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jordb1213 's review for:
Heretics Anonymous
by Katie Henry
2.5 stars. This has been on my TBR for like 2 years, and y'know, maybe it should've stayed there.
There were a few highlights, but it ultimately falls very very flat.
The Saints:
1. Humor:
There are legitimately funny moments and characters in this book. Some of the stunts the HA pulls off are hilarious and I did laugh out loud at points, mostly during the first half of the book.
2. Interesting Points About Feminist Theology/Religion
Henry makes compelling points about religious institutions and their capacity for change. I appreciated the ways she brought up the good and bad parts of Catholicism and her thoughtful examination about the reasons people stay or leave. Additionally, Lucy provides interesting examples of feminist theology and I do want to look into some of the thinkers she brings up (catch me being a nerd).
3. The Ending
There are some nice points made in the ending that I'm not gonna get into for spoiler reasons, but they did make me almost rate the book 3 stars. It's a really good ending. That said, most of those points wouldn't have needed to be made had Michael not been a douchebro supreme and they don't make the previous 300 pages worth it.
The Sinners:
1. The Romance is *Extremely* Uncomfortable
There's a romance between Lucy and Michael. It was awkward, forced, and uncomfortable. Michael's primary interest in Lucy is really superficial and primarily motivated by horny teenage boy energy As I said, uncomfortable.) Lucy and Michael literally don't even have *1* conversation that would indicate a romance. The romance is so unnecessary and the plot would be better served if they were friends.
2. Characters Are Very 1 Dimensional
Every character in this book is defined by one thing, usually religion, and have literally 0 character traits outside of that.
3. Michael is a Edgelord
Ugh, Michael. Michael is a Holden Caulfield without any of the literary merit. He's the type of atheist that likes to be snarky to religious people on the internet because he's so confident he's right and completely unable to see *any* benefit to religious institutions. At one point he literally tells Lucy, who wants to be a priest, that she's too smart to be religious. I have nothing against atheism, but Michael represents the worst of atheists.
4. Writing Style
This one is self explanatory - I didn't really vibe with Henry's writing style.
5. Tone is Very Confusing
The book is marketed as a comedy that makes some serious points about religion. And yes, sometimes blurbs give the wrong impression of books. But the first half really does fall in line with the "Divine Comedy" branding. Except like 2/3 of the way through the book, there's a massive tone shift, and it gets very very serious and almost sad. The shift is so jarring and doesn't really work, so the book overall feels disjointed.
I was excited to pick this up, but it was really disappointing.
There were a few highlights, but it ultimately falls very very flat.
The Saints:
1. Humor:
There are legitimately funny moments and characters in this book. Some of the stunts the HA pulls off are hilarious and I did laugh out loud at points, mostly during the first half of the book.
2. Interesting Points About Feminist Theology/Religion
Henry makes compelling points about religious institutions and their capacity for change. I appreciated the ways she brought up the good and bad parts of Catholicism and her thoughtful examination about the reasons people stay or leave. Additionally, Lucy provides interesting examples of feminist theology and I do want to look into some of the thinkers she brings up (catch me being a nerd).
3. The Ending
There are some nice points made in the ending that I'm not gonna get into for spoiler reasons, but they did make me almost rate the book 3 stars. It's a really good ending. That said, most of those points wouldn't have needed to be made had Michael not been a douchebro supreme and they don't make the previous 300 pages worth it.
The Sinners:
1. The Romance is *Extremely* Uncomfortable
There's a romance between Lucy and Michael. It was awkward, forced, and uncomfortable. Michael's primary interest in Lucy is really superficial and primarily motivated by horny teenage boy energy
Spoiler
(at one point he refers to a "Leftover Dream Boner," he gets weirdly turned on over Lucy leaning over, and uses "The Dakotas are beautiful this time of year" to describe her boobs. There's also very weird things around consent and boundaries in that scene.2. Characters Are Very 1 Dimensional
Every character in this book is defined by one thing, usually religion, and have literally 0 character traits outside of that.
3. Michael is a Edgelord
Ugh, Michael. Michael is a Holden Caulfield without any of the literary merit. He's the type of atheist that likes to be snarky to religious people on the internet because he's so confident he's right and completely unable to see *any* benefit to religious institutions. At one point he literally tells Lucy, who wants to be a priest, that she's too smart to be religious. I have nothing against atheism, but Michael represents the worst of atheists.
4. Writing Style
This one is self explanatory - I didn't really vibe with Henry's writing style.
5. Tone is Very Confusing
The book is marketed as a comedy that makes some serious points about religion. And yes, sometimes blurbs give the wrong impression of books. But the first half really does fall in line with the "Divine Comedy" branding. Except like 2/3 of the way through the book, there's a massive tone shift, and it gets very very serious and almost sad. The shift is so jarring and doesn't really work, so the book overall feels disjointed.
I was excited to pick this up, but it was really disappointing.