The Trials of Lila Dalton (Paperback)

Remarkable . . . there are echoes of Kafka, Orwell and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland - The Times, Best Thrillers for February

Shepherd cranks up the menace, layering the story with one obstacle after another, revealing snippets of back-story, as evermore sinister forces circle. The narrative quickly assumes a nightmarish quality, redolent of a dream where there is no way out and new terrors lurk at every corner. Writing with verve, Shepherd delivers a creative tour de force - Financial Times

There's a fever-dream quality from the very start of this debut novel . . . an inventive and exciting read - Guardian, The Best Recent Crime and Thrillers

A wonderfully ambitious book that never runs out of ideas or surprises - Stuart Turton

The well-constructed account of Lila's nightmare comes across as a howl of frustration at the state of the British legal system - Literary Review

A mind-blowing, audaciously inventive thriller - Chris Whitaker, author of We Begin at the End

Stuart Turton meets Agatha Christie - a locked room puzzle with hints of the supernatural, brilliantly told through the lens of the judicial system. A truly intriguing and intelligent mystery which had me gripped from the start. Totally recommend - Sarah Moorhead, author of The Treatment

A powerful work that truly grips with its multiple levels of mystery and uncertainty - The Critic

I found this book unputdownable from the first page. As the mystery deepens, readers will be on the edge of their seats, desperate to know what happens next - Sophie Hannah, author of The Couple at the Table

Brilliantly written, fast-paced and a must for anyone who liked The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - Natasha Pulley, author of The Mars House

L. J. Shepherd is one of the most exciting new voices in crime fiction. In The Trials of Lila Dalton, she crafts a psychological tour de force reminiscent of Dennis Lehane. Grand, ambitious and achingly atmospheric, it may just be the cleverest novel I've read all year - Kia Abdullah, author of Take It Back

Now and again a new writer with a real feel for language and a genuine grasp of what makes a good psychological plot comes along. Enter L.J. Shepherd . . . It is a heady, ambitious mix of courtroom drama and dystopian mystery. But, thanks to Shepherd's formidable prose skills, she pulls off a winner - Daily Mail

A strikingly clever debut and high concept legal thriller which grips from the first page and never lets up. The claustrophobic setting and fast-paced narrative make for a great story - Guy Morpuss, author of Black Lake Manor

Original and feverishly compulsive - Sabine Durrant, author of Sun Damage

Inventive, bold and insightful, The Trials of Lila Dalton is a captivating exploration of the nature of truth. L. J. Shepherd's gripping debut transcends crime fiction and presents a speculative tale that challenges our notions of justice - Adam Hamdy, author of The Other Side of Night

A scorching début - dark and compelling - Orlando Murrin, author of Knife Skills for Beginners

The barrister/author takes a spooky leaf out of Dennis Lehane's playbook with this ethereal thriller - Peterborough Telegraph

A remarkable debut, a 'high concept thriller' which is also the sort of hyperoxygenating page-turner that makes you wish you had one of those rubber thimbles that bank-tellers' wear so that you can turn those pages even quicker. It's a book to fair leave you breathless - National Cymru

Along with the fast-moving plot, the novel has a witty, knowing narrative voice and Lila is an engaging central character who is very far from being a female victim. She is feisty, honest and very likeable, keeping the novel moving with a humour and directness that sustain interest and plausibility - Shiny New Books

The author's day job as a barrister gives an edge to this spooky debut - The Sun

Effortlessly keeps the reader in a constant state of dazzling wonderment - CrimeTime