Double Lives

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Award-winning New York Times bestselling author Mary Monroe returns with an outrageous new tale of Depression-era Southern drama starring identical twin sisters with a talent for switching lives and hiding the scandalous results—until one risk too many changes the game forever . . .

Since childhood, identical twins Leona and Fiona Dunbar have been getting in—and out—of trouble by pretending to be each other. Yet underneath, they couldn’t be more different. Outspoken Leona lives to break rules, have a good time, and scandalize their respectable hometown of Lexington. Fiona is a seemingly-demure churchgoing girl who is the apple of her domineering, widowed mother Mavis’s eye.

But together, the twins have fooled teachers, boyfriends, bosses, racist police—and most importantly, strait-laced Mavis. Even when Leona does jail time for Fiona, their unbreakable bond keeps them fiercely loyal. . . . So when Fiona feels stifled in her passionless marriage, and Leona is heartbroken over losing her one true love, it’s perfect timing to change places once again . . .

Leona is shocked to discover she enjoys the security of being a wife and homebody.  And the unexpected spark between her and Fiona’s husband is giving her all kinds of deliciously sexy ideas. Meanwhile, Fiona enjoys being free, single, and reveling in the independence she’s never had. And the more she indulges her secret, long-repressed wild child, the more Leona’s ex-lover becomes one temptation she’s having trouble resisting . . .

As the sisters’ masquerade ignites desires and appetites they never expected, it also puts their most damning secrets on the line. Once the fallout rocks their small town, can Fiona and Leona’s deep sisterhood shield them from total disaster and help them reconcile their mistakes? Or will the trust between them become a weapon that shatters their lives for good?Praise for Mary Monroe

“Monroe extends Hubert’s story in a drama laced with suspenseful twists and tension. The novel’s gritty narrative delves into themes of moral relativism, intimacy, and sexuality, capturing the intensity of suppressed passion and the discontent of unexpressed expectations in a drama sure to please award-winning and bestselling Monroe’s many fans.” – Booklist on Love, Honor, Betray

“Love a wild romp between the pages? Then you’ll be overjoyed with the opening two-thirds of Love, Honor, Betray, where infidelity becomes an art form.” – Washington Blade on Love, Honor, Betray

“Her willingness to do anything for her loved ones is relatable, and the emboldening influence of her desperation and the incremental gravity of her deceptiveness heighten the narrative’s mesmerizing effect. Although scenes of rape and sexual abuse shape Monroe’s unflinching dramatization of difficult but important themes of sexuality, sexual trauma, and survival, they do not weigh down the story, but rather enrich its resonance.” —Booklist on Mrs. Wiggins
 
“Drama, suspense, small town charm…Mary Monroe packed it all into the finale of her beloved Neighbors series that transports readers back to 1930s Alabama.” —Woman’s World on Across the Way
 
“Monroe brings her exciting Neighbors trilogy to a dramatic and memorable conclusion, as she explores how social tension and conflict complicate jealousy and romance in an African American enclave in a small Alabama town during the Great Depression.” —Booklist on Across the Way
 
“In this first volume of her new series, New York Times bestselling author Monroe convincingly portrays a time and place where desperation is the norm.” —Library Journal on One House Over
 
“A very believable portrayal of the African American experience in a hard place at a hard time.” —Historical Novels Review on One House Over
 
“Mary Monroe is an exceptional writer and phenomenal storyteller!” —Kimberla Lawson Roby, New York Times bestselling author on One House Over
 
“Mary Monroe is a fantastic writer and has a real knack for creating characters with substance and dimension.” —This Black Girl Reads on Over the Fence
 
“Monroe brings the Deep South Prohibition-era world to life in a captivating tale of greed and consequences and primes readers to find out what happens among these complicated neighbors in the next book.” —Booklist on Over the Fence
 
“Monroe reveals sympathetic aspects and complex motivations for each character in this engrossing setting.” —Booklist on One House Over
 
“Mary Monroe deftly captures the steamy intrigues of her characters’ complicated lives in this Depression-era story that readers will find impossible to put down.” —Susan Holloway Scott, author of I, Eliza Hamilton, on One House OverMary Monroe is the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of more than 20 novels, with over one million books in print. She is a three-time AALBC bestseller and winner of the AAMBC Maya Angelou Lifetime Achievement Award, the PEN/Oakland Josephine Miles Award, and the J. California Cooper Memorial Award. The daughter of Alabama sharecroppers, she taught herself how to write before going on to become the first and only member of her family to finish high school. She lives in Oakland, California and can be found online at MaryMonroe.org.US

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