Tess Stimson

Tess Stimson is an English author and journalist, known for her psychological thrillers and long career in the British media. Her fiction includes The New House (2022), a suspense novel that explores ambition, secrecy, and domestic rivalry. Stimson's books have been translated into over twenty languages and are published internationally.

Born in Surrey, Tess Stimson read English at the University of Oxford. After graduating, she joined ITN as a television news producer. She spent much of her early career reporting from conflict zones around the world, covering both hard news and social issues.

"I reported and produced regional and global stories, travelling to hotspots and war zones around the world," says Stimson. This experience would later influence the complexity of her characters and themes.

In addition to television, Tess Stimson has built a career in print journalism. Her work has appeared in The Times, The Guardian, The Daily Mail and The Telegraph. Stimson has also written for magazines such as Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Red and Good Housekeeping. Her journalism often combines personal insight with wider commentary, covering both private and public issues.

Tess Stimson later left broadcast news to concentrate on writing full-time. Her early novels were in the genre of women's fiction, but over time, her interests shifted.

"I moved away from writing women's fiction towards darker psychological thrillers, which seemed to suit my personality better — make of that what you will," Stimson remarked. She has since published over a dozen novels, as well as short stories and two non-fiction books.

In The New House (2022), Tess Stimson utilises the backdrop of the property market to explore shifting power dynamics and desires. The story focuses on three couples linked by two houses. Stacey and Felix are selling the modern Glass House, but they are not prepared to hand it over to just anyone.

Millie and Tom believe that owning the Glass House will change their lives. Harper and Kyle see another house, in a better school district, as their path to success. When a sale falls through, tensions rise, and choices become dangerous. Stimson's story explores how far people are willing to go to achieve the life they want.

Tess Stimson lives in Vermont with her husband and splits her time between the United States and Florida. She teaches reporting and creative writing at a university in the northeastern US.

Photo credit: www.tessstimson.com