I visited a Four Square church near my home about 20 years ago. The founder of this denomination was Aimee Semple McPherson. I had heard she was a bit controversial, so when this book came up for review on NetGalley, my interest was piqued.

Though Aimee’s initial intentions to tell others about Jesus and pray for their physical healing seemed pure, over time, her motivations appeared to change. After several years of living frugally and traveling to minister where she was invited, the money and success began rolling in. Thereafter, she seemed more intent on seeking attention and influence, fame and fortune.

Besides changing intentions, she also faced a growing list of relationship problems and dozens of lawsuits stemming from a situation where Aimee allegedly faked her own kidnapping. Nearly all of her relationships were marred by her dedication to ministry, her more extravagant lifestyle, selfishness or the lawsuits. The result was estrangement from those who were closest to her, including two husbands, her mother and daughter. In her later years, she admitted she was enveloped in loneliness.

In my opinion, Aimee neglected her children over the years. I was most saddened by Aimee’s estrangement from her family members. I can’t help but think her relationship to her mother was unhealthy and then, as history tends to do, issues were passed on, repeating unhealthy relationships with her children.

When I finished the book I found myself most curious to know her children’s opinions of her. I googled them to find they have both passed away. Certainly they were not left unscathed by their mother’s choices. I would love to get my hands on something penned by either of her children, but I’m not sure if any such writings exist.

The author, Claire Hoffman, was the first researcher allowed to peruse Aimee’s court records. This enabled her to write a detailed account of the legal proceedings. This detail in no way makes for a boring story. It was sensational from beginning to end. The courts never could prove if Aimee was guilty of fabricating her disappearance or not.

I wonder why more of her followers didn’t question her integrity over the years. Certainly in the conservative 1920s and 1930s, her behavior and lifestyle were anything but conventional and at least somewhat, if not outright, scandalous.

Though the book doesn’t disclose whether Aimee’s kidnapping story was true or fabricated, I have formed an opinion. I will keep my opinion to myself and let you form your own opinion. This book offers a peek into Aimee’s intriguing and dramatic history. You will find yourself pulled into her story. It’s a quick, thrilling read.

I received an ARC copy compliments of the publisher and NetGalley and exchange for my honest opinion.

I did not know anything about the Pentecostal movement, nor did I ever hear of Aimee Semple McPherson. I was drawn to the book as I knew it would be a learning experience and boy was I in for a great read and surprise.

The life of Aimee McPherson is filled with so many twists and turns that if I didn’t read it for myself I would not have believed it. Aimee had an extraordinary life as she followed her passions from a small town in Canada to eventually preaching worldwide and setting up a church in Los Angeles when women were not preachers. She truly was a maverick, and being a first always takes deep conviction and fortitude. Her church, Foursquares, is still around today with more than eight million followers worldwide.

One of the more intriguing aspects of Aimee’s life was her great marketing skills and her understanding of using the media and technology. She was a marvel, her ability to get attention and embrace ways to grow her influence was both clever but also unprecedented.

Her journey is bittersweet because on a personal level, she was always looking for something. God, love recognition, or peace. Read the book and decide for yourself. It is really enjoyable.

Sister, Sinner
by Claire Hoffman
Pub Date: Mar 18, 2025
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
The dramatic rise, disappearance, and near-fall of Aimee Semple McPherson, America’s most famous woman evangelist.
This is the best biography I've read in a long while.

The author writes the facts without judgement, allowing the reader to draw their own conclusions as Aimee's life spirals more and more out of control. Power, money and fame have corrupted many throughout history. I was saddened but not surprised when Aimee's end came from a bottle of pills.

This book is well researched and written. I found myself looking forward to reading it as I would a novel. I appreciate that Claire Hoffman clearly lays out all the obtainable facts and allows the reader to draw their own conclusion.

What did I know about Aimee Semple McPherson before I read this book?
1. Her name always comes up in books or documentaries about the 20s and 30s.
2. Evangelists like Reno Sweeney in "Anything Goes" were based on her.
3. I have seen her temple on a trip to LA and it was an impressive sight.
Delving into a biography about a person you hardly know can be risky. But "Sister, Sinner" grabbed me from the first page - her disappearance and the following trials are as well described as her rise from a farm girl in Canada to a religous icon. Add for humor arguments about whether she had thick ankles or not and a surprise apperance by Anthony Quinn.
A really breezy read which never got boring - a biography that makes its subject come alive again. Reminded me of Robert Matzen´s great books about Audrey Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart und Carol Lombard in WW II.
Thanks a lot to #Netgalley and #FarrarStrausGiroux for this ARC.

I’ll read pretty much any biography that comes my way. This book is the reason why. I knew enough about Aimee to fumble my way through a Jeopardy round, but that was about it. This book read like a novel and showed me how deep and fascinating Aimee really was.

I loved this! It’s so well written that I got lost in it. Aimee, the era of the time, and the religious parts were so engrossing that I actually forgot that religion usually bores me.

I recommend this to everyone. Read this book!!

Thanks to NetGalley for this great book! All opinions are my own.

This was a fascinating book about a woman who was before her time in many ways. Aimee Semple McPherson was an evangelist, self-proclaimed healer, and a trailblazer for women in the spiritual fields. If you have any interest in the roots of Pentecostal churches, Aimee herself, or even just a suspicious kidnapping or disappearance while Aimee was in the ocean, pick this one up!

Thank you Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for a sneak peak of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

I'm interested in religion, cult leaders and crime mysteries. I also have long wanted to learn more about the infamous Aimee Semple McPherson. I knew of her disappearance but little else. When I saw this book was available on Netgalley I was excited to be approved to read it.

This book was even more fascinating than I expected. The beginning of this story was fantastic. The author writes from Aimee's perspective as she goes from dutiful soldier of the Salvation Army at her mom's direction, to pentecostal minister. I followed Aimee to Hong Kong and then back to the United States where she built up her ministry.

The author writes the facts without judgement, allowing the reader to draw their own conclusions as Aimee's life spirals more and more out of control. Power, money and fame have corrupted many throughout history. I was saddened but not surprised when Aimee's end came from a bottle of pills.

This book is well researched and written. I found myself looking forward to reading it as I would a novel. I appreciated that Claire Hoffman clearly lays out all the obtainable facts and allows the reader to draw their own conclusion.

Irrelevant sidenotes:

1. I've gone to the Echoplex to see concerts (the most amazing Mars Volta show comes to mind) and Aimee's church is still an impressive sight.

2. When I told my brother I was reading this book he said my grandpa would often speak of Aimee. He would call her "Aimee Simple Temple". I loved my grandpa so if he thought Aimee was worth mentioning she is definitely worth reading about!

3. The book I read immediately prior to this prominently featured Agatha Christie. Coincidently Agatha Christie also famously disappeared.

WoW! What an undertaking this project must have been. An impressive accomplishment. I've read a great deal about Aimee Semple McPherson, but Ms. Hoffman provides the most comprehensive few of the woman, her talents, and her faults. How sad that Aimee wasn't allowed to express her very human and feminine side; instead, her desire to love and be loved by men had to be hidden under a religious persona. Then again, McPherson herself created the persona she wanted her followers to see.

There wasn't a single page of the book I found boring, and Hoffman leads the reader skillfully through Aimee's pinnacle of success and spiraling downfall.

When I first began this book I felt regret. It was about the Pentecostal church, something I wasn't interested remotely in, but as I carried on reading I found myself drawn in. Aimee McPherson was a major leader in the Pentecostal movement, establishing her own Four Squares church but there was a LOT more to the story - one day Aimee went missing whilst at the beach, presumed drowned, until she turned up in the desert proclaiming to have been kidnapped. The drama that unfolded was absolutely mind-boggling. McPherson became something of a media star, her popularity soaring and the money with it. After a series of morally questionable stunts, falling out with family members, Aimee started crashing to earth. There were some highly amusing parts to the story - Aimee's thick ankles, the appearance of actor Anthony Quinn, and the big breasted, big armed, Rose. This book was a brilliant read, I thoroughly enjoyed it despite knowing nothing of McPherson prior to reading.

I received a free digital copy of “ Sister Sinner” via Net Galley. My thanks to Net Galley the publisher and , especially, the author for an excellent book.

“ Sister, Sinner” is one of the best biographies I have read in quite a while. The subject is Aimee Semple McPherson, who captured the headlines of the nation more than a century ago. In clear, Illuminative writing , author Claire Hoffman tells the story of a girl in a small town in Canada who goes from a Salvation Army street - corner proselytizer to become , arguably the most historically significant evangelist in America. Considering Billy Graham, that is saying a lot, I know.
Aimee soon outgrew street corner preaching as her earnest evangelistic preaching gift drew growing crowds that filled Salvation Army storefront assembly spaces.. She and her first husband went to China on a mission for a year. After she suffered a severe sickness and the near death of her child, the family returned to the US, preaching again for the Army. But that was too small a world for Sister Aimee , as she was called.. She wanted to bring her amazing inspirational powers everywhere a car could drive. That led to the family going to the southern states for tent meetings everywhere a tent could be set up. Traveling by car, sleeping by the side of the road, eating fish they caught and donated food, Aimee saw her crowds and her ambitions grow. The roads would eventually lead to California, where she would become world famous. Where she , and the family, including the mother who always supported her, would build an ornate Temple of the Foursquare Church. California where Sister Aimee, clad in a white gown , preached to thousands of devoted believers seeking faith, reassurance of heaven and healings. Ornate staging, soaring choirs, dazzling lighting and Aimee’s sweet voice brought donations flowing into her coffers. Money that constructed radio stations from which her radio sermons went across the nation., that fed the poor, and funded medical help. Money that fed Aimee’s lavish life style that eventually led to scandal and the near destruction of all Aimee built.
In a story that flows and builds like a novel, Ms Hoffman tells of Aimee’s strange disappearance when she was thought to have drowned in the ocean off a California beach and then her being found in the Arizona dessert, a victim, she said, of an underworld kidnapping. The saga filled newspapers across the world ( and bought more adoring worshippers to the Temple). Her fame and wealth grew.
But so did the questions. Was the kidnap fake, a publicity stunt? What about rumors of a love nest at Carmel By The Sea, where, as the satirical song goes, “ The liquor was expensive and the lovin’ was free….” Lawsuits flew like leaves in a thunderstorm, which resulted in a trial whose like was not seen again until the OJ Simpson trial . The trial and its emotional drain on the family. Was great even as the ministry continued to swell and the adoring public flocked to the temple .But Aimee was never quite the same, nor was her devoted mother.
“ Sister, Sister” is a fascinating biography of a unique woman. It is meticulously researched . The author was granted access to Temple records never before opened to outsiders, bringing greater understanding of the Sister, Sinner. Ms Hoffman brings to vivid life a venal , self- serving corrupt Los Angeles courts of the early 1920’s and 1930’s , the headline screams of rival newspapers and the way Aimee used and was used notoriety .
“ Sister, Sinner” is a remarkable biography . It is not often that the blurb “ un- put downable” can be awarded to a biography , but here it applies. Please note that the author, who graduated from divinity school, neither denigrates religion nor the religious fervor of believers.. nor does the author gloss over Aimee’s faults. All are written here, as is her devotion and belief.
Five stars and highly recommended.



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This was a wonderful book about an evangelist, warts and all. No matter how you feel about Suster Amiee, you will find content here to substantiate your position.