A review by emily_m_green
Lay Your Body Down by Amy Suiter Clarke

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Thank you to William Morrow and Goodreads Giveaways who provided a copy of Lay My Body Down by Amy Suiter Clarke with the expectation of a fair and honest review. 

Del, born Delilah, is in the middle of a series of bad endings--her terrible boyfriend dumps her, her roommate asks her to leave, and she quits her retail job in a moment of frustration and anger. When Del learns on social media that her ex-boyfriend, on whom she is still hung up, has died as a result of a mysterious hunting accident, she is determined to go home for the funeral and quickly becomes convinced by his bereaved parents to investigate. 

As the story unfolds, it becomes more and more clear why Del is obsessed with investigating the murder of a college ex she hasn’t seen or spoken to in years and who has been married for almost the same number of years. She grew up under the auspices of a megachurch that functions with cult-like behaviors: a pastor who is not only spiritual leader, but who makes decisions for the community that are never questioned. A program of study for teenage girls to become proper wives, coupled with an attitude that allows men and boys to behave without repercussions. And a community that is as willing to embrace as it is to shun. 

While the murder mystery guides the plot of the story, the trauma of Del’s religious upbringing guides the emotional heart of the story. As a young woman, still in her twenties, she feels unmoored, with no new home and being estranged from her parents and the community in which she grew up. The one man she loved was stolen by a supposed friend and while she no longer has a place in the community, she cannot find a new place to belong. As she investigates, she is like a shadow in her old community, as no one trusts her and no one seems to know how to respond to her questions and accusations. 

Del is a difficult, complicated character, and not always easy to love or understand. For example, her obsession over the death of the ex who had long ago moved on from her--he was married with a child--is a little uncomfortable and difficult to understand. Her aggressive questioning of townspeople when she thinks that she is being subtle, especially when questioning the widow whose husband suffered an untimely death, seems callous, at best. Her accusations are thrown wildly and with little evidence. It is only as the audience begins to understand what she suffered at the hands of the church that her behavior begins to make any kind of sense. At the same time, there is a subplot with an uncomfortable new romance. 

A difficult character, one who is not easy to like or sympathize with, does not mean a bad character or a bad book. However, it does mean that there must be a reason to care about what the character is doing, and for Lay Your Body Down, part of the reason that we care is because we want to find out about Del’s trauma and to understand what made her the kind of person who is so strongly motivated to avenge the death of a long ago ex-boyfriend.

Would I teach Lay Your Body Down? I can see teaching the novel given a certain kind of undergraduate literature course. Certainly, it is important to discuss trauma, and for many, considering the line between a healthy religious life and community and religion as used as a tool to manipulate can spark personal and religious growth and healing. It is essential for people to question their religious upbringing and consider whether or not they believe as they were brought up. If people do not examine their religion themselves, their faith and belief does not have the same power--they will lack their own conviction. This is not an argument for people to leave behind the religion of their youth, though this may happen, but to give them the opportunity to consider it in a deeper and more sophisticated way. The same should happen for values and social attitudes, as well, an examination and determination of their truth. While this can happen at any point in a person’s life, and will likely happen more than once, our brain development suggests that our late teens and early twenties is a time when we are primed to learn to think for ourselves and consider new ideas. Because of the conversations the book might spark, I would consider teaching it.