First of all thank you for approving my request!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The authors writing style had me hooked throughout this book.

I didn't want it to end, a book I really couldn't put down.

ARC review. Thank you NetGalley & Valerie! “She spun a tangled web, & now she was caught”

I had the day off and read this quickly. Fast paced thriller. Brought out true anxiety in my chest. Right when it would calm down something else would cause my anxiety to peak. I audibly gasped at the end. Well done and well written.


https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7612237567

I don't give out 5 stars often, but this one took my 5 stars! Quick read and a page turner, I could not put this one down. Prepare your emotions for a rollercoaster from anger, to joy, and back to anxiety! You will find all of these things in this psychological read. The plot was great and the manipulation was spot on. I really enjoyed Cara as a character and reading her spiral into psychological madness. Was she actually loosing her mind? Was someone manipulating and out to get her? You will just have to read to find out, but I promise, the twists and turns will not disappoint!

Thank you to Valerie, NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the eARC. I can't wait to read more from this author!! While this was the first, it will NOT be the last.

Cara is an author having trouble coming up with an idea for her newest book, her thirtieth. It’s a milestone that everyone is making a big deal about, unknowingly putting pressure on her, as she’s never had writer’s block before, and this is the worst time to get it. She’s distracted by some threatening notes she starts to receive, and with no better ideas, she begins writing about them. But then she starts getting confused about what’s real and what’s fiction, and she begins doubting her sanity.

And this is my issue with the story – there’s no reason for her to suddenly get so confused and mixed up about reality versus what she wrote. And later in the book, it’s pages upon pages of her rambling, incoherent thoughts. The most the readers are given as an explanation is stress, but she gets completely delusional and literally confuses her created characters with the real people in her life. She goes to extremes, and I did appreciate the crazy ending, but it was just way too unbelievable.

Title: The Writer
Author: Valerie Keogh
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2
Publication Date: July 15, 2025

Valerie Keogh is one of my favorite authors to read when I need/want a book that's quick and easy to read. As was expected, this book gave me exactly what I needed.

I found the main character, Cara, to be slightly annoying and very gullible. She didn't seem to be the type that was a successful author. Also, based on their interactions, I couldn't believe Trinny and Cara were best friends.

I expected there to be more suspenseful moments in the book, so I was slightly disappointed; however, the ending totally made up for it! I can honestly say that I did NOT see that coming!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion/review.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this advance readers copy in exchange for my honest feedback! A thriller Inside a thriller!!!!!! What the what? Yes!!!!!!!

This book was really a slow burner. I found the story was written pretty confusing. I’m glad I finished it, the ending was amazing!

The Writer by Valerie Keogh was a good read for me. A bit slow in parts, but I loved reading about a writer struggling to come up with a story for her thirtieth novel. Cara is an intriguing character and was well-described. The ending honestly was a bit much for me, but otherwise a solid read, if a bit slow in spots.

Review of ‘The Writer’ by Valerie Keogh, due to be published on 15 July 2025 by Boldwood Books.

Cara is due to write her thirtieth novel, with a looming deadline. She’s getting pressure from her editing team and told that her publishers are planning a big party to celebrate. However, unbeknownst to them, she’s struggling to find her inspiration, something that has not happened before.

When Cara starts receiving threatening letters, and believes she is being stalked by ‘the grey man’, she starts to question things in her life, and uses this as the backdrop to her novel in an attempt to discover who sent the letters, who is stalking her and why.

The world of fiction collides with reality, with a plot cleverly written so that you as the reader start to wonder which version of events is the truth, leading to a devastating conclusion.

Recommended read.

This author sure knows how to step up the suspense and the shocks in the book. The ending completely blew me away. Awesome storyline, perfect amount of character building and the twists and turns left me guessing right till the end. Highly enjoyable and highly recommend.

This was addictive! I was immediately hooked! This is the rare type of thriller that brings on all the emotions from happiness to frustration. There were times I felt relief and others that made me anxious and concerned. I will always applaud a thriller that triggers the range of emotions this one delivered. The plot is fast-paced, original, and unpredictable. The final shocking twist I never saw coming. I have enjoyed all of Valerie Keogh’s books and highly recommend her latest mind-blowing creation. Thank you, NetGalley and Boldwood Books for my ARC.

Wow, this book really messed with my head. A great twisty read and one, as a writer myself, I could identify with. Cara is suffering from writer’s block and really needs a good idea for her 30th book which her editor and agent are both waiting eagerly for. Then an anonymous letter is put through her letter box and Cara’s world is turned upside down. Slowly she loses her grip on reality with her fictional world merging with her actual one. I didn’t see that ending coming. Riveting.

Another great read from Valerie Keogh . Does keep you guessing till the end look forward to the next book .

“The Writer” is a thriller by Valerie Keogh. My one problem with this book was the pacing - it started slowly and it remained slow. While I understood what Ms. Keogh was trying to do (blurring the lines between reality and fantasy) it just didn’t always read well on the page for me. This was an interesting idea, but for me, it wasn’t this author’s best work. It could just be me -so take this review with a grain of salt. Others have enjoyed it more!

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this Advanced Reader’s Copy of The Writer by Valerie Keogh due to be published July 15, 2025.

Cara Jenkins is a successful author about to embark on her thirtieth novel. Will she finish it before her apparent “stalker” gets her?

This was a confusing book at first. Cara starts out trying to complete her thirtieth novel under terrible pressure – from her husband, her publisher, her friends, and herself. Someone from her past begins stalking her, she is not sure about something her husband did before they were married was legit or not, and she is also receiving threatening letters through her mail slot so she just starts randomly writing her novel. Her novel starts to intertwine with her real life and her paranoia about several things.

The story alternated between chapters titled “His” and “Her” – Cara and her stalker. It did have a satisfying ending that tied the story together and ended the confusion. Was the stalker and the person sending the threatening letters the same person? You will have to read and discover for yourself!

#NetGalley #ValerieKeogh #The Writer #BoldwoodBooks

What a rollercoaster! A really unique read that is perfect for the author's thirtieth book. Full of suspense and shocking twists and turns. You will find yourself questioning what is real. Brilliant!

The Writer by Valerie Keogh is a slow-burning psychological thriller that delves into the mind of a novelist on the edge. Cara Jenkins, a bestselling author, is facing the ultimate creative crisis as she attempts to start her thirtieth book. Struck with writer’s block and mounting pressure from deadlines, she begins to unravel—both personally and professionally.

What starts as harmless, anonymous letters quickly escalates into a chilling psychological game. Cara’s sense of safety slips as the messages turn darker and more invasive. Her husband, Artie, dismisses her concerns, but Cara is haunted by a past she has never fully confronted. The lines between fiction and reality begin to blur, and the reader is left questioning how much of what unfolds is real and how much stems from a mind spiraling into paranoia.

Keogh masterfully creates an atmosphere of unease, exploring the fragile balance between creativity and madness. The pacing is steady, the tension builds gradually, and the final chapters deliver a satisfying conclusion that leaves you reflecting on the cost of obsession and the unreliability of perception.

With relatable themes for readers and writers alike, The Writer is a suspenseful and thought-provoking novel that will appeal to fans of psychological thrillers with a literary twist.

We are introduced to Cara, a successful thriller author on the verge of starting a new book. Normally, that wouldn’t be a problem for her—stories flow from her fingers like water from a tap. Only this time, the tap seems completely shut off and not a single drop comes out...

Then those terrible letters start arriving, but all in all, they seem to be a blessing in disguise. They become the tool that gets the creative tap running again.

At the beginning, I was completely on board with the story. I understood Cara’s desire to find out who the letter writer was, and the way she went about it put a smile on my face. I could picture it so vividly. :) She draws several conclusions, but are they the right ones?

The issue I had started later in the book. Cara struggles to distinguish between fantasy and reality—and I totally believed that. I had the same struggle, and that made it confusing for me, but not in a way I like. I prefer things to be clear, and I didn’t get that here. I have to honestly admit that I still don’t really know what actually happened—but that could be entirely on me.

Personally, I felt that “he” took something way too seriously—something that happened many years ago and that I found rather trivial. But this shows that you never know how someone will react to something, and that you should always be careful.

I thought the idea behind the story was very good, but apparently my brain just doesn’t digest this kind of story very well. 3.5 stars.

A thriller, so eerie.
This time her deadline has never felt so deadly.
Author Cara Jenkins is running out of ideas, is this the end of her story?
Letters start coming and her husband Artie call them a stupid prank.
But seriously the paranoia strikes.
Someone wants to finish her.
Someone is watching.
Someone wants her story to end. Someone is stalking.
Someone wants payback.
It's been twenty fives years,
For the last ten she has been a successful writer with her thirtieth psychological thriller book,with glaring blank pages waiting to be filled.
Oh my this is so different from this author.
Mind-blowing gripping unputdownable.
Right through to THE END.
Loved it.

Cara Jenkins is an author, she is involved in writing her thirtieth novel much to the excitement of her publishing team, who are planning on a special promotion for the book. However, Cara has a problem, her writing has come to a standstill, no plot, no characters and no ideas. Her team are putting Cara under lots of pressure to get the book finished. Her husband Artie is sympathetic, but unable to help. Cara struggles each day to put words on paper, but nothing is happening for her. Then she receives an anonymous letter. Artie tells her to ignore it as a silly prank, but Cara feels the letter has to have a meaning, if she can just discover what the meaning is.
In an attempt to sort her thoughts out, Cara writes down the message, and as more letters arrive, what she knows about them, or guesses, and suddenly, a book is started, As Cara tries to determine the meaning of the letters, the plot of the book and what is reality starts to blur. Family and friends become suspects, and when Cara is physically attacked one day, she becomes very afraid of what will happen next.
I really enjoyed this book, but then Valerie Keogh never disappoints. The plot twists and turns, and like Cara herself, I was never absolutely sure of what was Cara's reality or her writing work. I did not see the ending coming in this roller coaster read. Highly recommended. Thank you for the advance copy.