Mixed feelings. The story about mis/education of Lila Bennett, high-powered attorney and "me, me, me" type of character is interesting from the human drama point. But also I have struggled with the heavily handed doses of moral coals of fire that were heaped over Lila's head. Nothing wrong with going deeper! But the catharsis does not feel natural here. And in reality the story is probably more complicated than selfish people vs. angelic people (because we all have our light and dark parts in us).
But on the other hand - kudos to the authors for using the "wake-up call" motive! It is truly nice to know that they care about the state of the world we all live in.

The Two Lila Bennetts by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke

I have read and thoroughly enjoyed other books by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke. While I enjoyed The Two Lila Bennetts, it was not one of my favorite reads.
Lila Bennett has not had an easy life. Her bad choices have not led her to a good place. In The Two Lila Bennetts we follow two different versions of her story. Her life takes two directions. In one, she is taken hostage by a “stranger” who knows a lot about her life. In the second, she becomes a successful criminal defense attorney. Which life is the real life? Who really is Lila Bennett? The story alternates between the two with each chapter.
I can’t pin point exactly why this book did not mesmerize me. The alternating chapters were easy to follow. The story lines were interesting. At times I did get a little bored with what was happening to each Lila. It could have very well been the mood I was in. My mood definitely affects how much I enjoy what I read. I have been known to start a book, not like it, put it down for a few weeks or a month, and then pick it up again and enjoy reading it through. Maybe this is what I need to do with The Two Lila Bennetts.
I will say, do not, not read this book because of my opinion. Liz and Lisa are awesome authors. They write awesome stories. Get a copy of the book and make your own decision. Definitely read other books they have written.
04.03.19

Very intriguing dual points of view, as Lila's life is upended and I quickly read to see what happened next. Sadly, many professionals in her field are too often marks for bad guys.

Have you ever wondered what would have happened in your life if you had taken a different path? Well, it happens to Lila Bennett. On one path, she is abducted by a stranger who knows all her secrets and makes her own up to her mistakes or be killed. On the other path, she eludes her would-be kidnapper but someone else knows her secrets and is revealing them all. With one character but two different story lines, Liz and Lisa have created an unusually unique book that hits all the high notes. Their writing is superb, as always. A definite must-read!

I thought the premise was really interesting. But Lila as a character was really hard to like. I would have liked to see more of her mother.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

This was a great read., I loved the theme of this book it was interesting!Without giving much away much , Lila is a defense attorney and she is notorious for working with some of the most vile and cruel people.She doesn't treat her marriage or friends with the respect they deserve. Until she is forced to realize that her behavior needs a change.I thought the book was a little slow overall but great!

The Two Lila Bennetts was masterful and creative! There were so many twists that popped up, it left me feeling excited and intrigued, eager to read more to see what would come next. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, I discovered I not only was wrong, but what was happening was not even something I ever would have considered. Not only that, but this novel was written in such a unique way that I was enraptured throughout. These authors create a talented team and I would love to read more written by them!

What happens when your choices and decisions have real consequences? How do you view a person who does some bad things? Are they a bad person? Lots of things to consider as you delve into The Two Lila Bennetts. The two authors do a great job of giving you things to think about and handling the dual-timeline until things blend at the end. This was a wonderful thriller that holds you captive until the very end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

Lila Bennett has a traumatic event happen in which her life is literally split in two. You will spend the whole book in suspense trying to figure out how in the heck the end of the book is going to come together.

Lisa and Liz are beyond phenomena when it comes to their writing. And this book is no different. This was one of the best page turners I have read and I didn’t want it to end in any way possible. This book was permanently stuck in my hands until I finished it. I loved this suspenseful psychological maze soooo much!

After I read it I needed a day to completely wrap my head around everything and try to piece together my life after reading this. Needless to say I am still in awe of their writing and need so much more from these two amazing ladies!

Thank you to the publisher, author, and Netgalley for the gifted review copy. All opinions are my own.

RATING: 3.5 STARS
2019; Lake Union Publishing

For some reason, I thought The Two Lila Bennetts was going to be a contemporary fiction novel. It is instead a domestic suspense (mystery) story. I disliked Lila, the main character, from the beginning but was pretty invested in seeing where her story went. This novel is a bit like sliding doors, where there are two different paths/storylines going on at the same time. I recently read a novel like this, where the author wrote about the aftermath of two ways the story could have gone, depending on what the character chose to do. At first, I was a bit confused (as I did not read the synopsis, lol), but once I got what was happening, I felt like this was a cool writing device. The novel was well constructed and written, and I am in for more of the duo's novels. The Two Lila Bennetts is my first novel by them, and it was a good one to start with. They write in various genres so I am interested to see how the other books are. I got to know the authors through some virtual events they hosted, and I am happy that I enjoyed this novel by such awesome women.

***I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***

I didn't love or hate this book. It was a middle of the road read for me. Slower paced for a thriller, but I was okay with that. An entertaining read.

Lila has made some really horrible decisions, but who hasn't? I loved having two versions of her life. The back and forth really worked for me and kept me reading to find out if Lila was going to make it out okay. I really enjoyed this one.

I enjoyed the split narrative and it worked great as a thriller. Lila herself isn't the most likeable character but I feel she had to be written that way to make the two scenarios play out as they did. I was gripped and couldn't wait to see how both scenarios ended — not necessarily what you'd expect!

Definitely a great thriller!

I enjoyed Lila's career as a defense attorney. As a lawyer myself, it is always fun reading about attorney characters, but I found her a bit unrelatable and hard to root for.

It's also hard to write a review without posting any of the spoilers, so I will just leave this at "enjoyable but not earthshattering."

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.

I don't ever copy and paste a book blurb, but I thought it was so much easier than trying to explain the plot in my own words. This was a strange story of parallel universes and one greedy human. In the one "Captured Lila" was kidnapped after breaking up with Sam at the restaurant. In the other universe, "Free Lila" was able to escape capture outside of her mother's home and works to change her life. Both situations are the result of Lila's horrible life decisions. She is not a nice person, but you can see her start to realize the impact her decisions have made on the people in her life. Like her husband and her best friend. I had figured out who had kidnapped Lila pretty early on, but I didn't know why. -CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS - I know what happened in the end with Lila, but I am not sure that we got the same kind of closure for both versions of Lila.

Bottom Line - The Two Lila Bennetts is a classic tale of redemption with a little bit of thriller thrown into the mix.

Details:

The Two Lila Bennetts by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke
On Instagram
Pages: 320
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Publication Date: 7/23/19
Buy it Here!
Thank you to NetGalley for the book in exchange for an honest review.
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CATEGORIES: 2020, MYSTERY, PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER

This felt like the movie “Sliding Doors” to me. I enjoyed this and the alternate reality situation, wondering what was real. It was my first book by these authors and I really enjoyed their writing and characterizations.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the authors for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
This is the 2nd book that I have read by Liz Fenton and Lisa Stein and I definitely enjoyed this book more then “Girls’ Night Out”.
I thought it was a well written, clever and addictive thriller.
I can’t wait to read their next book, “How To Save A Life”.

Special thanks to Lake Union for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

Liz & Lisa are great. I was initially not sold on the subject matter of this one. I thought it may not be for me, but they pulled it off! I really enjoyed this thriller!

Thank you for the opportunity to be an early reader.

Not the most excited book, but I’ve always been fascinated by the “sliding doors” idea of following two paths of life. Although with this one in particular I didn’t find that the two path were all the different really. Where she was physically may have been different, but it wasn’t like any of the rest of her decisions were. Nice idea but the execution was a little lacking for me.