When Zoe Ann Weiss moves to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a writer, her whole future is wide open. But then Zach, the bartender and aspiring actor she’s falling for, ghosts her. Her debut novel, a thriller, fails. And she has writer’s block worse than ever before. Now, three years later, Zach is famous and Zoe is...not.
She’s facing her thirtieth birthday, a dead-end job at a flower shop, and a demanding agent, terrified she’ll never get her life back on track. But when she goes to make a flower delivery and Zach is at the address, it’s like no time has passed at all. They start casually dating in secret, her writer’s block disappears, and Zoe begins to wonder: Zach inspired her first novel, so why can’t he inspire her second?
But then the inevitable happens and photos are leaked, landing Zoe in the press. Her first novel goes viral, and now everyone seems to know her name. Except the problem with everyone knowing your name is that everyone knows your name—including the mysterious stalker obsessed with Zach. A stalker who begins reenacting violent events from Zoe’s book, step by step, against her... (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)
This is definitely one of my top reads of 2024. I love a good thriller/suspense story, especially one that keeps me on the edge of my seat. I really enjoyed how Drysdale set the storyline up, by giving us enough background on the main characters, before jumping into the heart-racing meat of the book.
The author did not go overboard with the scenic descriptions, but I still felt like I was in the middle of every scene and could see it clearly. I could picture the streets of Los Angeles and the way the light softened everything just before sunset. I am not sure how she did it, but it was brilliant.
Throughout the story I tried to figure out who the antagonist was, and I never could. Every time I thought I had someone pinned for it I was wrong, which is a good thing. There were so many surprises in this book, including the ending. If you are looking for something you can devour in one day, look no further. This book was amazing, and I will certainly be checking out any other books by Pip Drysdale!
Thanks to MB Communications for the book in exchange for an honest review. Purchase The Close-Up here.
The Strangers We Know
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