The Stranger Beside Me

In 1971, while working the late-shift at a Seattle crisis clinic, true-crime writer Ann Rule struck up a friendship with a sensitive, charismatic young coworker: Ted Bundy. Three years later, eight young women disappeared in seven months, and Rule began tracking a brutal mass murderer. But she had no idea that the "Ted" the police were seeking was the same Ted who had become her close friend and confidant. As she put the evidence together, a terrifying picture emerged of the man she thought she knew--his magnetic power, his bleak compulsion, his double life, and, most of all, his string of helpless victims. Bundy eventually confessed to killing at least thirty-six women across the country.

Forty years after its initial publication, The Stranger Beside Me remains a gripping, intimate, and unforgettable true-crime classic, "as dramatic and chilling as a bedroom window shattering at midnight" (New York Times).

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Published May 10, 2022

640 pages

Average rating: 7.69

140 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Groundhogcat
Oct 24, 2025
8/10 stars
The shocking story of Ted Bundy who knew him before she knew he was a serial killer. Bundy was a truly frightening sociopath who probably killed over 100 women and girls.
Waynez_World_
Sep 27, 2025
8/10 stars
So awesome to hear from somone who knew this sadistic man so well and was his friend.
KassieB
Aug 12, 2025
8/10 stars
I spent the entire book frustrated that she seemed so willing to give Ted passes. Ann Rule is an excellent author.
MPV310
May 15, 2025
5/10 stars
I was expecting it to be an opportunity to learn something new about Bundy but couldn’t find anything
wnoftsier
Apr 25, 2024
6/10 stars
I wanted to love this book so badly, especially after all the hype from MFM. But I just didn’t. The story could have been amazing but the subpar writing ruined it for me.

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