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3.5/5
Non-Fiction
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Rating: 4.8/5
Started: 11pm 12 March 2022
Finished: 3am 13 March 2022
Summary:
Zenny has one month before she's going to pledge her life to the Church and become a nun. But she's worried that if she doesn't know what she's missing, her sacrifices won't really be sacrifices. So she asks Sean, her older brother's best friend, to show her what she's missing.
Sean doesn't believe in God. Ever since his sister killed herself after years of abuse by a priest, and after his mother was diagnosed with cancer, he hasn't been able to believe that there's a God out there who has let such awful things happen. When he agrees to spend one month with Zenny, he wants to try to show her that there's no point in believing in God. Then he falls in love with her.
Thoughts:
I started this book thinking that it was going to be a throw-away romance, but it wasn't. Sure, it was explicit, but it tackled so many issues so gorgeously that I felt like it belonged in this blog. First, the plot and character development were super high-quality. The characters were three-dimensional and interesting, and the plot was well-thought-out, engaging, and touching. The romance in the book was big, but the plot could have stood on its own if it had to; it wasn't just a platform for the characters' relationship.
This was the first book that I've ever read that ended with a pro-religious choice that I not just tolerated, but appreciated. It was kind of wild, actually, how perfectly religious belief and disbelief and prayer were portrayed. It didn't feel wrong in the way that Christianity usually does to me, which was incredible: I think it actually might have explained God and prayer in the best way that I've ever heard, and it kind of made me consider wanting to pray. That's how flawlessly it was done. It never felt like religion was being pushed on me, but instead like it was natural and questioned and flawed and beautiful.
Tons of other topics were also tackled gorgeously. Abuse within the church, gay characters (I totally called that the characters were together, for the record) god maybe being female or genderless, death, sickness, racism, and care for people experiencing poverty. These things were all handled with so much grace. Not once did I feel concerned with how something was being talked about or handled, and I'd say I'm pretty sensitive to those things being done badly. It was super cool. I think this author should be teaching classes because it was so impressive.
Consent was also handled perfectly. It wasn't weird; it was simply an intrinsic part of the plot. And the relationship that was enabled by it was lovely, and had fabulous chemistry.
I am super impressed by this author, and absolutely intend to read more of her books in the future.