Never Alone

by Victoria West

A dark and diverse psychological thriller following a true-crime podcaster whose past comes back to haunt her. Perfect for fans of You by Caroline Kepnes.

Ella Ademonde has crafted a perfect life as a criminal podcaster and socialite. When a cryptic letter is left on her pillow during her engagement party, Ella knows who sent it. Or, at least, she thinks she does.

As the torment escalates, Ella realises that despite thinking she understands the rules of this twisted game, her stalker is playing their own version.

Meanwhile, her stalker is driven by a jealousy and a perverted sense of justice. Ella deserves everything that is coming to her and she needs to be taught a lesson once and for all. Anyone in their situation would act the same. This doesn’t make them a bad person…right?

Desperate to keep up the life of lies she's built for herself, Ella tries to stay one step ahead of the unhinged predator while balancing her perfect life, while her stalker toes the line of going too far. But nothing and no one is as it seems, and soon they must both face a hard maybe it's time to admit the truth of who they really are…

Told in dual-POV between Ella and her stalker, this story is a taut balance of survival that brings diverse voices to the front.

Genres: Audiobook, Fiction

400 pages, Paperback

Published June 9, 2026

Reviews

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t particularly care for the answer to who the stalker was. I guess that when someone is a psycho they are a psycho but why would you stalk someone for something that happened when they were 15 and dumb. It was a little far fetched for me

[Haley E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hate to be unkind, especially for a debut novel, but this was a painful listen. To keep it brief-ish (with mild spoilers ahead) the story was desperately slow, with a convoluted plot and often ludicrous character motivations. Action scenes were so hyper-descriptive that they read more like screenplay choreography than gripping narrative. The deaths felt both shocking and strangely anticlimactic-dropping in from left field without meaningfully advancing the plot or character arcs. You could possibly argue they served some character development, but by that point the character had become so unhinged and silly that the impact felt lost. Finally, the punishment and blame heaped on one particular character was completely unjustified. They were clearly a victim, and holding them “accountable” made no sense. My internal sense of justice was screaming the entire time.

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never Alone is one of those psychological thrillers that creeps under your skin before you’ve even realised it’s happening. From the moment Ella Ademonde’s carefully curated life begins to crack, there’s a delicious, unsettling tension that settles over the story—like someone watching from just beyond the light.

Ella is a fascinating centre point: polished, successful, and deeply unreliable in ways that feel both intentional and quietly revealing. The moment that cryptic letter appears on her pillow, the novel shifts into a taut dance between who she pretends to be and who she’s terrified she might actually become. The dual POV works beautifully here, giving the stalker’s voice a chilling intimacy that never tips into caricature. Instead, it feels disturbingly human—jealous, self‑justifying, and convinced that their twisted logic is perfectly reasonable.

What I loved most is how the book leans into the messiness of perception and identity. Both narrators are performing, hiding, rewriting themselves in real time, and the tension comes not just from the stalking but from the slow unravelling of the personas they’ve built. The pacing is sharp without feeling rushed, and the author knows exactly when to let a moment breathe and when to twist the knife.

There’s a dark, addictive energy here that reminded me of You, but with a more diverse cast and a richer emotional undercurrent. The story balances glamour and grit, fear and bravado, truth and self‑deception, all while maintaining that claustrophobic sense that someone is always one step behind—or ahead.

A gripping, character‑driven thriller that kept me leaning in, eager to see which version of the truth would finally win. Perfect for readers who love their psychological suspense dark, intimate, and just a little too close for comfort.

With thanks to Victoria West, the publisher and netgalley for the ARC

[Jade Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a huge lover of stalker novels, and if you are too .. if you loved You by Caroline Kepnes or Lisa Jewell’s Don’t Let Him In, then you are going to devour this. I was supposed to be reading The Custom of the Country for uni… but I have had to pause everything to inhale this book.

The premise:
A true-crime podcaster with a carefully curated life finds her past clawing its way back into the present. When a cryptic letter is left on her pillow during her engagement party, Ella Ademonde knows she’s being watched … and that someone remembers exactly who she really is. Told in chilling dual POV between Ella and her stalker, Never Alone becomes a psychological game of obsession, jealousy, and twisted justice, where both sides believe they’re in the right… and nothing is quite what it seems.

I absolutely loved this book. It’s dark, creepy, and relentlessly compelling. The stalker chapters are chef’s kiss.. unsettling, intimate, and impossible to look away from. I had so many questions, and the tension just kept tightening.

I adore the female friendships threaded through the story, even though I didn't know who I could fully trust — if anyone. There’s a constant, heightened sense of unease that had me questioning everything, even for a long time whether the stalker was a man or a woman. That ambiguity is handled brilliantly.

Sharp, sinister, and utterly addictive … Never Alone is one of those rare thrillers that gets under your skin and refuses to let go. Compelling from the first page, and impossible to forget.

[Rachel Riendeau · Rating 3 out of 5]

Never Alone is a dual POV thriller about Ella, a woman with a dark past and bright future, engaged to a successful man and living a wealthy lifestyle. Unfortunately, she thinks someone from her past is out to get her after receiving threats. From here, the story takes off at a quick pace, alternating between Ella's POV and the stalker's. It reminded me constantly of You by Caroline Kepnes and the Netflix show that followed. That however, focused more on the stalker and I wish that had happened here. I wanted more of the stalker as I found that more interesting than Ella's anxieties and personality tbh.

I devoured the first half of this book and enjoyed the ride. However, as more of Ella's story unraveled, she became a bit of an unreliable narrator. Her past and her missing brother was compelling but the more that was revealed about the night everything went down, the less I was interested. It seemed obvious what had happened and I craved a bit more mystery. I wish the stalker's identity had stayed secret for the majority of the book. While the initial twist was well earned, the stalker chapters that followed didn't hit as hard.

An excellent thriller with some weak points in plot and character, I enjoyed how it wrapped up and the final chapter. The author has a ton of promise and I look forward to reading their next venture.

Thanks to NetGalley and Datura for the advanced copy in exchange for a review.

[Suesyn Zellmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ella is being threatened by a stalker, who not only follows and watches her, but has also been inside her house all the way into her bedroom. She believes it’s someone from a terrible night a decade ago, even though he should be in prison and far away from her. But the more she’s threatened, the more she considers that it might be a completely different person that’s taunting her and making her feel increasingly unsafe. Her fiancée, Rufus, is exactly as you’d expect a wealthy and pampered man to be. He’s completely unconcerned and thinks Ella’s being dramatic. He doesn’t think her side job of podcasting warrants enough recognition to have someone come after her. She luckily has some close friends for support, but even they don’t know the truth about her past. And if the stalker gets their way, everyone will know what Ella really did.

There are a few things that bothered me throughout the story. Ella reveals that she changed her name some years ago so that the stigma of her past doesn’t follow her. The last name, sure, but she went from Elsie to Ella? For the longest time, I thought Ella was just her nickname for Elsie. She’s also called Elsabelle, and I still can’t figure out if that was her previous full name or a pet name from that one character. I also couldn’t get a handle on her actual job. She works for a lawyer’s office, but isn’t a lawyer or paralegal, and her description is vague. She eventually just stops doing work and going to work, and no one really cares!

But the most nonsensical part is the grudge the stalker holds. She didn’t even commit the crime that happened long ago; she was negligent at most. So for all these years, someone’s been resentful of her, but not the actual perpetrator. And the reason everyone had a falling out back then was too anodyne for me. Would anyone really care that much about something like that anymore? I just couldn’t see it.

I had a hard time getting into this book, but it picked up towards the end. There are enough suspects to make the reveal surprising, and I didn’t expect so much death! I also like the way Ella feels empathy at the end, even after everything that happened. Not everyone would so easily forgive.

My thanks to NetGalley and Datura for the free advanced reading copy of this book.

[Lissy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A twisty stalker thriller with a strong premise and plenty of mystery, but one that didn’t fully deliver for me.

There were definitely moments that pulled me in, and I was intrigued enough to keep reading, but I never felt completely hooked. The writing style didn’t quite click, and I found my attention drifting more than I expected for this genre, which is usually a one sitting, can’t look away kind of read for me.

At times, the pacing felt a little off, with some repetitive sections that slowed things down and took away from the tension.

I did really enjoy the dual POV between the main character and the stalker though. It added a nice layer of suspense.

Overall, it’s a decent thriller with a solid concept, but it just lacked that extra punch to make it truly gripping. 🖤

[KellyJ1028 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A twisty stalker thriller with a compelling premise and plenty of mystery, but it didn’t fully land for me. There were moments that pulled me in and kept me curious, but I never felt completely hooked. The writing style didn’t quite click, and my attention wandered more than I expected—especially for a genre I usually love.

It’s a slow burn that doesn’t really find its stride until the final third, with the first half feeling a bit scattered. That said, I did enjoy the dual POV between the protagonist and the stalker—it added tension and made things more engaging.

Overall, an interesting idea that just needed a little more spark to truly captivate. I’ve seen a range of ratings for this one, so I’m hopeful others will enjoy it !

Thank you NetGalley for the arc of Never Alone.

[Kate Brasington · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨✨BOOK REVIEW✨✨

Cozying up to a psychological thriller is one of my favorite pastimes.
There was a character in this book that I did not trust from the get go and I’m glad my gut was right. I was a bit iffy about a few people during this book so it made it hard at times to pinpoint who was unraveling the FMC’s life but boy did I feel for her. Although I will say she is the making of her own misery and was just much at fault as the person making her life absolute hell.
I hope this book is adapted into a tv show because I can see how this would have a bunch of crime/ thriller people hooked! If you are looking for a book that will keep you guessing who the bad guy is until the end you’re going to want to pick this one up!
Thank you to angry robots for sending me a copy of Never Alone!

[Sal Valvo]

Lies become exposed, the past stalks you and you have to face and correct your mistakes.

That is the suspenseful and captivating plot of Victoria West’s Never Alone.

This two narrative perspective novel between Ella and “Stalker” had me hooked right from the beginning. There were so many surprise twists that I didn’t see coming! My only thing was that the ending dragged a bit and could have been a lot better. Other than that, definitely worth a read. 4/5 stars!

[Britney Ireland · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you #NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of Never Alone.

It took me 33 days to finish this book. Unfortunately it did not hook me enough to keep reading. I would read it for about 15-20 mins at a time and get bored with it. Some days I wouldn’t even read it at all. I hate leaving reviews like this but my honest opinion is it just wasn’t for me.

I am glad to see 4 and 5 stars reviews on this because it means it is for someone else and I hope whoever does read it will enjoy it.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story wandered. The narration didn’t.
I gave “Never Alone” a real shot, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea – and that’s okay. I found myself losing the thread more than once. Natalie Simpson, though? Her narration was absolutely brilliant. I did track it down in the Audible Plus section, so at least that was a win. As my late editor and dear friend Dan Di Leo used to say, "If everyone liked the same things, the world would indeed be a boring one."

[Katlin Stokes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book. I have to say I really did enjoy this book! It hooked me in right from the start. Helps that I liked the stalker concept of it. I did kind of guess who it was though.

[Amna H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review coming soon !

[Veronica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Excellent narration.

[Macey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audible
I think it was unnecessarily confusing.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A twisty dark stalker crime thriller, quick and easy read . While it didn’t wow or draw me completely in, it had its moments .

[Carrie Silvester · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.8*

[Justine · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5🎧

[Courtney Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked getting the back and forth of the main character and the stalker point of views.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. The concept was good and the storyline did keep me until the end. There were some slow areas but overall it was a good debut novel.

[Jenny Yaden · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Star

[Ffion Griffith · Rating 3 out of 5]

🎧 • 2.5

[Jeanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a mess. So long, so boring. I thought it would never end.