Description
When Saint Sebastian's School becomes the target of a shocking arson spree, the Sisters of the Sublime Blood and their surrounding New Orleans community are thrust into chaos. Patience is a virtue, but punk rocker turned nun Sister Holiday isn't satisfied to just wait around for officials to return her home and sanctuary to its former peace, instead deciding to unveil the mysterious attacker herself. Her investigation leads her down a twisty path of suspicion and secrets, turning her against colleagues, students, and even fellow Sisters along the way. And to piece together the clues of this high-stakes mystery, she must at last reckon with the sins of her own past.
Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Publication
Gillian Flynn Books (2023), 320 pages
User reviews
LibraryThing member sleahey
I couldn't resist the description of the main character of this mystery as a chain-smoking queer nun, and she didn't disappoint. Sister Holiday is as irreverent as I'd hoped, and a hard-boiled detective to boot. Her small enclave of nuns in New Orleans is threatened by arson in their abbey and
Show More
school, and Sister Holiday is impatient with the progress the police are making. As she delves deeper into the crimes she puts herself in danger and at risk of being accused of arson herself. The complexity of the characters, the uncovering of their secrets, and the dialog all make this an entertaining read, and we can hope that the series is quickly on the way. Show Less
LibraryThing member Dokfintong
Truly dreadful. Not a mystery. Not Catholic. Lousy writing. Nothing that should entice you to read this book.
LibraryThing member jetangen4571
NOLA, thriller, mystery, LGBT, arson, amateur-sleuth, hard-boiled, twisty, tattoos, convent, high-school, murder, investigations, unputdownable, private-schools, suspense, musicians, law-enforcement, snarky, framed, verbal-humor, catholic, queer, abuse, mental-health-issues, juvenile-diabetes,
Sister Holiday was born and raised in a tough part of Brooklyn and the deep problems of her life there never left her for a minute. The current story in NOLA alternates with her past life in Brooklyn. All too filled with reality. The story is wrenching yet riveting. The whodunit is intricately well done.
I definitely am hoping for more chapters in the life of Sister Holiday or whoever she becomes next.
Narrator Mara Wilson was spectacular. Perfect for this story with her excellent acting ability and ability to differentiate characters clearly and voice the emotions as they came along. But it was my choice to listen at a faster pace.
I requested and received a free temporary audio copy from Zando via NetGalley. Thank you!
Show More
grief, grieving, erotica, Brooklyn,*****Sister Holiday was born and raised in a tough part of Brooklyn and the deep problems of her life there never left her for a minute. The current story in NOLA alternates with her past life in Brooklyn. All too filled with reality. The story is wrenching yet riveting. The whodunit is intricately well done.
I definitely am hoping for more chapters in the life of Sister Holiday or whoever she becomes next.
Narrator Mara Wilson was spectacular. Perfect for this story with her excellent acting ability and ability to differentiate characters clearly and voice the emotions as they came along. But it was my choice to listen at a faster pace.
I requested and received a free temporary audio copy from Zando via NetGalley. Thank you!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Kathl33n
Fantastic read! An intriguing story with really intriguing characters that were written, so raw and so real, that I was thinking about them even when I wasn't reading. The mystery was gripping and set against the absolutely unrelenting heat of New Orleans. The author wrote that heat so skillfully
Show More
it became a secondary character to the story. The book is full of characters holding really painful emotion and maybe it was a bit too much for the short length of the book and I found the initial writing a bit choppy with very short, terse sentences that I thought were awkward to read. But, can I mention that cover? Gorgeous! It's been a very long time since I have seen one that so perfectly depicts the reading experience. TW: while in no way graphic, there is a disturbing animal death. Many thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy Show Less
LibraryThing member ccayne
Quirky characters, a dog, New Orleans, black sheep nun, secrets and plenty of red herrings.
LibraryThing member dwcofer
This book had me hooked from the start, really engaged. It felt like a 5-star read for sure. But then it bogged down about a third of the way in. It was so slow I dreaded picking the book up again. But I did, and finally finished it. Overall, it is no better than a 3-star book. Not great; but
The book was full of unnecessary elevated language, just for the author to prove she could. After a while, we get it, you are smart, message received. But in using this type of language, you are sabotaging your own book in order to drill that message into the reader’s head. This was a serious distraction from the story.
The book contained too many characters. Every minor character with only a single appearance was named. I counted about 70 characters in the book. Way too many. The author also used too many flashbacks to fill in Sister Holiday’s past. Many of the flashbacks came without any warning, right in the middle of a paragraph about the present, which became confusing after a while. Less flashbacks would have been better.
Finally, the ending was rushed and ridiculous. Sister Holiday who had spent 300 pages finding the arsonist, then helps her escape? That was totally out of character as was Sister Augustine’s final actions.
The author has written a sequel, which I will read, but at least, based upon this book, I am not expecting much.
Show More
certainly not terrible. The book was full of unnecessary elevated language, just for the author to prove she could. After a while, we get it, you are smart, message received. But in using this type of language, you are sabotaging your own book in order to drill that message into the reader’s head. This was a serious distraction from the story.
The book contained too many characters. Every minor character with only a single appearance was named. I counted about 70 characters in the book. Way too many. The author also used too many flashbacks to fill in Sister Holiday’s past. Many of the flashbacks came without any warning, right in the middle of a paragraph about the present, which became confusing after a while. Less flashbacks would have been better.
Finally, the ending was rushed and ridiculous. Sister Holiday who had spent 300 pages finding the arsonist, then helps her escape? That was totally out of character as was Sister Augustine’s final actions.
The author has written a sequel, which I will read, but at least, based upon this book, I am not expecting much.
Show Less
Awards
Crime Writers' Association Awards (Longlist — 2024)
Lefty Award (Finalist — 2024)
International Thriller Writers Award (Nominee — First Novel — 2024)
New England Book Award (Finalist — Fiction — 2023)
Denver Public Library Staff Picks for Adults (Fiction — 2023)
Language
Original language
English
ISBN
1638930244 / 9781638930242