- Judith D Collins
- Oct 5
- 5 min read
By: Teri Terry
Narrators: Willow Nash, Emma Powell Boldwood Books
ISBN: 978-1806008360
Publisher: Boldwood Books
Publication Date: 10/06/2025
Format: e-book
My Rating: 5 Stars (ARC)
IF I WERE YOU, I'D GO HOME NOW.
When an anonymous note sends Lou rushing home, she discovers a betrayal that shatters her carefully built life. Catching her husband in bed with another woman, Lou walks away heartbroken - only to find herself the target of a sinister campaign. Threatening notes continue to arrive. Her car is vandalised.
It seems someone is watching her every move.
Lou suspects Freja, the woman she found in bed with her husband. But as she digs into Freja’s past, disturbing truths about her own history begin to surface. And as the threats begin to escalate, putting Lou’s own family at risk, Lou finally realises the danger isn’t just coming from the outside.
It’s been inside Lou’s story all along.
This fast-paced and relentlessly twisty psychological thriller is full of tension and absolutely perfect for all fans of Freida McFadden, KL Slater, TM Logan and Lisa Jewell!
My Review
From the acclaimed and bestselling author of gripping thrillers, The Step Daughter's Lie and The Patient, Teri Terry captivates readers once again with her latest intricately woven psychological thriller, THE STALKER.
TWISTY. PUZZLING. ENGROSSING. Prepare to embark on a mind-blowing journey packed with more twists, turns, and tension than a tennis match! With unreliable narrators, red herrings, and a complex, multi-layered plot, this heart-pounding thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat while frantically trying to uncover the identity of THE STALKER (s).
What's it about...
Lou, a former tennis prodigy, finds her carefully crafted life unraveling when an anonymous note reveals her husband’s infidelity. The shocking discovery sends her spiraling back to a painful chapter from two decades ago, when she was stalked and terrorized by an unknown assailant while on tour.
This resurgence of old fears ignites a torrent of unsettling memories, bringing with it an onslaught of threatening notes and eerie incidents that blur the lines between the past and present.
Once known as Lucy, she adopted the name Lou at the urging of her close friend Iona, who saw her potential beyond the shadow of her former life. Years before, a promising tennis career, an accident, and the ever-looming threat of her stalker, Lou was forced to abandon the tour and tennis, leaving behind a world of bright lights and fierce competition.
Now, in her quiet suburban life, Lou (forty-something) is married to Phillip, a successful attorney and former policeman, and mother to three grown children: Flick, and twins, Jessie and James at university, along with her cherished grandson.
Everything changes the day Lou finds the ominous note on her car, compelling her to return home. The sight that greets her when she steps through the door is devastating: Phillip entwined in the sheets with his much younger mistress, the alluring Freja.
As Lou grapples with betrayal, darkness descends further. Sinister events unfold, each more disturbing than the last, as the threats and notes against her intensify, putting not just her own safety but also the well-being of children at risk. With panic mounting, Lou is forced to confront the shadowy presence stalking her anew.
Is this tormentor a haunting remnant from her past as a young tennis star, or is it somehow linked to Freja, Phillip’s mistress, or someone else? With danger lurking in every corner, Lou must delve deep into the recesses of her life to uncover the truth and protect her family from this malevolent force, and make her own way without relying on others whom she has trusted.
My thoughts...
Beneath the surface of seemingly perfect lives, the intricate and twisty plot revolves around Lou's determined effort to reclaim her life from the shadows of a relentless stalker, leading her to unearth a tangled web of secrets woven into her past, where nothing is as it appears.
The narrative plunges into the chaos sparked by the betrayal of Phillip and Freja, entwined in a passionate embrace, shattering the very foundation of everything she believed to be true. Heartbroken and disillusioned, Lou leaves him, seeking solace in the comfort of Iona and her old friend, Steve, a cop. She may have to move back in with Phillip so she can investigate the mistress's past. The threats persist, lurking in the corners of her life like a dark cloud.
As the story oscillates between past and present, readers are treated to vivid flashes of Lou's (Lucy's) once-glorious tennis career, juxtaposed with the sinister harassment she endures—menacing notes and acts of vandalism that instill a palpable fear for her family's safety.
Driven by paranoia and suspicion, Lou becomes convinced that Freja may be the mastermind behind the torment, seeking to claim Phillip for herself, which sets her on a dangerous path of her own investigation. Is there another hidden motive?
When the past and present converse, it is electrifying! A read in one sitting.
The narrative unfolds cleverly through multiple perspectives: Lou, who navigates the turmoil of her life; Lucy, her former self; Freja, the seductive mistress; and Jessie, her daughter. Each voice offers a glimpse into their experiences and hidden truths, enriching the complexity of the storyline.
The lives intertwine and connect as essential pieces of the whodunit mystery, unveiling long-buried secrets of their family's past and present with a cast of suspicious characters and red herrings which add to the layers of tension in this wicked game of cat-and-mouse.
As Lou delves deeper, the quest for the stalker's identity becomes fraught with unexpected challenges, revealing that the threat is not as simplistic as it seems. The deeper she digs into Freja's enigmatic history, the more unsettling revelations about her own past begin to surface, creating a whirlwind of confusion and fear.
From secret motivations, high-risk maneuvers, and a sense of impending doom, readers will be guessing to the end as to the identity of more than one culprit.
In a breathtaking twist, Lou realizes that the danger has not merely been an external force; it has been embedded within her own story all along. The narrative expertly shifts between her present struggles and haunting memories, competition, revenge, friendship, marriage, and the unveiling of shocking truths of trust and betrayal.
Terry masterfully crafts a tale that grips you from start to finish. As the third book I've read by her, I'm continually amazed by her ability to breathe life into well-developed characters navigating twisty plots, multiple mysteries, and orchestrating jaw-dropping plot twists, with complex characters that make this gripping domestic suspense thriller a profound exploration of deception and hidden truths.
Recs...
THE STALKER is a compelling read that will captivate fans of the author and those who appreciate the gripping narratives crafted by talented writers like Freida McFadden, Megan Miranda, Mary Kubica, B.A. Paris, K. L. Slater, and Keri Beevis. With its intricately woven plot and engaging characters, this thriller promises to enthrall anyone who enjoys a suspenseful journey filled with unexpected twists and turns.
Many thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for providing an advanced review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Oct 6, 2025
My Rating: 5 Stars
About the Author
Teri Terry has lived in France, Canada, Australia and England at more addresses than she can count, acquiring four degrees, a selection of passports and an unusual name along the way. Past careers have included scientist, lawyer, optometrist and, in England, various jobs in schools, libraries and an audiobook charity.
Teri is an internationally best-selling, award-winning author of over a dozen young adult thrillers, including the Slated trilogy – where she predicted Brexit – and Contagion – about a pandemic. Some of her friends have started calling her Teri-damus. Her current focus is crafting psychological thrillers for adult readers and her third, The Stalker, will publish with Boldwood in October 2025.
She writes full time and lives in Buckinghamshire with her husband and very naughty cockapoo, Scooby. WEBSITE
