Thank you to @netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for this ARC of ‘The Two Lila Bennetts’ by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steiner out July 23.

I inhaled this in one day. This dark, clever, quick-paced story follows Lila Bennett through two parallel timelines much like the movie Sliding Doors.

In one timeline Lila is kidnapped and the other she is free. But both timelines have similar thread of lies, regrets and consequences. Lila is certainly flawed and isn’t always easy to root for. But that’s what made her so great. I had to wonder- did the authors name her Lila because she excels at lying? Lie-la?

The twists kept me guessing and turning pages at breakneck speed to see how it would end. If you’re looking for a compulsively thought provoking thriller- add this to your summer TBR.

Reality is a sliding door…

RALPH WALDO EMERSON

Sliding Doors is easily one of the most underrated movies of all time. Gwyneth Paltrow made the film during her long and excruciating breakup from Brad Pitt (cue teenagers like, “they dated??”) and it shows in every glimmer of tears in her eyes, every set of her chin, every time hope alights on her face. It’s a movie about breakups and makeups, about the choices we make, about how doors take us in different directions, about the two roads diverging in the wood.

It never, ever fails to make me cry at the end.

Suffice to say, I loved the idea of a psychological thriller along the same lines as the movie. Unlike Gwyneth Paltrow’s picture-perfect Helen, Lila Bennett is a complicated soul. A criminal defense attorney, Lila lives for the chase, the hunt, the win. It’s ceased to matter to her whether or not her clients are guilty or innocent – it only matters that she secures her victory, so she can move on to the next. She’s married, but she’s cheating. She’s betraying almost everyone close to her, and she may have just helped a vicious killer escape prosecution.

Is Lila the devil incarnate? I would argue no. Although a lot of her decisions paint her out to be a stereotypical ‘bad person’, in reality I think that Lila is at the mercy of the undertow of her life. Driven to succeed, she’s swept along by what people expect from her. After all, who would prop up her depressed husband if she crumbled? Who would support her mother if she left her job?

One evening, Lila makes a crucial choice (that seems quite small in the moment), and her life splits in two. One in which she’s “free”, still struggling to navigate the complex legal system and atone for past wrongs, and one in which she’s “captured”, kept in a cement-lined cell with a viciously cold man who seems to want revenge, at any cost.

Immensely readable and compelling, this book also has a very good twist when it comes to “whodunit”. I guessed, because I make it my business to guess, but it wasn’t obvious, and I commend the authors – super hard these days to make that a surprise.

One caveat: there’s a fair amount of slut-shaming that goes on in this book, which made me cringe. Lila frequently thinks “I deserve this”, as she’s being mentally and physically tortured in her cell. Worse, I didn’t get the feeling that at any point, that self-loathing changes into an attitude of “no one deserves this”, which I would have seen as welcome character growth.

Because certainly, I don’t believe even the most cold-hearted reader would think Lila “deserves” to be locked up, slashed and starved, because she had an extra-marital affair and made some questionable choices at work? Surely not? SOMEONE PLEASE. Because, ugh. It’s 2019 and we don’t ascribe to the notion that women need to be “punished” for their transgressions, right? Right.

Mental gymnastics aside, I really enjoyed this. It’s the perfect summer beach read, and will have you madly flipping pages (or pressing next on your Kindle) until you get to the whirlwind of an ending.

This book is just sensational. It captivated me from the first to the very last page.
Well written and also contained some surprises along the way.
Can’t wait to read more from this author

3.5 stars. I am a huge fan of this team of authors. Every time a book is published or I am approved for a preview (thank you Netgalley!) it jumps to the top of my list.

The bulk of these stars comes from the extremely readable writing style. It moves swiftly and is not dense, revealing some of the mystery in each chapter but giving the reader enough interesting backstory to really get to know the characters.

Unfortunately, this is one character I did not want to know. **spoilers ahead** Lila Bennett is a ruthless criminal defense attorney, taking no prisoners (pun intended) and callously mowing people down along the way. And not just her opponents - her husband, her best friend - no one is safe. She has an affair with her boss - who also happens to be her best friend's husband - while moving from one (probably) guilty client to the next. But she's just doing her job and she has to stay in this high-powered position at this top firm - doesn't she?

Two versions of events unfold for Lila, one where she is captured, one where she is not - but is slowly tortured as her transgressions come to light. I very quickly guessed whodunit, which is always a little disappointing in a thriller, but the writing style kept me flipping the pages.

Both Lilas learn from their mistakes, but only one Lila is free to start to right all her wrongs. I did find myself starting to cheer her along - although she still had a LOT of work to do to redeem herself. Which is why the end for 'free' Lila straight-up befuddled me. Unexpected endings are good...unexpected and deflating endings, not so much.

I will still automatically read any novel this writing duo puts out, but I find myself missing the magical realism of some of their earlier works. This one just did not spark for me in the same way.

This book has a very interesting premise, which the authors mostly pull off. Alternating chapters tell the story of Lila Bennett's life in two different ways, resulting from different choices she's made. While it's hard to describe the two different paths Lila takes throughout the story without spoilers, the book is an interesting look at how choices both small and large can have a lasting impact on our lives (and those of our loved ones).

While the format took some getting used to and required a lot of concentration to keep the two alternate stories straight, I was intrigued throughout.

Lila Bennett’s bad choices have finally caught up with her. And one of those decisions has split her life in two. Literally
In one life, she’s taken hostage by someone who appears to be a stranger but knows too much. As she’s trapped in a concrete cell, her kidnapper forces her to face what she’s done or be killed. In an alternate life, she eludes her captor but is hunted by someone who is dismantling her happiness, exposing one secret at a time.

Lila’s decorated career as a criminal defense attorney, her marriage, and her life are on the line. She must make a list of those she’s wronged—both in and out of the courtroom—to determine who is out to get her before it’s too late. But even if she can pinpoint her assailant, will she survive? And if she does, which parts of her life are worth saving, and which parts must die? Because one thing’s for certain—life as Lila Bennett knew it is over.

Thank you, NetGalley and the Publisher for the advance copy of the ebook. Well, I was definitely on the fence with this one. I found this book so difficult to really get into. It was the different tellings. By the end, I was just ready for it to be over. It was not bad, just not great.

My only regret was not reading this on the beach or in a hammock in the summer. This was the perfect 'in one sitting' book that everyone loves in the summer. I have a thing for anything that resembles Sliding Doors, so I knew I was going to love this one going into it. It's really different than the other Liz/Lisa book's I've read but I was really digging it.

I was so excited to receive a copy of Liz & Lisa’s newest book “The Two Lila Bennetts” as I have been a fan of them for some time.
Unfortunately I found this book so difficult to really get into. I lov d the idea of the book but found the format very confusing.
I was hoping for a real big reveal at the end, but I was instead left a bit underwhelmed.

A solid read! I really enjoyed the movie Sliding Doors so it was fun to read a story with a similar plotline. A quick read that will keep you guessing and the reader gets 2 endings!

Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke are my favorite writing team. The way the words flow on the page, one cannot see the book written by 2 authors as it reads as 1. Every novel written by this writing team gets better and better.

The Two Lila Bennetts will be released in July and is a MUST HAVE for your beach bag! This story puts a spin on Sliding doors. Told in parallel time, readers meet Lila Bennett a ruthless defense lawyer who has made mistakes in her life and has hurt herself and those around her by doing so. One timeline shows Lila living her life and seeing how her decisions create chaos and wants to make changes or at least try. The other timeline shows her abducted and in captivity. Who took her? Why? And will she survive?

Much like the paradox this story creates, as a reader i found myself facing the paradox of "I must know" and "I dont want this novel to end". This novel is a mind twister that makes the reader take an internal look at themselves and decisions they have made.

Ladies, you have done it again and surpassed this readers expectations. I adored this book. This is your best yet!

DREAMCAST

Lila: Olivia wilde
@lisaandliz
#beachreads
#summerreads2019
#pageturner
#imnotabookwormimabookdragon
#bookstagram

Lake Union Publishing never steers me wrong, and I thank them, and NetGalley for an e-Arc of this title. Yaass! That's what I have to say after reading the newest book by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke. They are on fire with this one. I was a little confused initially, wondering how they would pull off two timelines/scenarios, but it's clear and well done. Lila Bennett has a lifetime of making bad choices, and now those choices just might kill her. You get two endings with this one...and I don't think you'll see either one of them coming. Highly recommended. Preorder this one now.

Lila Bennett is a criminal defence lawyer who has done whatever it takes to get to where she is. One fateful evening, this book takes you into two potential roads that her life could take her. Both roads lead her to realize every one of her selfish decisions has lead to where she is now. A gripping book with twists along the way.
Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the advanced copy.

A very interesting novel to read. We follow Lila, a criminal defense lawyer who's destiny splits in two after she makes a decision late at night.

One part of the book is where she is captured, the other part is where she is free. Both story lines continue on in alternating chapters.

I quite enjoyed reading this book, though I did figure out the big twist half way into it. I felt that the reveal was a bit clumsy and not that believable at all.

All in all, the book was fun to read and I would recommend this!

This is a sharp, clever tale of regret and retribution. As a HUGE fan of the 1998 film, Sliding Doors (starring a pre-Gooped out Gwyneth Paltrow and the delicious John Hannah), I was excited to read that the author was also a fan of the film which partly inspired this tale. I'm very drawn to the theme of exploring the road not taken, the notion of what might of been had one chosen a different path. After all, isn't life just a series of choices and non choices, the things we can control and the things we ultimately cannot. Lila's fate is partly driven by the choices she has made and as the reader, you will be glued to both her journeys until their shocking end.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is the story about a ruthless lawyer that comes to a fork in the road. One way leads to one story and the other fork leads to another story that eventually intersects. It’s an interesting way to tell a story and it works well. I loved this book by these authors, and so glad that Netgalley gave me a chance to read it!

I’ve never read anything quite like this, and I loved the juxtaposition between Lila’s experiences, and how it all came full circle in the end. This would be a terrific pick for book clubs!

Liz and Lisa have done it again in The Two Lila Bennetts .

Lila is at the top of her career as a criminal defense attorney.

Told in two points of view, of taken/free, Lila must confront choices she has made throughout the years.
Just as their other novel, you will not be able to put this down. The writing is on point and the ending will shock you.


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43236278

I have read a lot of theories about String Theory and the Multiverse, how every decision we make could potentially end up being life changing. And that those different choices have actually created different worlds or universes where we live completely different lives, perhaps because of a split second decision. For Lila Bennett, a decent woman who has made some regrettable choices, this becomes a reality as she lives two different lives based on just such a decision. Lila is a criminal defense attorney and in one life she’s been taken captive and kept in a concrete cell, in the other she gets away, but is stalked by someone determined to bring her down, both professionally and personally. Is there some way Lila can uncover the person bent on destroying her? This book is so twisted and so good that I found myself unable to put it down once I started. Something tells me this will be THE summer blockbuster