yesssss let this be another entry into the quozy canon. Margot Douaihy crafts a fast-paced, twist-laden narrative that keeps you guessing and promises an intriguing start to a captivating series.

I really enjoyed the character of Sister Holiday and her story to becoming a nun. She's a unique character and would make a great protagonist for a series. I liked the flow of the story and how the the mystery of the arsonist unfolds.

This had a wicked setup but was such a trial because:

⚰️ The plot was so incredibly boring and drawn-out;
⚰️ The lead did so many infuriatingly foolish things in response to the crime languidly pushing the plot along that I had to put it down before my eyes rolled out of their sockets;
⚰️ and, most importantly, lead, a lesbian and recovering (?) addict-slash-rocker deciding to be a nun made zero sense and was never explained. And was super boring.

I just feel disappointed. This story had great elements but they were wasted. It was even laugh-out-loud funny in parts, like: '"Private Dick. That's what old school PIs were called. Short for private detective.' Nina played along. 'A private dick is what a queer lady keeps in her bedside table.'" I think that if the author had more bravely confronted and motivated the whole Sister Holiday situation, I might have been more drawn in. The treatment is simply "I'm a nun! Because God!" with Nina and other side characters calling the whole shebang (heh) into question but with never a clear or satisfying answer from Sister Holiday/the author. In the end, she's just a gimmick.

Scorched Grace is an intriguing novel and at each turn we are constantly met with the unexpected. A smoking, cursing, rule breaking nun who becomes a pseudo detective when murders start happening around her is not a traditional figure we see in novels, but it is one that feels both odd and relatable. While the novel contains some fun characters, after a while it felt a little too much like it was trying to be something different. As someone who can read pretty fast, I didn't feel sucked in and it took me a few months to finish the novel.. It has an interesting cast and plot, but I felt that it wasn't written in a way that I felt compelled or too connected to the characters to want to know the ending.

The cover pulled me in and the story didn't disappoint. Sharp writing, intriguing plot, and unique characters. Loved every bit of it!

Douaihy has created a great modern detective in Sister Holiday! I'll check out the rest of the novels in this series to follow her adventures.

I loved the premise of this book but had a hard time getting into it. I did end up finishing and may try the sequel.

3.25

I was initially drawn to this book because of this gorgeous cover. The smoking nun with the stained glass style art is absolutely stunning. And then I read that the main character is a queer punk nun and amateur sleuth and I knew I had to read it.

I think this is a pretty solid debut and I really liked the first half of it but it sort of fell apart for me as it continued. I think it was partially because of the pacing and partially because I struggled through the mystery elements of the plot. I think this does a better job of acting as a character study and exploring themes of institutionalized religion than it does as a mystery. I also started to find Sister Holiday's "I can serve God by solving crimes because the police clearly can't do their jobs" internal monologue become grating as the book continued, which I think also caused my enjoyment to wan because at that point I was reading more for Sister Holiday than for the mystery.

Overall, I think this is a pretty solid debut and I liked the unique take on amateur sleuth main characters, and I am interested in picking up the sequel but it's not a high priority.

'Scorched Grace' is a captivating mystery novel set in New Orleans, featuring Sister Holiday, a unique and unconventional nun. With its intriguing plot and memorable characters, 'Scorched Grace' offers a refreshing twist on the traditional mystery genre.

In "Scorched Grace" by Margot Douaihy, Sister Holiday, a chain-smoking, heavily tattooed, and boldly queer nun, steps into the role of an amateur sleuth when Saint Sebastian's School is targeted by a shocking arson spree. Dissatisfied with the official response, Sister Holiday embarks on a determined quest to unveil the mysterious attacker, navigating a twisty path of suspicion and secrets in the oppressive New Orleans heat. The novel, a thrilling debut in the hard-boiled genre, keeps readers guessing until the very end as Sister Holiday confronts her own checkered past in the pursuit of justice. Douaihy's series promises an exciting journey into the chaotic and mysterious world of Sister Holiday's unconventional sleuthing.

This is a fun take on the stereotypical mystery novel. It's fast-paced and kept me interested, but I think I was expecting a little more from this book, though I did have a good time with it.

We know I love some crime fiction. This was such a. Fun spin. The way that Douaihy peels back the layers of Holiday creates intrigue, revealing a character that is both expected and unexpected.

I think it’s important to add that being an atheist did not detract from my enjoyment of this book.

The ARC had some factual inaccuracies about diabetes and insulin that I hope we’re corrected before the release. If not, it could dangerously misinform readers about properly treating hypoglycemia (please do not give someone in hypoglycemic shock insulin!).

genuinely such an incredible & interesting piece of storytelling absolutely loved the storyline and character. definitely recommend to friends that are interested in mystery

I'm not going to lie, when I started this book I was a little worried. I was listening to it as an audiobook and at first with all of the talk of Catholicism I was pretty sure I was not going to be enjoying this book. As the mystery progressed I definitely got into it even though all of the Catholicism talk still wasn't my favorite, the mystery did suck me in. And by the end, now I need to hear the second book in the series. I think I'm going to do the same thing and listen to it as an audiobook because I enjoyed that medium. I absolutely love Sister Holiday, she's an awesome character and I need more from her.

Sister Holiday is not your conventional nun. She's covered in tattoos, she used to be in a rock band, oh and did I mention that she's a lesbian? After a tragedy in her life, she begins the process of joining The Sisters of The Sublime Blood in New Orleans, which would also mean she would be the music teacher at the Saint Sebastian School. She is settling in, her students are starting to drive her crazy, and then all of a sudden there is an arson at the school resulting in a coworker's death. After more fires and more death and what looks like someone trying to frame Sister Holiday, she begins to work with the fire inspector to try and solve the case. It won't go into any details because I don't want to spoil any of the twists and turns because they were great, I really enjoyed all of the different aspects of the story and the way the author wove them all together. Personally one of the biggest indicators of a good mystery novel is whether or not I can accurately guess the ending, or how much of the ending I can guess. I didn't guess any of the ending. Not one bit, even after the twist I definitely thought I was still somewhat right and was waiting for something else that didn't come. This author definitely put together a good mystery novel and that is what makes me want to listen to the second in this series immediately.

This was one of my most anticipated reads for 2023 and it just did not hit. The premise is such a great idea but poorly executed. Did someone who did read the book write the blurb? IDK a huge disappointment.

The main character kept me reading through the whole book. She really captivated me and the author did a good job at creating this real juxtaposition of a nun.

I was immediately drawn by the cover when I first saw it (idk, I find nuns in fiction so intriguing?) but the story itself didn't do much for me. I'm inclined to read more from the author in the future, but I think the structure of the book and writing could use some work.

A fast-paced story set in a Catholic school in New Orleans, starring an extremely flawed nun whose past may be catching up with her. I found the characters really fun to read about, the setting was great, and the mystery was satisfying if a bit dramatic at times. I’m excited to see where the rest of the series goes.

I absolutely loved this book!! I couldn’t put it down.
I just loved all the characters. I highly recommend this book.

Sister Holiday has a bad Habit…she’s a punk, pious Poirot pursuing a pyro in this new take on the hard-boiled genre.

After escaping Brooklyn and the sins of her past, Sister Holiday seeks refuge with the Sisters of the Sublime Blood in New Orleans. Her peaceful existence is soon shattered when a series of arson attacks occur in the school attached to the convent.

As an atheist, I was intrigued by the thought of a chain smoking, heavily tattooed, lesbian nun - a flawed hero, relatable in her mistakes and her humanity. I find it hard to reconcile how someone can seemingly work against their own interests, and thought this may give me some insight (disappointingly it did not). I do enjoy the imagery and iconography of the Catholic Church though, so while I can’t particularly relate to the call of faith, I appreciate the aesthetic (it also makes for a stunning cover).

The story skips around, told in flashbacks and present day, and this type of storytelling encapsulates the stifling atmosphere of its setting - this is jazz, if jazz was a book. The heat and humidity of New Orleans is palpable-Douaihy is a talented writer who has a way with words-metaphors come as thick and heady as the Louisiana air.

Despite all of this, I didn’t enjoy Scorched Grace as much as I should have. The story really starting moving once the shorter chapters began- for me, the identity of the arsonist and their intentions was secondary to Sister Holiday’s test of faith. The whodunnit was not as interesting as the process of understanding how Sister Holiday came to be living as a nun, and how she grapples with the contradictions in her life. Perhaps if I was more invested in the mystery, I would have enjoyed it more.

Scorched Grace is a fever dream of a novel that explores the complexities of faith, religion, sexuality, place, belonging, past, redemption, trauma and healing. It is a critique of incarceration and the prison system, the treatment of black and queer people, institutional violence, generational trauma, feminism and patriarchy. It is a lot - and another reason why I didn’t enjoy it as much as I should have. It is very difficult to broach so many topics and give them all the attention they deserve.

This appears to be the first in a series, so it will be interesting to see how the character and writing develops from here.