I absolutely devoured this read. It perfectly blended humor, actual challenges of teenagers, and the experience of questioning the church. Say a Little Prayer is about Riley, a teen who slaps her sister's ex friend at school and to avoid a punishment that would pull her out of the production of Shrek: The Musical, she attends a weeklong christian camp. (I will say, I have no idea how that would ever be allowed, but just vibe with it.)

Her time at camp is spent sinning, bringing women together, and kissing at the chapel. I ate up every moment of it and can't wait to recommend it!

I LOVED this book so much, wish I had this in high school! This book had me at the first chapter title, actually all of the chapter titles were hilarious. I enjoyed Riley's character, even when she was annoying(which what teen isn't?). I love when the main characters aren't picture perfect. As someone who grew up in the Catholic church I related a lot to being made to feel terrible about my sexuality and it's taken me decades to overcome a lot of the damage, so this book was very healing. If you are queer and/or have Catholic guilt, this book is for you! I know this will make a great addition for my library and for my teen patrons.

I enjoyed Every Time You Hear That Song so much. My expectations for this one were high and it met them plus some! This book felt familiar to me. It felt like something I would have experienced growing up as a closeted lesbian in rural West Virginia. While also having a heavily religious community and family. The characters blended together a little bit for me but that is my only major complaint. I enjoyed this story so much and I will be revisiting it again very soon! My Goodreads review will be posted within the next week.

This was very cute and fun and had some great commentary. We meet Riley, who is kind of forced into going to church camp to not get suspended. I feel like this requires some suspension of disbelief, because public school, but honestly these days who knows. Now, this is obviously a camp of some Christian denomination run by one of those psychos who is two steps away from being a cult leader. (Please note: I do not think all churches are this way, but I think too many of them are, and those are the ones being shown here. The definite, very real, dark side of organized religion.)

Anyway, Riley’s besties, Julia and Ben, are going to camp. Because it so happens their dad is Pastor Buttface, the same guy who legit kicked Riley’s sister out of the church and shamed the whole family because sis had an abortion. Luckily, Riley’s parents are the best, but it is still really hard for her, because she loves her friends but definitely not the dad. Because he sucks. A lot. Anyway, there are camp shenanigans and lots of character growth and friendships and maybe even a love story. It is very readable and entertaining, and I liked it a lot.

Bottom Line: Fun and entertaining but still thoughtful with important commentary.

This book was so much fun to read. Seeing the repercussions that Riley and her family are still facing after her sister, Hannah, was ousted from the church last year was a real experience and how it affected all of their community, not just one individual because who is going to speak out against their pastor when the Bible says not to? Watching Riley and Julia's friendship evolve at camp when they haven't spoken about the outcome between Riley's sister and Julia's father was super interesting to read because there is this deep crevice of hurt and they thought that was flimsy bridge would still support them both standing on it. I loved seeing how Riley spoke to everyone that she thought hated her sister and learned what was actually going on. Even though she was forced into going to church camp, Riley was able to learn how she wants to have religion in her life and what it would look like going forward.

This book is the perfect companion for teen movies like Saved and Easy A. Riley is an authentic teen heroine-- a little confused by her own feelings, but full of heart and wonderful to spend time with. I wanted to root for her, and all the teens she knows, to get through their difficult situations and be kind to themselves and each other. Great for anyone with evangelical religious trauma.

I wish I could go back in time and give this to teenage baby gay me. This book is a gift and I’m so glad it exists.

This book has me cracking up from the very first chapter title. The irreverent way she says “Daddy Christ” and the grappling with the religious trauma she suffered balance each other so well. While I didn’t have to face the exact same struggles, her experience with her white evangelical church felt so similar to my own. It’s been a long time since I read something that I truly felt healed me as I read it, and this extremely unserious take on it did. Make no mistake, this book handles a lot of intense ideas, but the way it does so was everything I wanted and needed. I can’t wait to read her other work.

This was an entertaining and thought-provoking read. In particular, I appreciated that it was not at all a condemnation of religion and faith. I loved that Riley genuinely misses her faith and being a part of the community at her church, which she left due to the pastor’s toxic behavior toward her sister and her family. The book shows the potential value of religion and faith—while letting readers know it’s possible—even okay—to reject the piecemeal condemnations and fear-based power grabs of some religious leaders. Of course, all this deep food for thought is presented in a fun story with a little romance, a little rebellion and classic camp shenanigans. An enjoyable, important take on the struggle many religious kids are going through these days, and a way for the non-religious to gain a fuller understanding of their experience of faith.

As soon as I first read the title of this book, I was hooked. As someone who grew up with anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric in church sermons, this book remedied something in me. I found myself relating to the main character of Riley many, many times. This ARC I absolutely devoured, squeezing in time when I could to read. This one also kept me going through chapter after chapter just to read all of the little references of each one. All in all, I would highly recommend this book. 5/5 stars from me!

i don't read a lot of ya books but i can't resist the allure of queerness intersecting with religion.

our main protagonist is riley and she's got Issues with the church ever since the pastor of the church her entire family attended publicly shamed her sister for having an abortion. part of her abhorrence is knowing she would also be shunned for her bisexuality.

first off, kudos for the parents of these two for not tolerating that behavior from the pastor. also, kudos to riley for smacking the CRAP out of a girl talking sideways about her sister. unfortunately, the offense results in riley having two choices - expulsion or attending the camp that was part of a church that her family had left.

i really appreciate this book for what i feel is an accurate depiction of our current religious landscape. the pastor sees riley and his first act is to shame her family, tell her that if she shames and rejects her family she can be "saved", and follows it up by a threat - church it up or he'll tell her principal she deserves to be expelled for being disagreeable, which wasn't part of the deal anyway. i'm sure some people won't like that, but this has been my experience with religion in the south and like it or not, this is a reflection of how christianity is currently publicized - as a hate-filled organization that wants to control and shame women and for people to reject their identities at the expense of their sanities and in some cases, their lives.

plot twist, though - riley thinks she detects... gay? the issue: she sniffs it out in julia, the pastor's daughter. there's a decent amount of pining, but after a kiss they realize this is a Big Deal.

i really appreciate that this book allows riley to act her age and make mistakes. i really loved that this book explored the nuances of religious indoctrination, how the institution inoculates kids with hate that they don't particularly want to express but they do because it's all they know and they do it until they know nothing else. i loved that this book talked about internalized homophobia, how it manifests from the very places that are supposed to make us feel human and safe. i also really loved that this book didn't end with a take-down of hate; in the real world sometimes we have to acknowledge that we need to get rid of things that don't serve us and that we can't change the opinions of bigots, but that we can find love and community and family in others.

Thank you to Viking Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel. While I have never attended church camp, Voris was able to make this relatable and bring the readers in. Being shunned for being who you are is a theme we need to discuss more and more people feel this than anyone may ever want to admit, especially in the current political climate. It does fall into YA tropes so you can see where the story is going but if you accept the reused plot, you can enjoy the story itself. I wanted more from the ending but also do see how it is more realistic as an ending even if everything is not perfect the way I want it to be. A quick read but enjoyable. 3.25 stars.

Say a Little Prayer by Jenna Voris is a delightful YA queer romance(ish) novel about our main character, Riley, as she is forced to attend the local church camp as punishment for slapping a girl at her school. The church, and the pastor leading the camp, are the very same that recently shunned her older sister. The girl’s got beef. Riley begins to formulate a plan and her intentions are not all that holy.

This really surprised me! It had me laughing (lots) and crying (a time or two). The main character is snarky and angsty, she’s got her flaws but shows growth (same with many of the other characters). As someone with their own share of religious trauma, I found this to be quite cathartic. Really, really loved this!

Thank you to NetGalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for an eARC!

I loved Say a Little Prayer so much! The characters were loveable and the plot was great. Overall, I enjoyed the author's writing style a lot as well. Definitely recommend to any queer person who grew up in the Church.

Sent to christian camp for slapping someone who said despicable things, Riley does the only thing she can. Sin some more.

I think I can speak for everyone (because we all talk you know), this cover sold me on this story. I didn’t even look at the blurb (ummm okay, I never do). I didn’t look at the author’s name, I just said, “yes, please!” This cover is eye-catching and makes you want to read the book. I love it.

Jenna Voris makes camp sound just as awful as I remember it. I do find it funny that one of the issues I had with camp was the fact that the counselors didn’t have to do the things that the kids had to do. In the movies, the counselors always have to participate. I find it funny and so beyond realistic and true to Riley’s theme: do what I say and not what I do. Counselor Gabe needs to go.

I love this secondary cast. I’m crushing on Delaney and Torres isn’t bad either, but I would totally date Delaney if I was their age. Voris has some diversity in the story, but it really focuses on the Christian faith.

Say A Little Prayer deals with fear. Fear of God, fear of the church, and fear of the decisions that we make in life affecting our relationship with our faith. I will give you heads up that the issue of abortion is a strong secondary thread in the storyline. It doesn’t deal with the issue directly, but with the aftereffects of how a family and community responds when it is used as gossip.

There is a slow-burn clean romance buried in this exploration of heavenly virtues and sin. All it takes is a little distance and a reconnection to make Riley look at Julia, the Pastor’s daughter a little differently. It’s cute and sweet with of course the dynamic thrown in of Julia’s position.

I love the climatic ending. Girl code is everything for me and this story got it right. I left Say A Little Prayer having chuckled, had my heart tugged, and had it soar with happiness as a group of people came together to tell Riley’s story. It’s a good way to spend spring break.

As someone who struggles with her faith, this book was a breath of fresh air. Riley was a very interesting protagonist, and I really empathized with her situation as someone whose family was ostracized for their supposed sins. The romance aspect of this book was so sweet as well, although it did feel a bit sudden to me. Julia reminds me of a lot of young women I knew growing up in the church, especially pastors’ daughters. I really loved her part of the story, as well as the resolution of things with Hannah. Overall, this book was really well written , funny, heartfelt, and a true joy.

Jenna Voris’s Every Time You Hear That Song (2024) was one of my favorite books of last year. While Every Time, with its endless detail and often surprising plot, is still my favorite, I really enjoyed reading Say a Little Prayer.

The book opens with Riley in the principal’s office of her Ohio high school, in trouble for hitting a classmate, Amanda. It’s revealed fairly quickly that Riley was standing up for her sister, Hannah. For a while now, their family has been on the outs with their local church—it was bad enough when Riley came out as bi, but then Hannah got an abortion. Pastor Young—who also happens to be their next-door neighbor and father of Julia and Ben, their two close friends—publicly shamed them both. The family stops attending church and Hannah’s former friends harass her in the hallways.

The principal “lets Riley choose” to serve her punishment at Pastor Young’s spring break church camp in Kentucky. At least Julia will be there … but so will Amanda and her friends. At camp, Riley has to contend with the parts of church she misses and the parts that fill her with rage. When the camp’s theme turns out to be avoiding the seven deadly sins, Riley instead decides to commit all of them.

This book does a great job of condemning what some people do under the mantle of Christianity without lumping in all Christians. Pastor Young is a recognizable evil, a man who derives power from humiliating and striking fear in others. People go along with him because he’s convincing, but Riley also finds fun, accepting friends at camp. Voris and I are around the same age and both from Indiana, and to me, there’s an aura of my Midwest about her books. I would have gotten a lot out of this particular portrayal as a teenager.

It can be dramatic, but the core of the story isn’t flashy. There’s a romance that stays fairly quiet for most of the book. Riley’s parents aren’t a huge part of the story, but are wonderful and supportive. Most of this is really about reclaiming nuance and rebuilding community; standing up to the evil pastor shows how pride can be a virtue.

3.5 stars

This book was one of my most anticipated. The main character was a bit annoying and immature (I understand that she is 17). I feel like all of the characters were very generic and the story ended exactly as expected. I liked the idea about the seven deadly sins but I feel like the side characters (and even Ben) were just there and did not have any real purpose.

I will say I do think if I had read this at 16 I would have been obsessed with this book.

Can't say enough about how much I absolutely loved this book!! Having grown up as a queer girl in a religious setting, I totally related to the main character Riley. She leaves her church after her sister went through an abortion scandal and struggles with the guilt of leaving her church and her feelings over her beliefs. She's forced to go to a week long church camp to avoid being suspended and the group of friends she makes there is perfection. I loved all the side characters as much as I did Riley. Riley's best friend and of course love interest is the pastor's daughter and that brings another level to this story that I loved. It's a YA book that has silly little YA themes but it also has an insanely deep underlying storyline that makes this one a true winner. Definitely worth the read for sure!

Say A Little Prayer
By Jenna Voris
Publisher PenguinTeen
Released March 4th, 2025

Thank you NetGalley and PenguinTeen for this ARC 🤩

💫💫💫💫💫/5

💒 This book is a true YA. While it has a lot of mutual longing and some kisses, there is no spice. The book had me hooked immediately! Our fmc, Riley, will be relatable to so many! Riley attended a very conservative/strict church most of her life. Riley and her family stop attending this church, after her sister is publicly shamed and kicked out of the church and Riley realizes her queer identity. Then Riley finds herself a year later at the church sleepaway camp. What follows is a beautiful story of self reflection, character growth, friendship and love.

💒 As someone who is queer and has religious trauma- this book did take me a while to read. I felt transported back to childhood in parts of the book. Riley felt real and tangible to me. It made the part of me who could never stand up to the religious bigots, smile the entire time.