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binevolentbookworm's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
combined review of PRIEST, SINNER, SAINT
"I came here to leave my past life behind. I came here to live entirely for God. But Elijah keeps blooming in me and I can't seem to stop him.
I can't stop the tender shoots and slender, seeking roots of him, and I am his garden, his soil, his place, and it would be wonderful if I wasn't supposed to be the garden of my god instead.” (SAINT)
if you told me a year ago i was going to post an in-depth review of a series based on catholic church erotica i would have told you, “yes, and?”
when i started PRIEST, i was not expecting much. i figured i would be like, okay, yeah, spicy! and move on. which is honestly kind of what happened, because i read it in december, watched fleabag, became obsessed with Hot Priests for a week, and then forgot about it until one fine day in february. i was at work and was needing a mindless audiobook to get through the remainder of my day and i figured hm, yeah i kinda had a fun time with the first book, i’ll try his brothers story, SINNER.
how funny i was to think it would be a mindless audiobook. i started it and immediately became invested. a series that started as a solid 3 quickly became a 4, and then, dare i say it? a 5 star read by the time i finished the final brother’s story, SAINT.
i saw an immense amount of growth in simone’s writing style, character development, and overall storytelling throughout the series - something, let’s be fair, i just don’t expect when i’m picking up a book for a spicy time. i was impressed with simone’s handling of the tough topics she chose to include in the series; including systemic SA, suicide/suicidal ideation, death of a parent to cancer, and depression, and she includes the CW at the beginning of each book for her readers.
this series was not without its faults, such as sometimes there was an overreliance on the “i’m not like other guys” trope from each of the brothers, while they were quite literally like other guys lol. also, simone did rely on the black fmc to basically give a racism 101 lesson to the white mmc in the second book. and while i do think simone tried to navigate writing interracial relationships responsibly and with care – she just could have chosen any other way to explain these things without putting the burden on the black fmc.
anyway, i came for the hot priest smut, stayed for the intimate storytelling and now i own physical copies of each book because i literally cherish these stories.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, and Death of parent
rshearon's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
people love to reduce this series to pure smut but it’s incredibly well written with deep, diverse characters! i love the main character and his motivation and growth throughout the book is personally moving! i cried!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
aromarrie's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
it really takes a character like aiden bell to make you feel less alone when facing it…and i’m so happy he & this story exist because of that. i love it like everything.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Alcohol
Minor: Suicide and Death of parent
kaychelle's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Mental illness
kelsmckinney's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Child death, Infidelity, Suicide, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Cancer, Homophobia, Death of parent, and Outing
jeliha's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
blupblup's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
jennybugg's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
pierrereads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
sara_mb's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
As always it’s was as great as I thought it would be. I was a bit nervous at first with the fact it was her first lgbtq+ book of the series and wasn’t sure how it was gonna flow. It was beautifully written, deep and reflective. It spoke about mental health issue, suicidal tendencies and sexuality. I love everything about it, the spice and emotion, perfect ❤️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol