What happens when your biggest opportunity becomes your biggest threat? That’s the premise behind The Standout, Laurel Osterkamp’s genre-bending thriller that dives deep into performance, identity, and betrayal.
Robin Bricker joins The Standout, a national fashion reality show, hoping to reset her life. But an anonymous threat tells her to dump her fiancé—or face consequences. Then a malicious website appears, putting everything at risk. As the spotlight grows harsher, Robin begins to question the motives of those around her—and her own perception of reality. Her brother Ted and a guarded new ally named Zelda are the only people she can rely on. But can she even trust them? In a world where appearances are everything, Robin must dig deep to protect her reputation, her sanity, and her sense of self.
Read an Excerpt
The last time I saw my old sex-buddy Robert was years ago, when he ran from Clara’s tree house, but this morning he texts me with a picture attached. He’s sprawled on his bed, wearing nothing but a suggestive pose and a cowboy hat. What’s even more horrifying is the message: I’ve been thinking about you too.
Never mind how uncanny the timing of his text is. No. My first reaction is repulsion; how could I ever have slept with a guy who’d send a picture like this? The hat is so tacky! But after I get over his poor taste in accessories, I realize there are multiple reasons to be disturbed. The feathered cowboy hat is just the tip of the pornographic iceberg.
What if Nick had been around when I’d gotten that text? How could I possibly explain it away? And why did Robert decide to text me now, with everything else that’s been going on? It has to be more than a coincidence.
So I text him back. Can we talk? Today?
Sure, he responds, and sends me his work address.
His single-story office building is on the edge of downtown and I wait outside during lunch hour. At 11:52 I spot Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome walking out and heading straight for the Jimmy Johns. I step into his path.
“Hi, Robert.”
His face has aged little in the last few years. Unlike Clara’s mother, Robert seems virtually unchanged by tragedy.
“Robin.” He smiles like he can picture me in nothing but a lacy thong. “Hey, how are you?”
“I’m fine, good actually. I’m getting married.” I dig my heels into the sidewalk and hug my arms to my chest. The wind whips through me but I’ll make it clear: I do not want him warming me up. “I’ve never been happier and I can’t imagine EVER doing ANYTHING to jeopardize that.”
“Congratulations.” He tugs at his tie and the realization that I’m not going to sleep with him skips across his face. “Look, it’s great seeing you but I’m pressed for time—”
“This won’t take long. I’m sorry to hear about Clara.”
Robert’s finely chiseled jaw goes rigid. “Thanks. But we separated years ago, pretty much right after she found out about you and me. I mean, it’s terrible that she’s missing, but—”
“Missing? Her mother said she’d died.”
“She’s presumed dead.” Robert’s nostrils flare but his shoulders sag. “Clara was traveling in Greece and there was a bus accident. Lots of bodies were burned. It was pretty gruesome. But they looked at dental records and her body was never found.”
“Oh.” Images flood my mind: a bus tumbling down a cliff and erupting into flames, Clara’s beautiful face melting in the ashes, or perhaps, Clara getting up and walking away?
About the Author: 
Laurel Osterkamp writes sharp, emotionally resonant novels about women navigating impossible situations. Her books, including Favorite Daughters, The Side Project, and Beautiful Little Furies, have reached #1 on Amazon and earned industry awards. A former high school teacher with an MFA in writing, Laurel now works full-time as a novelist, with stories that balance psychological tension and heart. Her fiction often explores how ambition, trauma, and love intersect in complex and unexpected ways. When she’s not writing or teaching ESL, she’s rewatching 90s TV shows or listening to audiobooks while running around Minneapolis.
For more, visit her website or follow her on Instagram.
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