About Stalker Stalked
• Publisher: All Due Respect (September 17, 2021)
• E-book: 286 pages
Lexi Mazur is a depressed, alcoholic, pill-popper whose only joy has become her reality TV shows, often fantasizing that the people on TV are a part of her world. After her boyfriend Steve leaves her, she fixates on the show Socialites and its star Magnolia Artois, following every facet of the girl’s life on social media in the hopes of befriending and becoming more like her.
But stalking isn’t new to Lexi. She ultimately won over her ex Steve by following and manipulating every minute detail about him so he’d fall for her. In fact, she landed her other ex-boyfriend Jeremy in the same way. Being a pharma rep, she’s used to manipulation to get doctors to buy her drugs, along with the perk of saving pills for herself.
But what happens when the stalker gets stalked?
Recently, Lexi has felt someone watching her: in her apartment in Queens, at her job. At first, she thinks her mind’s playing tricks, but the watcher is behaving just like she would. And soon they begin leaving threatening clues like she starts to do to Magnolia once her obsession grows more dangerous. Is it one of her exes out for revenge? Her only real friend from childhood who she’s always had an unhealthy rivalry? A detective who may have figured her out? The reality star Magnolia trying to turn the tables? Or even someone she might not know?
Lexi learns the only way to beat her stalker is to use her own stalking prowess to outsmart them at their own game. But has she finally met her match?
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Review
Lexi Mazur has spent her adult life following around people that she hoped she could be with. She stalks potential boyfriends and glamorous people she hopes to be friends with. Lexi works as a sales rep for big pharma and has been sampling the pills that put her in a haze and lift her mood. She is obsessed with reality TV and has found that her new favorite show, Socialites, films near her in New York City. After a breakup with her boyfriend, Lexi zeroes in on Socialites star, Magnolia. After sufficient stalking, Lexi meets Magnolia but is rejected. This only makes Lexi buff up her stalking efforts; however, as Lexi focuses on Magnolia, she begins to receive threatening phone calls and mysterious packages. Could it be that she is being stalked or is it a side effect of the pills? Is this exactly what Lexi wanted all along?
Stalker Stalked is a psychological thriller that focuses on very contemporary problems. Lexi's obsession with reality tv and overuse of social media are things that many of us can connect with. The writing pulled me into Lexi's life and her personality. Lexi is a wonderful and deep character. She is like watching a car crash or a dumpster fire, you know you should look away, but there is something intriguing in the chaos. Even though Lexi seems like an absolute garbage person, we see how her childhood has led her to this place of resentment and depression. Through her stalking episodes, I could also see her desperation to be liked and be part of a group. One of the other interesting characters was Lexi's one friend, Pria. I was amazed at Pria's ability to deal with Lexi at her worst and stick the friendship out. Lexi's drug habit made her an unreliable narrator and the suspense increased in the second half of the book as Lexi believes that she is being stalked as well. With a very unexpected ending and many twists and turns, Stalker Stalked is a unique and captivating psychological thriller.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
About Lee Matthew Goldberg
Lee Matthew Goldberg is the author of THE ANCESTOR, THE DESIRE CARD, SLOW DOWN and THE MENTOR from St. Martin’s Press. He has been published in multiple languages and nominated for the 2018 Prix du Polar. ORANGE CITY, his first sci-fi novel, is forthcoming in 2021 along with his YA series RUNAWAY TRAIN. His pilots and screenplays have been finalists in Script Pipeline, Book Pipeline, Stage 32, We Screenplay, the New York Screenplay, Screencraft, and the Hollywood Screenplay contests. After graduating with an MFA from the New School, his writing has also appeared in the anthology DIRTY BOULEVARD, The Millions, Vol 1. Brooklyn, LitReactor, Necessary Fiction, Fiction Writer’s Review, The Montreal Review, The Adirondack Review, Essays & Fictions, The New Plains Review, and others. He is the co-curator of The Guerrilla Lit Reading Series (guerrillalit.wordpress.com). He lives in New York City.
Follow him at leematthewgoldberg.com and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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