L.A. Women - a tale of friendship, ambition, and betrayal set in the 1960s and 1970s.

After achieving success as a journalist in New York, Lane Warren relocates to Laurel Canyon in Los Angeles to work on her first novel. It's the mid-1960s, and she keeps running into Gala Margolis, a tall, dark-haired woman whose confidence and ease captivate Lane. The two form a sort of friendship. When the narrative shifts to the mid-1970s, Lane's first novel has become a hit, and she encourages the free-spirited, sexually adventurous Gala to develop her writing skills. By 1975, Lane plans to base her third novel on a Gala-inspired character, which doesn't sit well with Gala, who has become more of a rival than a friend. When Gala disappears from the scene, a fact we learn at the beginning of the book, Lane becomes obsessed with uncovering what happened to her. 

Ella Berman has faithfully captured the literary and music scenes of Los Angeles from the mid-60s through the mid-70s in L.A. Women. It is about two flawed women who seem very different but are more alike than they realize. Inspired by the relationship between writers Joan Didion and Eve Babitz, the story is a sad one, and Berman's two well-developed fictional characters are not particularly likable. The book moves at a slow pace, but things pick up once the quasi-friendship falls apart. I enjoyed being transported to this era and became invested in finding out what happened to Gala. 

Many thanks to Berkley Publishing Group for providing an advance copy.

Rated 3.75 out of 5 stars.

Historical Fiction | Literary Fiction.

Publication Date: August 5, 2025.

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