The story of Conscious Bias is about Trevor McKnight. He's the son of a prominent family. Things get real when he punches Abdul Seif at a local college bar and leaves him unconscious on the street. But then, he dies a few days later. Then Trevor finds himself accused of murder.

This novel had enough intrigue and suspense to keep me reading until the very end.

"Conscious Bias" by Alexi Venice is a thought-provoking read that dives into the complexities of human perception and prejudice, offering a fresh perspective on societal issues.

I absolutely loved this book! I was so engrossed by the characters right off the bat. Alexi Venice's writing is out of this world, if you've been in a reading slump this is a great place to start, it absolutely blew me away!

I really enjoyed reading this book. Four star read for me. Thank you for the chance to read the arc.

Not a bad story at all. Your classic lawyer story where the book follows the course of a trial with a couple other law related situations thrown in. A lot of research was clearly done for this book with medical terms and Muslim customs. This book is also very unapologetically gay so if that offends you move in. 4 stars not 5 because the book would have worked even without the main character being lesbian with romance kind of thrown in and also some convenient plot situations.

Conscious Bias has left me with some mild mixed emotions. This book had great potential but I felt like it never quite got there. In the acknowledgements, the author calls this one a legal thriller with strong female leads. I did appreciate the strong women in the story, but I didn't find anything even remotely thriller-like Actually there is almost no thriller like setting to this book.. Readers figure out the bad guys from very early on and the rest is almost set in the court. While it was nice to have a strong F/F Romance, I didn't feel like this fell into that romantic suspense category. It was more Romantic Comedy with little quips here and there. It's enjoyable and I would most likely purchase it to recommend to others who would like strong f/f characters..

A legal drama that focuses on a lawyer trying to solve a major case. The characters are compelling enough and I'm a fan of this genre but one things I particularly disliked was the almost instant connection between Monica and Shelby. If their connection had been built up a little, the story would have been enjoyable.

I enjoyed how focused on the court room procedure this book was, and it definitely had me hoping for justice for the murdered victim. However, I felt that a lot of things could have gone better in this novel. First, I wasn't expecting the love story to revolve around basically "she's hot so....yeah...". For a lawyer like Monica, I expected a bit more than can be given by any old romance or Disney movie where the two hot folks hook up. Also, I felt like the side story of the monkey loose in the hospital really took a lot away from the book. I expected a murder thriller, not chasing a monkey around. Mostly, I finished this book to see if there is ever any kind of justice dealt to the rich white boy next door. It definitely was no thriller.

-Slow, almost quit at 22% but then we heard the recorded hospital conversation and things started happening.
-It felt very male gaze-y.
-Monica is like every male protag. You could change her to "Monico" &  couldn't tell besides the relationship turning straight.
-Needs better balancing & pacing. Like making the McKnights an actual threat instead of bumbling or have more people acting out on their behalf. We hear how supposedly rich & powerful they are-prove it. Linger & shatter Monica's POV w/ the verdict, make me feel it. Or something.
-What about the other charges against the McKnights?
-Can't ya'll just say RACIST?!? Don't shy from the fight, giving them any ground to stand on.
-MAYbe if badass DA said Racist! the jury would've wanted to distance themselves from Trevor McKnight and actually punish him.
-But ending on talking about "Saudi justice"? REALLY?!? *sighhh*
-It's not a mystery what happened. It's not fast or amped up like a suspense or thriller. The legal stuff was straight-forward. So what was the point?
-I will check out Alexi Venice's other work to see if anything strikes me. Or if there's a sequel. I just hope they're not as passive and listless as Conscious Bias.

I was a little late to the game on this one. I kept putting off reading it because it seemed cliche. When I did finally get to it, it was a bit disappointing. I appreciate the author’s writing style but beyond that, I just wasn’t feeling it.

I am surprised at how much i enjoyed this book. I was offered an opportunity to review this on netgalley and a story about a lesbian lawyer called out to me. There were definitely moments when i was flipping pages through romance scenes and overly detailed CrossFit workouts, but i really enjoyed the storylines about the trial, the monkey, and the law firm drama. The author got many legal things right but there were a few moments when i was wondering if things work a little differently in Wisconsin than they do here.

I was also very surprised how dramatic coming out could be. I didn’t realize that it required such strategy!

I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for some light drama and a little romance.

It's the first time I'm reading something from this author and it certainly won't be the last. The story was very intriguing, it literally kept me reading and finishing the whole book in a day. The chemistry between the two MCs was sizzling hot even though the romance was not the main plot but it was satisfying and well executed

This is the first book that I have read by Alexi Venice, and I am so glad that I got the opportunity! Conscious Bias has mystery, law, a slow burn of a romance and intrigue all rolled into one. The main character is Monica Spade, Esq., who works at a law firm where the partners do not respect her and some of her fellow co-workers. Monica has a lot going on, except in the romance department…until she meets Shelby. Then the sparks begin to fly. The humor, deceit and bias in this story really help to move things along in a great way, and I appreciate the fact that Monica and Shelby take things slow instead of diving right into a relationship headfirst. The book is well written, and the characters are developed nicely. I was torn between reading as much as possible to see what would happen next and trying not to read so that the book would not end. Hopefully, this well be a series in the making because I do not want this story to end just yet. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to review this book.

Conscious Bias appears to be the first in a series following lawyer Monica Spade who spends the book juggling representing a local hospital for a sundry of issues, struggling to deal with a workplace populated by misogynistic and homophobic assholes and a budding romance with a woman from her new Crossfit class . The book blends legal, workplace drama and romance but the three story lines seemed to to be run separately and just didn't come together as well as I had hoped - it didn't have a cohesive feel. There's a focus on the minutiae of Monica's days, whether prepping for the case or every station of the cross fit session, that slows the story down.

Rather than a legal drama or thriller this was more of a legal procedural - which gives the main story-line a definite realism. Similar to Law and Order, there were elements of the case that I recognized from real-life cases, blended and adapted to create a scenario where a drunken altercation results in the death of a foreign student. Venice provides a different perspective as she is drawn into the case as the legal representative of the doctors who doctors are subpoenaed to testify and are implicated as being responsible for the young man's death by the defense strategy. The case itself and how it played out was interesting and definitely topical and that was the main draw for me. The level of detail and some of the repetitiveness could have been reduced, but it was actually kind of interesting to get an understanding of what non-trial lawyers do and see the underpinning work that is done on a case like this.

From a romance perspective, most of Monica and Shelby's interactions are at the gym during the early morning crossfit - there's an attraction and chemistry, enhanced by spandex and flexing muscles. As this is a series, I'm expecting that the relationship will further develop and get a better sense of Shelby.

Hard to review this, it was a light reading book though the topics were not light, just not given the depth i would have liked and the romance was just too over simplified, like high school, not like a real relationship. but it was easy to read and interesting enough.

What a pleasant surprise of a read. Not familiar with the author but I like legal thrillers, small towns, and mystery. Nice education about the legal system especially from the district attorney perspective. Monica Spade, attorney, a person with a secret that is eating away at her and she knows she needs to change her reason for keeping the secret. I like her self-talk and her willingness to not just complain but do something about it. A get it done type of person. Shelby St. Clair, high school art teacher with a crossfit body and chronic back spasms. Really liked that neither of these women play games. Look forward to the next book in the series.

This book is a complex read with a lot of different storylines happening throughout. The author knows her legal stuff and it really shows in the flawless delivery of the technicalities of Monica’s job.

The MC, Monica is professional, poised and almost cold when she’s on the job, which makes a dramatic contrast to who she is in her CrossFit class where she is emotional and awkward in front of the object of her lustful thoughts and wayward feelings, Shelby. We also see a playful and loyal side of Monica when she is with her friend Nathan, who becomes more of an ally than she imagines at first.

The main plot deals with racism and religious intolerance and is just a bit too cut and dried from the start to really provide much tension. It was interesting to see how different medical experts manipulated data and events to fit their own agendas, but I didn’t feel like I had any real investment in the case. This is a series, so maybe subsequent cases will appeal to me more personally. The sexual harassment and homophobia Monica has to endure at her work upset me, but I liked her strong and cool stance in the face of persecution and the issues are somewhat resolved.

I was a lot more interested in the sub-plots actually! I like a nice slow-burn and this was one. The interaction between Monica and Shelby is cute and poignant in places where the bloodless, social media-driven nature of current human interaction caused Monica to remain silent instead of reaching out. The romance isn’t the main focus of the story, and Monica spends a lot of time just looking at Shelby and thinking naughty thoughts. I imagine their relationship will be fleshed out in following books.

I appreciate the introduction of humorous side-stories to lighten the technically-heavy main plot, but sometimes the events drifted from humor suitable for a legal thriller to a ridiculous aside in a rom-com.

This is a solid first book in a series for readers who enjoy accurately portrayed legal procedurals with a dash of humor and romance thrown in.

Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

There is so much that puzzled me about this book! Starting with the cover, it gives the impression that this is going to be a trashy (and I use that word with nothing but love!) romance or thriller. It is neither. Sure, there is a legal component in that the protagonist, Monica Spade, is an attorney and the story more or less centers around a racial-bias murder trial. However, the story does not unfold in any which way that could possibly be considered a "thriller". Most of the book is taking the reader literally through Monica's day, start to finish. Chapters even redundantly begin with "The next day." Thrillers to me are generally page-turns, there's a level of excitement to the action, and once the story is set up and the plot gets going, it's a whirlwind to the finish. This, my friends, is turgid trudge.
Tone was all over the place as well. The murder trial, along with the questions of conscious bias the author hits the reader over the head with, is obviously serious. The details of the crime are sad, as is the reaction of the family members. However, for at least half the book, there is a bizarre side plot going on with a monkey on the loose at the local hospital, which Monica represents (the hospital, not the monkey). Any time this monkey is mentioned, the author unloads on monkey puns. She must have found this to be more hilarious than it actually ended up being.
So we have a murder, a monkey, now we must have a romance. Oh, and did I mention Monica is a body-shamer? She wasn't earning any points with me at all in this story. So Monica meets Shelby at Cross-fit and proceeds to lust/obsess/drool/obsess/seriously and creepy obsess about her for quite a bit of the book. We're too busy learning all about the monkey to learn anything about Shelby other than 1) she's hot (natch) and 2) there is no number two. Shelby doesn't even get a last name until the very end of the book. It was hard for me to get on board or buy into this romance when the only information I'm given is that the other person is hot. A lot of people are hot; you have to do a bit more to make me actually care and root for these two.
I think the author did raise a few interesting arguments worthy of exploring--conscious vs unconscious bias (the latter of which I believe it actually at play here in the story) within a small but seemingly open-minded town. I just really didn't appreciate broaching a heavy topic like that and juxtaposing it with a monkey, over the top characters whose only purpose is to show how "smart" Monica is and how ignorant they are, and then the face-palm ridiculous actions occurring leading up to and during the trial. I won't get into it, suffice to say the author threw the kitchen sink into this book. Some editing would have been nice.
There is too much happening in this book and because of that none of the plot resolutions feel complete or satisfying. Monica Spade did not come across as the type of protagonist who would deserve a full series (as the subtitle implies) and so I'm fairly certain I'll be leaving her at her debut outing.

Monica Spade works in hospital law for a a law firm. This is busier than it sounds, as a visitor lost her emotional support monkey on the grounds, the hospital is partnering with the local university and a construction company owned by a local businessman to build a stadium, and doctors are being subpoenaed to possibly testify in court. In addition, she is flirting with an attractive woman at the gym, dealing with sexist and homophobic comments by a coworker, and dealing with the old fashioned, patriarchal viewpoint in the firm she works in.

I hadn't read previous Monica Spade novels, but that didn't stop me from enjoying this one. This is a legal thriller that explores the biases that people have, and the ties of community. I hadn't realized that a lawyer's life could potentially be so hectic, and this novel was definitely engaging and pulled me right into Monica's story. The issues she deals with at work are very naturally done and feels real, as plenty of queer people have to ponder the question of being out with coworkers, friends and their community, especially if some members of it are conservative. I found it fascinating to see what Monica's day to day life was like, and the background work that has to be done before a court case even gets to be argued.

Of course it's a prominent family in Apple Grove, Wisconsin that is in the center of the emotional whirlwind. They generally are the "good ol' boy" stereotype, and a number of other people in the town would rather roll over and let the son get away with felony murder charges because the victim was a foreign exchange student from Saudi Arabia. The racism is brought up in myriad small ways, which a person not experiencing it would never even think of. Monica has her own moments where she jumped to conclusions, however innocently done, so she has her own internal biases to deal with. These are complex social issues to face, and she does try to do the right thing and stick with the rule of law.

The story progresses at a steady pace, with some suspenseful pieces as the Good Ol' Boys flex their proverbial muscles and try to intimidate Monica and the prosecutor. The story proceeds fairly realistically, and I found Monica to be a sympathetic character as she tried to juggle her job, the subtle and then overt sexism and homophobia directed at her, as well as trying to flirt. She is a lawyer that cares about her clients, and that to me is a wonderful kind of character to read about.

There’s a lot going on in this book and it’s very detailed. For the average lay-person it’s too detailed in the medico-legal jargon. There’s a lot of repetition within the story. I understand that’s probably very accurate in a court setting, but for a reader, it’s quite frustrating. The most notable occurrence is a piece of evidence that’s repeated word for word, that could have been summarized the second time around without losing any of its impact. I also thought this book got lost in the weeds a lot of the time as we experienced the minutia of Monica’s day. While this went too in depth for me on the legal side, I felt that the Saudi culture and customs got oversimplified. I can’t call this a thriller. To me, a thriller indicates that there is some life-threatening peril to the story’s lead. In spite of some actions to the contrary, I never got that sense of malice off any of the cardboard cut-out villains. What I absolutely loved about this book is that it shows fierce LGBTQ+ characters in powerful leading roles. There’s not enough in mainstream media showing this so I’m very happy when I find it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley.