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Bystander
Whether or not Stefen sent those messages to Lilah, the word is already out. Whether or not he’s the one who killed her, judgment is being dealt.
Ever since Lilah was found, the town’s been hungry for a burning, and now, with Stefen’s name upon their lips, forever engulfed in a big, blazing fire is what his whole life is soon to become.
Her senior year of high school has ended early, but what Josephine “Joss” Addler quickly finds out, it’s not to get a head start on basking in the summer sun. Lilah Ramsey has been found murdered, and although Joss is ready to sweep the bad news under the rug like she’s been forced to do her entire life, she quickly realizes that things are no longer so simple. When the townspeople latch onto their first suspect, an estranged yet familiar neighbor of hers, Joss finds that she may be unable to stand aside. Will her distant connection to the suspect make her the town's second murder-victim? Or will her trust prove worthy enough to give her the strength to finally break free of the bystander effect?
Bystander is Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl meets Thomas Vinterberg’s The Hunt. By taking the classic genres of mystery and thriller and giving them a breath of fresh air, Bystander mixes the suspense of “whodunnit” with the horrors of just how cruel human nature can be. Written in a dual POV between two complicated characters and changing between a timeline of “before” and “after,” Bystander keeps you guessing “what’s the truth?” and “who’s the killer?” until the very end.
Ever since Lilah was found, the town’s been hungry for a burning, and now, with Stefen’s name upon their lips, forever engulfed in a big, blazing fire is what his whole life is soon to become.
Her senior year of high school has ended early, but what Josephine “Joss” Addler quickly finds out, it’s not to get a head start on basking in the summer sun. Lilah Ramsey has been found murdered, and although Joss is ready to sweep the bad news under the rug like she’s been forced to do her entire life, she quickly realizes that things are no longer so simple. When the townspeople latch onto their first suspect, an estranged yet familiar neighbor of hers, Joss finds that she may be unable to stand aside. Will her distant connection to the suspect make her the town's second murder-victim? Or will her trust prove worthy enough to give her the strength to finally break free of the bystander effect?
Bystander is Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl meets Thomas Vinterberg’s The Hunt. By taking the classic genres of mystery and thriller and giving them a breath of fresh air, Bystander mixes the suspense of “whodunnit” with the horrors of just how cruel human nature can be. Written in a dual POV between two complicated characters and changing between a timeline of “before” and “after,” Bystander keeps you guessing “what’s the truth?” and “who’s the killer?” until the very end.
428 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 30, 2024
3 people are currently reading
30 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 8, 2024
WOW WOW WOW!! What a ride! Lilah deserved better and I will die on that hill. This book was a wonderful debut! It was tense, it was mysterious, it was exciting!! Joss is a badass girly and is a great role model when it comes to fighting for what you believe in! I read this book IN A DAY!! The suspense kept me flipping and the dual POV kept me engaged! I adored the dynamics of the friend group, especially when it came to surviving their small town tragedy. AND THE ENDING?? HELLO? CRAZY??? It gave me -Riverdale/PLL- vibes for a sec (but the good kind)!! Salina you are a GEM and I can't wait to read future projects!!!
November 16, 2024
Wow what a page turner!! I could NOT put this book down. The duel perspective was so interesting and kept me guessing what was going to happen next (my jaw literally dropped at multiple scenes). An excellent mystery with strong female protagonists, I highly recommend to anyone for their next read!
July 25, 2025
I rated this a 4.5 out of 5– this is such a solid murder mystery thriller! The duo POVS and how everything came together and built up at such a natural pace. It was honestly so good I really recommend this to everyone!
January 3, 2026
Love a good murder mystery! I think Salina did such a good job subtly adding in moments that made you think “wait! This is definitely the killer”. Fun read, really loving this author
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews