The Two Lila Bennetts

Lila Bennett is aware of the ethical considerations implicated in the practice of criminal defense law. But she hasn't always adhered to them. She is also well-versed in the moral dilemmas that sometimes arise in personal relationships -- marriage, friendship. and interactions with colleagues. In that area of her life, she has made reckless and callous choices.

Lila's history of questionable and, indeed, outright unethical decision-making is lengthy, dating back to well before she established herself as a successful litigator with a high-powered Los Angeles firm. In fact, were it not for some of those decisions, she would not be enjoying the well-paid career she has established. Authors Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke place her at a crossroad, examining the life of a woman who has permitted ambition, selfishness, and resentment to cloud her decision-making. The Two Lila Bennetts is a clever and tense thriller in which readers will find a message about how to navigate challenges. The prologue reveals that Lila is blindfolded, restrained, and being held captive. She observes, "[M]y life haunts me," because as she awaits her fate, she examines "every fork in the road that brought me here." After all, she notes ironically, you don't find yourself in such circumstances "if you've made the best choices."

From there, Fenton and Steinke reveal how Lila found herself in her current predicament. However, they craft Lila's story from two perspectives, employing alternating first-person narratives. Fenton and Steinke place Lila in two kinds of jeopardy. In the second story, she has not been kidnapped, but the life she has constructed is in danger because someone knows her secrets and is determined to reveal them. Thus, in one setting, Lila faces her own mortality. In the other, she stares down the implosion of her marriage, career, and relationships.

Lila acknowledges that she has lived her life as two women -- a girl girl and a bad girl reside within her. The bad girl cheers when she makes choices that are at odds with the advice and counsel the good girl gives her. That woman has a strong moral compass and is well aware of the right decisions, but Lila too often succumbs to the temptations dangled in front of her, and then justifies her choices. She lies to her husband, Ethan, a best-selling author who struggles with depression in the fact of pressure to replicate the success he enjoyed with the publication of his first book. In fact, Lila lies a lot. She has betrayed not only her husband, but her best friends, as well, in the pursuit of her goals and to advance her career. She is not unaware of how despicable her behavior has been. Does the realization come in time for her to stop behaving in self-destructive and cruel ways? If the truth is revealed, will the people how matter most to Lila be able to forgive her? Can she make amends? Will they let her? Those questions underlie and propel the story forward.

Fenton and Steinke's take on a classic premise is contemporary, refreshing, and inventive. As the focus moves between Lila being "Captured" and "Free," the suspense builds. Who is her captor vs. who knows and is revealing Lila's darkest secrets? Will she escape with her life vs. can she mitigate the damage and continue practicing law? The pace is unrelenting, the consequences for Lila in the parallel realities palpable. And because of its premise, The Two Lila Bennetts is inherently thought-provoking and empathetic. Everyone has made choices they regret, and wondered what might have happened if they had chosen differently. Lila learns that her choices have made all the difference. Fenton and Steinke keep readers guessing about the identity of Lila's tormenters and their motivation, and provide jaw-dropping but fully logical conclusions to both story lines. The result is a compulsively readable, engrossing morality play through which Fenton and Steinke reinforce that "love, loss, and betrayal can make people o the very worst things. things no one believes they're capable of doing." Can introspection, atonement, and determination not to repeat past mistakes make a difference? That's the question to which Lila Bennett finds an answer. But not without consequences.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

Defense Attorney, Lila Bennett, makes very poor choices.

She sometimes believes she’s a good person...she felt guilty about winning her last case, right? But, deep down, she knows she can (and should!) do better. However, the day she chooses to embrace her conscious, the world starts crumbling down around her. Switching between two narratives, a la ‘Sliding Doors,’ we find ourselves watching Lila’s mistakes destroy every single aspect of her life.

Once I started this book, I could not put it down – I finished within 24 hours. Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke are masters at instantly pulling their readers in, keeping them hooked with twisting storylines & strong characters, and, in the end, bringing it full circle while our mouths are left hanging open.

I am a sucker for mind-bending books with unusual timelines...and this one did not disappoint! You will absolutely want it with you at your window seat destined for vacation or tucked in your beach bag along side your sunscreen and wine.

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for this digital copy to read and review!