This recently released Jeff Strand novella, as you’d guess from the title, involves the theme of stalking. The book begins in the middle of the action, as the stalker closes in on his victim. What is unique about the story is that it’s told from the point of view of the stalker rather than that of the victim or the investigating police. This new perspective offered a fresh take and immediately changed the dynamic of what I had been expecting going in to the story. I’m going pretty spoiler free in this review, as it would be a crime to ruin it.
The motives for stalking are not the typical unrequited love or general creepiness you might expect. The stalker is seeking revenge for a long past transgression. Immediately after discovering the reasons why, you know the game has changed. What I really enjoyed about the book was that Strand throws curve balls all the way through, playing with preconceptions about stalking and stalkers. The novella moves along at break neck pace as the story develops and our stalker’s life gets more complicated. The more complicated things get, the more entertaining it is to hear his thoughts, his inner monologue, questioning the best way to handle things. There is some wonderful dark humor here, and not just the type that brings a smile to your face, but actually laugh out loud funny. This is even funnier considering the circumstances surrounding the decisions our stalker has to make.
Pretty soon things begin to spiral painfully out of control for our protagonist (if you can call a stalker that). There is only a small cast of characters in the novella but they are all entertaining, well written and likeable in their own ways – not to mention deliciously twisted. You’re never sure how things are going to end up for the characters until the end of the book, which in my mind is a good thing.
I’d wanted to read some Jeff Strand before but had never got around to it. After reading this I will definitely check out some of his previous works. Stalking You Now is a quick read and unfortunately it will be over before you know it. Get a hold of Stalking You Now and I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Reviewed by Andrew Tadman @thebooksofblood
