Bystander: A Dr Nancy Strong Novel (2)

Bystander is a darkly humorous campus novel in which the characters’ egotistical and competitive relationships are captured through the investigation of a murder.
It should appeal to readers who enjoyed the sardonic radio dramas High Table, Lower Orders by Mark Tavener, and the classic novel The Masters by C. P. Snow, as well as readers of David Lodge and Malcolm Bradbury’s campus tales all of which highlighted the often pointless, but nonetheless intriguing, academic rivalries.
But there is a mystery too!
A student jumps to her death from a window in her hall of residence at Elmhurst University College. Soon after, the body of Madeline Jenkins, head of the Department of Applied Social and Criminal Sciences, is discovered. Both deaths are declared suicides but as the mystery unravels all the evidence points to murder. When Nancy Strong discovers some disturbing papers in an old filing cabinet, explanations have to change and she finds herself on the illusive trail of a psychopathic serial killer. But it looks as though the murderer is very near to home.
This story of suicide, murder and academic ambition is the second case for Dr. Nancy Strong, the psychological profiler with particular expertise in understanding sociopaths. For fans of Paula Hawkins, Jo Spain, Alex Michaelides and Angela Marsons this gripping psychological thriller brings together deception, fear and dread all laced with dark humour with ironic twists.