Laylah’s Revenge, by Lisa Marie Shankles, is a comic crime caper with a wild streak of speculative fiction, mixing sibling rivalry, prison schemes, mistaken identity, Scandinavian settings, ghost lore, and alien mischief into one strange, busy ride. The story follows Laylah as she gets out of prison and sets her sights on revenge against her twin sister, Lilah, whose new life in Sweden with Birger and the mysterious cat Dyngus only makes Laylah more determined to meddle, impersonate, and stir up chaos.

What stood out to me most was the book’s willingness to be odd. It doesn’t tiptoe into its absurdity. It runs straight at it. I liked that. The plot has the energy of a prank that keeps getting bigger than anyone planned, and Shankles clearly enjoys putting her characters in messy situations just to see how far they will go. Laylah is petty, jealous, clever, and often ridiculous, but she is never dull. Lilah, by contrast, brings a softer kind of tension because she still has love for her sister even when she knows Laylah is trouble.

The writing has a loose, playful feel that fits the genre well. As a comic mystery and sci-fi caper, the book works best when it leans into its own weird blend of revenge plotting, mistaken identity, alien cats, and culture-clash humor. Some moments are wonderfully goofy, especially when everyday details like hair salons, meatballs, prison gossip, and travel plans collide with telepathy and fourth-dimensional escapes. At times, the story can feel somewhat crowded, with a lot of names, schemes, and side turns competing for attention. Still, I found myself pulled along because the book has unmistakable personality.

I would recommend Laylah’s Revenge to readers who enjoy quirky, fast-moving comic fiction and don’t mind their crime stories sprinkled with aliens, ghosts, and over-the-top family drama. This isn’t a quiet literary novel, and it’s not trying to be. It’s more like sitting with a friend who keeps saying, “Wait, it gets stranger,” and somehow, it does. Readers who like offbeat genre mashups, mischievous characters, and chaotic sister dynamics will probably have the most fun with it.

Pages: 210 | ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CQYK3V4L