Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
interesting concept and fun read but the plot twists were wayy too predictable
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the plot of this book and was unable to finish it. While I was aware that Amy Suiter Clarke's Lay Your Body Down was about cults and religious trauma/drama, I found the assault/abuse plotlines to be too heavy handed and too difficult to read. This book does have some good things going for it if you can get past that content, including an engaging, addictive writing style. I especially liked the interlude chapters with the blog posts - so creative and adds a unique perspective! I am a little sad to not find out what happens at the end, but just couldn't get past the triggering content.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry
Really enjoyed the content of the book—religious trauma and religion transitioning into a cult are both subjects of great interest to me. I particularly found reading the “Noble Wife” blog posts fascinating—if at times a bit hard to read given just how backwards they were.
I did not find the writing particularly compelling. Lots of show not tell. I also would have loved a bit more delving into Pastor Franklin. He is obviously the villain, but it felt almost cartoonish in its simplicity.
I did not find the writing particularly compelling. Lots of show not tell. I also would have loved a bit more delving into Pastor Franklin. He is obviously the villain, but it felt almost cartoonish in its simplicity.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Lay Your Body down follows Delilah (Del) Walker as she reluctantly returns to her hometown of Bower, MN and tries to solve the murder of her college boyfriend…a murder that her former best friend and Lars’ widow, Eve, might have committed. As a thriller, I enjoyed this book. I wanted Del to have some kind of justice and closure, and I really loved the ending. There were a few twists that surprised me, though the main villain was IMO easy to identify.
Where the novel didn’t quite work for me was as a critique of evangelical/fundamentalist Christianity. While I can tell from the author’s note that Suiter Clarke is writing in part from her own experience, a lot of the religious rhetoric just seemed cartoonishly over the top. I say this as an exvangelical and someone who has done plenty of reading and thinking on this issue. I couldn’t quite place what the Mess was supposed to be—a megachurch with subtly misogynistic rhetoric and a trendy appeal to newcomers (the coffee bar, the worship songs)? Or a more fundamentalist approach (the Noble Wife “training”, the girls acting as servants at meals)? I love the idea of critiquing tradwife rhetoric and the misogynistic theology that endorses it. I just didn’t think this was a very nuanced or subtle approach to it. Books on the topic I did feel were more nuanced include Alison Wisdom’s The Burning Season and Kelsey McKinney’s God Spare the Girls.
So, as a thriller this was 5 stars for me and as a cultural critique maybe a 3–I settled on 4 stars overall and I would recommend this book as long as you go in with appropriate expectations.
Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an early copy of this book.
Where the novel didn’t quite work for me was as a critique of evangelical/fundamentalist Christianity. While I can tell from the author’s note that Suiter Clarke is writing in part from her own experience, a lot of the religious rhetoric just seemed cartoonishly over the top. I say this as an exvangelical and someone who has done plenty of reading and thinking on this issue. I couldn’t quite place what the Mess was supposed to be—a megachurch with subtly misogynistic rhetoric and a trendy appeal to newcomers (the coffee bar, the worship songs)? Or a more fundamentalist approach (the Noble Wife “training”, the girls acting as servants at meals)? I love the idea of critiquing tradwife rhetoric and the misogynistic theology that endorses it. I just didn’t think this was a very nuanced or subtle approach to it. Books on the topic I did feel were more nuanced include Alison Wisdom’s The Burning Season and Kelsey McKinney’s God Spare the Girls.
So, as a thriller this was 5 stars for me and as a cultural critique maybe a 3–I settled on 4 stars overall and I would recommend this book as long as you go in with appropriate expectations.
Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an early copy of this book.