Review for ‘Conscious Bias, A Monica Spade Novel #1’ by Alexi Venice

I have no idea why I was a bit reluctant to read this book. It’s an entertaining legal mystery book, with the right amount of romance thrown in.

There’s always something special about novels written by authors who use their professional knowledge for their stories, such as Radclyffe with medical romances or, in this case, Venice’s legal knowledge.

Monica Spade is a lawyer working for a very conservative firm. She was an out lesbian before working there and after three years back in the closet is feeling the strain of having to hide. But she loves her job, especially working for the local hospital, whether it’s dealing with a monkey on the loose (I loved that part!) or preparing physicians who have been subpoenaed in a felony murder case: the son of a very powerful family is accused of having killed an exchange student from Saudi Arabia in a bar brawl. Caught in the middle, Monica has to deal with death threats while at the firm one of the partners’ son is making her life hell after one of her friends and coworkers has come out as gay. The good news is, she’s met the woman of her dreams in her CrossFit class, an art teacher called Shelby.

Well-paced, intriguing and well-written, with delicious banter between Monica and Shelby, Conscious Bias would be a perfect read on the beach. 4 stars.