The Plastic Priest by Nicole Cushing.
When the soul has been thoroughly poisoned, the body must abandon it. Everything feels unreal afterwards, but plastic heads shed no tears. Bram Stoker Award® winning author Nicole Cushing offers an excursion into the Weird, a quiet novella of a madwoman in a mad town, as an Episcopal priest grapples with the meaning of faith, reality, and if there is anything real to either of them, at the end of it all.
A weird and strange read. It was definitely different. I did like the red crosses at the start of each chapter. 4*.

This was obscure and strange. But in a good way. This story kept me hooked and I got to the end thinking this will be something for proper readers!

I enjoyed The Plastic Priest a lot. I expected it to be more of a horror read and it goes get there, very subtly and not until the final pages of this short, gripping read. I liked the fact the priest is a woman and a married one at that, a bit feisty and starting to question her lot in life. Her descent into madness is almost heart-breaking and I really felt for her.

An interesting novella about a small town Episcopalian priest losing her faith, with a speculative twist. I liked the flashes of oddness, but I wanted it to be weirder and more unsettling. This is billed as horror so that set me up expecting a creepier atmosphere, and I didn’t get that here. I liked the irreverent tone and depiction of the conservative town, itself a kind of horror…

Wow. Nicole Cushing, take a bow.

I read this book in one sitting, it's a novella which made that easier and writtten extremely well; which also made it a joy.

Where to start? Our main character is a female priest in the redlands of america; who is trying to keep a congregation engaged whilst herself struggling with her faith. Oh, and her husband is a pagan.

A chance (or is it chance encounter with a homeless person in a park sends her into a mind altering spiral that has you gripped in slack jawed awe as it's mortifying consequences unravel everything in front of your hungry eyes. Religion. Occult. Paganism.

It's a telling study of human beings in modern times, and those trying to do good that question their flaws whilst the no good flawed question everyone else - all wrapped up in a dark little mysterious package.

I will certainly be reading this author again. Thank you for the ride!

Mother Kaye is an Episcopal Priest is the strange small town of Owlingsville. As she attends to her small congregation she begins to feel something….burnout? When Mother Kaye plans an outdoor prayer meeting it pours heavy rain. No one shows up except for a homeless man who calls himself Janus. He seems to know Kaye very well…what she’s feeling and who she really is, After meeting Janus there is a change in Mother Kaye that deeply disturbs her husband. Is Mother Kaye descending into madness? Could something more sinister be at play? Evil or madness? You decide.

My final thought as the book ended was “Well, that was weird”! The writing is excellent. The story is certainly odd and unlike any I’ve encountered before. Is there a “being” that pulls the strings of our lives somewhere up there, out there? If God gave us free will, then what happens if our free will drains away? Who or what can then play with our lives?

Thank you #netgalley for allowing me to read and review #ThePlasticPriest.

This is a wonderful little novella about a forty something woman priest and her struggles with her faith, and potential descent into madness. Wryly funny at times and a little surreal. A brilliant short read.

A strange, eerie little book. One of those "portrait of growing madness" stories that doesn't really have a whole lot of external plot to hold it together, but is well-written when it's sitting inside the increasingly-cracked internal perspective of its main character. There's not much to sustain the book outside of that, but Cushing knows what she's doing and gets in and out in barely more than 100 pages -- the perfect length for something like that. I'll have to keep my eyes open for more of her work.

Thank you Cemetery Dance Publications and Netgalley for allowing me to access this novella for an honest review.

First and foremost, this is a story about people. Yes, there are religious themes that perfectly represent societal taboos regarding holiness, salvation, tradition, and sinfulness, but the horror of this book resides in its unflinching portrayal of human flaws, human addictions, human evils, and human delusions. The bleakness we are shown when the curtains are lifted feels possible, believable, and even inevitable at times. Furthermore, there is a fabulist element throughout, so that the reader is unsure about how much of what we see is imagined or actually supernatural, and that is something which makes this novella particularly frightening. One theme of this story seems to be appearances versus truth, specifically holy appearances versus sinful realities. Other themes of this story seem to be faith versus delusion, love versus resentment, fear versus trust, and community versus paranoia. The prose itself is witty, sarcastic, and oh so pessimistic. Imagery is sparse, so when it does emerge the reader knows of its importance.

The only real criticism I have of this novella is the formatting, as each chapter begins with a picture of gothic font and a bloody crucifix; this font and the colour red on a white background may be inaccessible to those with visual disabilities. However, these elements might only be present in the e-book format.

Overall, I enjoyed this story but wished for less subtlety at times, as well as more imagery and action interwoven between the occasional (but heavy) exposition paragraphs. Of course, these are just my own personal tastes.

- Ember

I tried, but ultimately couldn't get into this story. I tried multiple times, but it just wasn't for me.

Humorous theology

"Everything feels unreal after the soul is shed'

Mother Faye is an Episcopal priest who is married to a pagan. She's been a priest now for twenty years and is questioning her career choice. She's also questioning her faith. After she meets a homeless man who claims to be a pagan god, she begins to feel dissociated. The outcome is a darkly funny romp through theology, faith, philosophy, and insanity.

Someone who likes their Kafka with a touch of humor would probably enjoy this quick read.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Cemetery Dance Publications for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This novella unfortunately never fully grabbed me, and by the end I was more confused than anything else. We follow our main character Kaye, an Episcopal priest as she questions her faith and her beliefs, while feeling stuck about them due to the smallness of the town she’s in. It’s stated multiple times that above all else, she wishes to keep her job. So, despite having multiple crises of faith and incorporating varied understandings of the Bible in her faith, she remains the same for her small church in order to keep the small amount of attendance she currently has.

Honestly, while this novella describes itself as “ madwoman in a mad town” I kind of thought neither were entirely true. The town itself isn’t mad, it’s simply Smalltown USA with typical conservative, Republican beliefs in it. And Kaye only begins to lose her mind when confronted with a random stranger who may or may not be a god, and who challenges her beliefs about what is real. To be honest, I kind of felt the inclusion of “Janus” as a character was out of left field, and it would have felt more natural for Kaye to more organically become delusional, as it were.

Personally, this novella wasn’t bad and if abstract horror is your jam I think you’d really like this. However, this novella was simply too abstract and not personally clear enough for me to understand what was going on, for me to properly enjoy it.

So i started this book and was hard to follow! Was totally bored and couldn't keep my interest! Wasn't for me!

I enjoyed this book. It’s funny how it was able to stick with me. I started reading this book Back in Oct, got away from reading for quite some time yet I still had this book with me when I picked it back up to finish it.

The narrative voice here is spectacular— witty, dry, and genuinely likable. It reminded me a bit of the Good Omens voice, though much less warm and kind. The characterization is fabulous too. The plot is extremely thin and underdeveloped though, even for a novella.

A very rough read, just not for me. The writing did not flow well and the story was muddled at best. Not worth the time it took to read it.

3.5 stars.

A strange and eerie story starring Mother Kaye, a middle aged Episcopalian Priest. Mother Kaye is struggling with her faith when she is visited by either a houseless man, a big shot Hollywood actor, or Janus the last living god. Next thing she knows… she is an action figure.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novella, Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

Set in a town that borders on madness, is a woman who is mad.
Mother Kaye is an Episcopal priest in her mid-forties. During the COVID situation, it is recommended that she helps the church's dwindling numbers by holding a Prayer in the Park program. During the first night, she encounters a man who insists she denounce her priesthood. Over the next days, Kaye begins feeling a loss in herself and even down to her very soul. She feels as if she is turning plastic.

This novella delivers a weird and frankly odd interpretation of losing ones faith. The writing was great, the imagery was brilliant - however, the story was maybe just too wacky for me. The contrast between a lovely priest and then the decent into madness was stark and had me reading and rereading sentences to make sure I understood everything that was going on.

The Plastic Priest would be perfect for anyone who needs a creepy and crazy read to fill a void, but be prepared to have your mind blown into a million pieces. Publication is set for December 15, 2023. Thank you to NetGalley & Cemetery Dance Publications for an advanced copy.

Frightening and psychological work from an author whose voice has earned awards. I enjoyed this journey into the surreal from a well-established author who has a definitely literary style and insights into the human experience.

Thank you to Netgalley for the arc. This was such a thought provoking read. It was mesmerizing and stark. The prose is so well done and the somewhat eerie tone of the story never lets down until the end. 4 stars.