Riley stopped attending church when her sister was publicly banished from the congregation, and when she realized that she would not be accepted there for being bisexual. Even though her next door neighbors are the minister and his family and the minister's twins are her best friends, Riley tries hard to avoid the church and anything associated with it. When Riley slaps her sister's former friend at school and her place in the school musical is on the line, Riley volunteers to attend the church's camp during spring break. Having to attend camp and write an essay for the principal feels like a better option than being forced to miss out on the musical completely. The theme of the week is the seven deadly sins/seven heavenly virtues and Riley decides to try to commit all of the sins to prove that sometimes things labelled as sins aren't necessarily bad. Riley starts to discover that she really missed church and some of the people there and that maybe she has judged people in the same way her sister was judged. What if she actually gained something good from the thing she's been actively avoiding for the last year? Very sweet and funny, but also a deep look into the power of faith in your fellow humans.

I really enjoyed this book! I love how unique the plot is, I don’t think I’ve read something like it before! As someone who grew up in the church, it’s crazy how accurate this book is!! It really handled themes like religious trauma very well and with care.

This book was so good! I really like the plot, and think it is a unique concept that was developed nicely. I also like the main romance in the book, and think the main character and the love interest had good chemistry. Honestly, my favorite part was probably the chapter titles. I found myself laughing reading them, and they were a very enjoyable part of the book. As well as making me laugh, this book also just has something raw and real about it, it isn’t super dark and sad, but isn’t overly idealistic and unrealistic. I have never read the author’s debut novel, but definitely plan on reading it now that I’ve seen some of her work. I definitely would recommend this book, and am excited to see what this author does next.

Thank you to NetGalley, Viking Books for Young Readers, and Penguin Young Readers Group for this advanced copy! You can pick up Say a Little Prayer on March 4, 2025.

This book was perfection. I could not put it down and was sucked in immediately by Jenna Voris's voice and tone. It was exactly what I needed at this time -- a little revenge, a little sticking it to the man, a lot of queerness, and some truly relatable religious trauma. Not only did Riley's growth throughout the course of the book tug at my heartstrings, but her newly formed friendships made me want to cry. Girlhood is just the best, y'all.

I can't believe how expertly Jenna wove in the contradictory feelings of anger and guilt and shame and righteousness and pride when dealing with leaving a church or similar community. Pastor Young is my #1 enemy, only because I can totally relate to his passive-aggressive comments about Riley's "sins," his need to punish her, and yet his ability to act like a totally normal Midwestern dad when taken out of the church context. Religion can be rough on various kinds of relationships, and I think Voris showcased that really well.

Not to say that this book is anti-religious -- in fact, I think it shows how truly multi-faceted religion can and should be, and how we should be celebrating various forms of worship. No spoilers, but by the end, I think you'll see what Riley sees in her small-town Ohio community --faithful people who seek to uplift others instead of tearing them down.

And, of course, we can't forget about the romance. The best-friends-who-secretly-pine-for-each-other-but-can't-show-it-at-church-camp-because-she's-a-pastor's-daughter-romance. Delicious tension, really emotional moments, and a lot of giggling and kicking your feet.

Plus, Voris's prose is HILARIOUS and had me laughing out loud at times. Truly, this book had it all. So you better go pick it up come March!!

Once again, Jenna Voris has absolutely stolen my heart with her latest book. She manages to balance out all of the anxiety of being queer (among other things) in a more conservative, religious environment with just the right amount of heart and humor. Riley *feels* like a teenager - sarcastic and convinced she's always right and struggling with integrating nuance into her worldview - but her reticence and flaws aren't frustrating to the point that she's unlikable. We're in her corner even when she makes mistakes. I often struggle to relate to younger protagonists as I get older; I didn't have that problem here, and that's a testament to Voris' skill.

The secondary characters felt generally flushed out enough for their presence in the story, though I could have used a *little* more development for Julia overall. There were several left turns in the last third of the book that I didn't see coming but that worked really well.

(All of the little easter eggs to "Every Time You Hear That Song" were fucking DELIGHTFUL and I love that these stories exist in the same universe. I gobble that shit up every time.)

I will absolutely be purchasing this upon release!

[NetGalley was kind enough to provide me with an ARC for this title.]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

While the POV was a tad cheesy, this was a good book about religious trauma. I was almost triggered by how REALISTIC it all is. I think this is going to resonate with a lot of young people, queer or no. The concept immediately hooked me, and the chapter names are GENIUS. I wish I had seen more of the pastor an the consequences of his bigoted actions. If you don't like religious jokes or critiques, you'd probably want to avoid this one.

very sweet romance with a lot of fun romance aspects and cool characters. tysm for the arc. 4.5 stars, would recommend. rounding up.

This was a great YA book about a difficult topic. The characters were awesome and relatable! I actually felt like I was in the principal's office at the beginning of the book and the camp took me back to summer.

Holy (heh) crap, this book was SO GOOD!! I was expecting a cute lil YA romcom but it was so much more. This book took what can be really heavy, emotionally charged topics and handled them with the utmost respect while still being hilarious, sweet, and hopeful. It’s on my top 5 for this year for sure. It called out the toxicity and hypocrisy can be found in some churches and how people can spew hate and fear and pretend it’s in the name of religion, but it did not criticize religion as a whole. My favorite quote, other than the funny ones, was “I think when you get down to it, this whole…thing is just about being kind and having faith in something bigger than yourself. That’s it.” This book honestly might have helped heal some of the religious trauma in me just a bit.

This book was absolutely incredible. I loved the way the author wrote it, it´s perfect for teens to understand but can be enjoyed by all ages. The main character Riley left her church after coming out as bi and realizing its unacceptable to be gay in her church. When she gets in trouble at school for slapping a girl talking about her sister, she gets sent to church camp as punishment. Riley comes up with a plan to take down the church by committing each of the seven deadly sins. Everything seems to be perfect except she's falling for the pastor's daughter. This book takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions and perfectly depicts how despite a society growing to be accepting of those in the LGBTQ+ community there´s still many struggling to come out due to the people surrounding them.

Say a Little Prayer by @jennavoris (releases March 4, 2025)

Rating: 4.5 stars rounded up

Review: I absolutely loved this book. I loved the interactions between Riley and Julia, I absolutely loved Ben. This was such a great read last week when the world felt like it was falling apart. To be able to spend time with Riley as she was figuring out when and how to create space for herself in the world without sacrificing who she is or feeling like she’s betraying the people she loves (both her sister and her best friend) was such a cozy space for me to exist for a while. I absolutely loved Every Time You Hear that Song by Jenna earlier this year and I was so excited for this book and it did not let me down. I loved that, as a girl whose only real experience with religion has been how unwelcome I’ve been made to feel by its members (looking at you, grandma), I saw so much of myself in Riley. You will not regret picking this one up. Absolutely loved it

Synopsis: Riley quietly left church a year ago when she realized there was no place for a bi girl in her congregation. But it wasn’t until the pastor shunned her older sister for getting an abortion that she really wanted to burn it all down.

It’s just her luck, then, that she’s sent to the principal’s office for slapping a girl talking smack about her sister—and in order to avoid suspension, she has to spend spring break at church camp. The only saving grace is that she’ll be there with her best friend, Julia. Even if Julia’s dad is the pastor. And he’s in charge of camp. But Riley won’t let a technicality like “repenting” get in the way of her true mission. Instead of spending the week embracing the seven heavenly virtues, she decides to commit all seven deadly sins. If she can show the other campers that sometimes being a little bad is for the greater good, she could start a righteous revolution! What could possibly go wrong? Aside from falling for the pastor’s daughter

I LOVED it! The cover is one of my favorites! I really liked the characters! This was my first book by this author in

I've read a number of queer books about religious trauma, and I think this one is officially my favorite. It's laugh-out-loud funny at times -- the chapter titles are hilarious, as are the church camp's mixing of memes and slang with Jesus -- but also very sincere, with a wonderfully sweet, sapphic friends-to-lovers romance. It criticizes the institution of Christianity and its toxicity instead of faith itself. The real message is support and love, of being yourself and standing up for what's right. My soul feels cleansed.

Anyway, here's "Wonderwall" (the Lord's version).

What an amazing read! This book has so much heart and quirk. I was a little afraid it would become too Jesus-y or have some of kind "saved" twist, but the resolutions were spot on. My heart dropped and leapt with all the characters' and I'm definitely going to now devour all of Voris' previous books. For any "sinner" who has been to church camp, this book is absolutely for you!

So, for starters, I am an agnostic woman who also happens to be a raging lesbian. This story was so beautifully told and regardless of the subject matter, it is at its heart, a story about female friendship and the humanity in misunderstanding and learning from one another. But as religion, abortion, and sexual orientation are literally part of the plot of this book, it is a great reminder to readers that books and the act of reading is inherently political.

From Riley to Julia to Hannah to Amanda and all the spring break church camp girls in between, Voris does an excellent job of creating real characters with just as real issues. Even those who don't get entire points of view chapters have appropriate and real reactions to the goings on around them. It reminds me of when I was the characters' age and coming out (albeit not in a tiny religious town).

A story of people managing to bridge gaps between beliefs - via religion - while remaining steadfast on human rights - this is the only thing I mean when I say I'm ok with having differing beliefs. Not in politics or human rights, but things such as religion. I do not believe in being tolerant of the intolerant.

I read this in October and I am writing this review on the morning of November 8. It has brought up feelings to say the very least.

A sapphic YA contemporary about a girl trying to prove a pastor wrong and falling for his daughter at the same time? Sign me up! I’m not always the biggest fan of reading about religion in books, but I think it works best for me when it’s about a character grappling with the ways that religion is harming people. During her time at church camp Riley is trying to prove to herself, and others, that embracing the seven deadly sins can actually be healthy instead of something that condemns them to hell.

The book is full of a lot of great moments of Riley standing up for herself and her sister. She also connects with other girls at the camp where initially she had different judgements of their character. There are also a lot of great moments of Riley’s development where she’s challenged by the other girls for the way that she acts towards them.

Riley is best friends with Ben and Julia, the pastor’s kids. So there’s a lot of complexity in what it means for Riley to be so close with people who are related to someone who is preaching hatred towards Riley’s sexuality, Riley’s sister’s abortion, and so many other situations. I appreciated Jenna Voris’ nuanced approach to the topic and where everything leaves off in the end.

The story overall and Riley as a character completely sucked me in, I read the entire book in one evening. If you’re in the market for complex YA contemporary stories that address queerness and religion, definitely check this one out.

I was cracking up at the titles for each chapter, as someone who went to church camp as a child who never actually went to church it was a good read. As someone who is part of the lgbtq+ community it was relieving to see the characters be supportive of their friends. There’s so much religion based trauma that threatens the lives of the lgbtq+ community that it was comforting to see a story that shows there’s another way out.

*I received a free ARC from NetGalley*

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this book before the release!
I was not brought up very religiously so I can't understand the whole experience of growing up as a queer person in a religious environment. But thanks to Jenna Voris' writing I could feel what the characters were going through very well.
This book was written so nice and interesting that once I started reading it I couldn't stop until I finished it!It had very funny moments as well as serious and sad topics and I'm so sorry to every person and especially child that has to go through those experiences.

Riley and Julia's relationship. I'm a sucker for a good friends-to-lovers plot and boy did they deliver. I was rooting for them the whole way through and I felt that the relationship was believable and well-written, I really enjoyed their dynamic. Also, I really appreciated the on-page explicit labeling of their sexualities -- no dancing around the words bisexual and lesbian. That was great.

Very interesting take. I enjoyed it.

Thank you to Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Say a Little Prayer by Jenna Voris is a wonderful addition to the queer YA genre! Voris' voice is easy and fun to read, and her characters have a surprising amount of depth for a YA book.