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blewballoon's review
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I struggled with this one. I really wanted to like it, I went to Catholic school and I knew some pretty cool nuns. There was a lot of potential in the premise. I thought this would be a fun time, despite being a murder mystery. It wasn't fun, it wasn't funny, and it didn't have anything new or interesting to say. It was just a series of awful people either doing awful things or having awful things done to them while the author describes how hot and humid it is every other sentence. (Do check the content warnings, there is a lot of dark stuff here.) The book is written in a stream of conscious sort of way, so I would be in a scene and then three paragraphs later the narrator was still musing, reminiscing about the past in a vague way, and talking about how hot it is, and I would have forgotten what was even happening. This was made worse by listening on audiobook and not being able to just flip back or skip over, but I do think Mara Wilson did a good job narrating the material she was given. Sister Holiday makes incredibly bad choices, is selfish and hard to root for, and doesn't really figure anything out that isn't completely obvious. The word "sleuthing" is heavily overused by her, especially considering that she doesn't actually do any. I would say the diversity is good, but because the diverse people are flat or terrible, I'm not sure the representation does anyone a service.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Infidelity
Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Drug abuse, Police brutality, Rape, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Violence, Drug use, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Cancer, and Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism, Pedophilia, Incest, and Self harm
madsw14's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Bullying, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Lesbophobia, Cancer, Drug use, Death, Rape, Animal death, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Murder, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Terminal illness, and Addiction
Minor: Infidelity, Incest, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Fatphobia, Self harm, Confinement, and Sexual harassment
sarahbythebook's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
2.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio arc of Scorched Grace.
I wanted to like Scorched Grace so badly. I highly tattooed, lesbian, smoking nun sounds like a character I could get behind, but it wasn't meant to be. In fact, I almost DNF'd this book at 45%. We'll get to that in a bit.
Summary:
Scorched Grace is told from the perspective of Sister Holiday, a new member of the Sisters of the Sublime Blood puts her sleuthing skills to the test when it appears an arsonist and murderer is targeting the order's school. While she tries to unravel the mystery, she walks us through her life at the convent as well as what lead her to taking holy orders in the first place. With a lack of face in the police, a questionably stable fire investigator, and her own intuition, Sister Holiday does what she must to protect her school and the new life she's created for herself.
What I Liked:
The first quarter of this book, I thought I was going to have a new favorite. The first chapter reads like a love letter to the city of New Orleans, and the main character, Sister Holiday seems to be truly interesting. I was excited to see her backstory unfold over the course of the mystery. The general dislike of the Catholic diocese leaders was entertaining since I have my own dislike of them, and this might be the first book I've read in a long time that paints Christianity in a generally positive light.... sort of anyway. Unfortunately, that's about all the positives I have for this book.
What I Didn't Like:
I wanted to like Scorched Grace so badly. I highly tattooed, lesbian, smoking nun sounds like a character I could get behind, but it wasn't meant to be. In fact, I almost DNF'd this book at 45%. We'll get to that in a bit.
Summary:
Scorched Grace is told from the perspective of Sister Holiday, a new member of the Sisters of the Sublime Blood puts her sleuthing skills to the test when it appears an arsonist and murderer is targeting the order's school. While she tries to unravel the mystery, she walks us through her life at the convent as well as what lead her to taking holy orders in the first place. With a lack of face in the police, a questionably stable fire investigator, and her own intuition, Sister Holiday does what she must to protect her school and the new life she's created for herself.
What I Liked:
The first quarter of this book, I thought I was going to have a new favorite. The first chapter reads like a love letter to the city of New Orleans, and the main character, Sister Holiday seems to be truly interesting. I was excited to see her backstory unfold over the course of the mystery. The general dislike of the Catholic diocese leaders was entertaining since I have my own dislike of them, and this might be the first book I've read in a long time that paints Christianity in a generally positive light.... sort of anyway. Unfortunately, that's about all the positives I have for this book.
What I Didn't Like:
- It didn't take long for me to find the main character grating and arrogant. She claims to be the school sleuth but then does virtually no sleuthing on the case? She stumbles across the answer on accident.
- Teacher uses violence against a student. Details:
I don't care how much a kid mouths off. As a teacher and as a religious figure, you don't lay hands on one of your students, 18 or otherwise. And to beat him with a ruler? Absolutely not. And then no consequences! This was what caused me to almost DNF at 45%. - The author doesn't appear to really know anything about Catholic schools in New Orleans. I have no idea why she'd say schools are closing down given that this is set in what seems to be our time, post Hurricane Katrina. At the time of this review, there are still 23 Catholic schools open, at least half of them being high schools. This doesn't even count the Catholic schools located across the bridge in Metairie, Mandeville, Covington, and other cities within an hour drive of New Orleans.
- The one that bugged me the most: the author appears to have no understanding of how diabetes works and didn't bother to research it? Details:
One of the students, the same one Sister Holiday beats as a matter of fact, is a Type 1 Diabetic. The arsonist says that they underdosed him on his insulin, and yet he had a low blood sugar episode. Underdoing it on insulin would lead to a high blood sugar and wouldn't cause the drunk-like symptoms the character experiences. On top of this, Sister Holiday grabs his emergency supplies and injects the kid having a low blood sugar episode with INSULIN. This would more than likely have sent him into seizures or a coma, potentially even killing him. I get that the author might not know a diabetic, but this is easy research. - I'm very concerned that Nina's character plays into the predatory bisexual stereotype, and it made me very uncomfortable to read about her and Holiday's relationship throughout the book.
Other Thoughts:
I don't feel like the brother's story was really relevant. I don't understand why Nina
I left this book feeling let down and frustrated. I'm sure there's an audience out there for this book, but not someone who has a knowledge of diabetes or Catholic schools in Louisiana.
CW: religion, child abuse, rape, police brutality, homophobia, incest, fire injury, arson
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Homophobia and Incest
northernzephyr's review
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Animal death, Homophobia, and Addiction
Minor: Rape and Incest
marareading's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A punk, queer, tattooed, sleuthing nun who is trying to solve crime in her New Orleans convent. I HAD to read this. It was definitely a fun read. HEAVY on the triggers, so please read with care and awareness. It is a slow burn on the mystery. Some very interesting, and heavily traumatized characters. Certain characters felt like they relief heavily on some stereotypes, which felt a little disingenuous. However, it was the first book of this kind and was unique, and jarring. So, overall after checking TW, I'd recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Lesbophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Rape, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, Chronic illness, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexism, Death, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual assault, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, and Drug abuse
littlelili1320's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It took a bit for me to get into this. It could be due to my biases against Christianity caused by my upbringing. I'm also bisexual. I just found it hard to believe that such a queer, "punk" girl would be so religious. I can understand wanting to escape & become a nun after the trauma, but even before that she had a bunch of Christian tattoos & spoke scripture while fooling around with a girl. I found myself rolling my eyes at both her & the nuns.
Thankfully, more of her ideas about God come forth & it's far more believable. The book also picked up pace. I did guess the cuplrit but that's fine. An animal does die, which seemed unecessarry. I did overall enjoy the book. I look forward to reading the next one. If she does decide to take her vows & she doesn't secretly act on her sexuality I might get pissed lol. I really don't think it would be believable.
Thankfully, more of her ideas about God come forth & it's far more believable. The book also picked up pace. I did guess the cuplrit but that's fine. An animal does die, which seemed unecessarry. I did overall enjoy the book. I look forward to reading the next one. If she does decide to take her vows & she doesn't secretly act on her sexuality I might get pissed lol. I really don't think it would be believable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, and Homophobia
Moderate: Rape, Incest, and Infidelity
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Cancer, Sexual assault, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Homophobia, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Car accident, Confinement, Death, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
meganeorcx's review against another edition
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
If anything is going to draw me to a book, it has to be a smoking, queer nun on a stained-glass-style cover. Douaihy brings a character to life who has to solve a crime a little too close to home and it is intriguing and beautifully written however, sometimes not enough to the point to really keep me engaged.
The gorgeous writing style is already apparent in the opening lines and continues throughout the rest of the book. At times, nearly every paragraph ends with some type of wisdom or at least quote-worthy text and there are detailed descriptions. This is great for anyone who enjoys very wordy books however, it does take away from the action a bit.
The action happens a little too late as well, making me wonder halfway through when it will get exciting. Luckily, the eventual climax did end up being pretty good. Again, very well written and it shows a lot of cinematic potential. The thing that really intrigued me, however, is Sister Holiday’s past that slowly but surely gets revealed as the story progresses. It ties in well with the present conflict and the parallels add a lot to the story’s quality. I think if the overall mystery had been as intriguing as the backstory, I would have loved it a lot more.
Through the backstory, Sister Holiday’s motivations and character become a lot more clear. Her ideas of God and religion as a whole make her both complex and relatable, which her queerness definitely adds to. Having “a chain-smoking, heavily tattooed, queer nun” as the main character is an automatic win but with her cleverness and again, her backstory, she ends up being an incredibly interesting and refreshing mystery lead. I would read more novels with her, or even a prequel about pre-nun Holiday. With the other characters, I feel like some were almost equally interesting while others faded into the background a bit too much, but overall, I liked a lot of them as well.
Note that Scorched Grace may have a queer character to root for, but not quite a queer relationship, as it isn’t giving space for a present romance, which definitely favours the tone of the book. There are a lot of homophobic scenes and flashbacks (as well as other triggering content) but the queerness is overall very relatable which I appreciate. Aside from that, many dark themes are being explored, which definitely makes this an adult book. Think a dark, queer, religious crime novel is right up your alley? Absolutely check out this Sister Holiday book and get ready to be drawn in by its linguistic beauty and thematic gruesomeness.
Thank you to NetGalley and Zando Projects for a chance to read an ARC of this book for free, in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, and Animal death
Moderate: Incest, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual content
nostoat's review
4.0
I was provided an eARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Rating this 4 stars only because I think the tone of noir novels and I don't quite get along. If this wasn't intended to be in the tradition of hardboiled detective novels but through the eyes of a queer Catholic nun, I probably would have found the tone unforgivable: dark, cynical, often hopeless. But the twist on the genre is compelling, as is the mystery and all the intricacies of Sister Holiday's story.
I find the portrayal of devotion, faith, and religion in this book earnest in a way that's very refreshing. Sister Holiday is queer and a Catholic nun; these things do not conflict for her. She is deeply religious, seeking - as many who enter this kind of religious life - something that will transform her, a something she desperately and deeply believes in, that grounds her and gives her solace. I say this as someone who is ex-Christian myself, and deeply critical and derisive of the religion as a whole, but also deeply disillusioned with the rancor many ex-Christians hold for religion as a concept and Christianity in particular. I also find it deeply meaningful that Sister Holiday is both unapologetically Catholic and unapologetically queer. Neither has to be denied for the other. Most important of all to me is her assertion that she has not signed away her queerness to join the Order; rather she is on an indefinite sabbatical from sex. This clear line drawn that one does not have to be having queer sex in order to be queer is very important to me, personally, as a aroace queer person.
As a final overly specific note, as someone who has lived in New Orleans and still considers it my home city in all the ways that matter to me, the descriptions of New Orleans were wonderful. The heat and humidity pour through the pages, the Catholic backbone is obviously a strong presence on page, as well as all the weight of history. I don't think I've read a piece of media about New Orleans that quite captures the way I feel about the hurricanes like this one does. While not a major feature of the book, many metaphors involve them, and multiple characters have backstories deeply affected by Katrina and the following events - which is only correct in a story about New Orleans.
All in all this book drew me in, and kept me riveted throughout. While not the genre of mystery I would usually read there was something deeply interesting to me about the world as viewed through the eyes of a fucked up nun desperately seeking redemption.
Rating this 4 stars only because I think the tone of noir novels and I don't quite get along. If this wasn't intended to be in the tradition of hardboiled detective novels but through the eyes of a queer Catholic nun, I probably would have found the tone unforgivable: dark, cynical, often hopeless. But the twist on the genre is compelling, as is the mystery and all the intricacies of Sister Holiday's story.
I find the portrayal of devotion, faith, and religion in this book earnest in a way that's very refreshing. Sister Holiday is queer and a Catholic nun; these things do not conflict for her. She is deeply religious, seeking - as many who enter this kind of religious life - something that will transform her, a something she desperately and deeply believes in, that grounds her and gives her solace. I say this as someone who is ex-Christian myself, and deeply critical and derisive of the religion as a whole, but also deeply disillusioned with the rancor many ex-Christians hold for religion as a concept and Christianity in particular. I also find it deeply meaningful that Sister Holiday is both unapologetically Catholic and unapologetically queer. Neither has to be denied for the other. Most important of all to me is her assertion that she has not signed away her queerness to join the Order; rather she is on an indefinite sabbatical from sex. This clear line drawn that one does not have to be having queer sex in order to be queer is very important to me, personally, as a aroace queer person.
As a final overly specific note, as someone who has lived in New Orleans and still considers it my home city in all the ways that matter to me, the descriptions of New Orleans were wonderful. The heat and humidity pour through the pages, the Catholic backbone is obviously a strong presence on page, as well as all the weight of history. I don't think I've read a piece of media about New Orleans that quite captures the way I feel about the hurricanes like this one does. While not a major feature of the book, many metaphors involve them, and multiple characters have backstories deeply affected by Katrina and the following events - which is only correct in a story about New Orleans.
All in all this book drew me in, and kept me riveted throughout. While not the genre of mystery I would usually read there was something deeply interesting to me about the world as viewed through the eyes of a fucked up nun desperately seeking redemption.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Minor: Rape and Incest
There is a scene near the end where someone burns alive on page. While not incredibly graphic it was unsettling for me.
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