A comic novel in which humorous theological interpretations favor flippancy over derision.
Mortal beings on a spiritual journey encounter a motley assortment of characters in Aunsoo’s debut farce that sends up various religions.
Amma the Many Breasted Goddess is the Creator of All That Is. She gives free will to her children, who, like Amma herself, often roam the Earth. Though the goddess loves the Humans—she capitalizes their name—she created, she notes that they were “annoying and willful right from the start” and creates the Moroli to keep them under control. The Moroli are also mortal but otherwise superior to Humans. They consume blood and regularly hunt Human virgins. But Volod, a Moroli who begins questioning the Moroli Way, goes on a journey of transformation—to be reborn as Human. Along with his male companion and sometime lover, Aurel, and, later, Mimir, an elderly woman, Volod floats down the Kutsal and Lethe rivers. The three voyagers come across a medley of people, from a false prophet to a possibly deranged author. Meanwhile, Britney, a female Human who’s “bewitched” with “Sexual Hunger,” pursues Volod and Aurel, having witnessed them sucking blood and believing they’re “vampire boys” aiming to turn her into one of their kind. Volod is wary of the seemingly crazed Britney and hopes to steer clear of her until he finds Amma, who will complete his transformation. This quirky satire entails religious imagery such as that of cattle, which some beliefs hold sacred, and a variation on the story of Adam and Eve. But Aunsoo doesn’t single out one religion for ridicule over others and maintains a steady supply of absurdity. The novel comprises three “Testaments,” focusing on Amma, the genesis of the Moroli, and, for the bulk of the story, Volod’s spiritual journey. While the narrative includes the English translation of ancient cuneiform tablets discovered in Iraq, there are also more contemporary references. These are typically silly, including the use of relatively modern slang (“kick-ass weed” or “you’re freaking me out”) and of pop culture such as the song “Singin’ in the Rain” and a particularly funny Star Wars joke.
A comic novel in which humorous theological interpretations favor flippancy over derision.Pub Date: Feb. 23, 2020
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 201
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: March 4, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A charming and incisive debut.
Four young nuns wind up running a halfway house full of quirky characters in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Four Catholic sisters live with the elderly Sister Roberta in upstate New York. All on the edge of turning 30, the young women are at loose ends: Their day care is shuttered, and Sister Roberta is retiring. However, the four women refuse to be parted: “We were fixed to one another, like parts of some strange, asymmetrical body: Frances was the mouth; Mary Lucille, the heart; Therese, the legs. And I, Agatha, the eyes.” Eventually, the Buffalo diocese decides to transfer them to Rhode Island, where they are put in charge of running Little Neon, a “Mountain Dew”–colored house for residents trying to get sober and get back on their feet. When the local Catholic high school needs someone to teach geometry, the sisters volunteer Agatha, who is labelled as the quietest but the smartest of the quartet. As Agatha immerses herself in her new life, she finds the residents of Little Neon, from parolee Baby to Tim Gary, whose disfigured jaw prevents him from finding love, open her eyes to new realities, as do her colleagues and students at the high school. Eventually, Agatha can no longer ignore that the church, and most of all she herself, is changing. Luchette’s novel, her first, is structured in small chapters that feel like vignettes from a slightly wacky indie film. The book is frequently vibrant with resonant images: Agatha learning to roller skate in Little Neon’s driveway or a resident drunk in a sequined dress riding a lawnmower through the snow. But even though the book feels light, Luchette does not turn away from the responsibility of examining the darkness undergirding the institution of the Catholic Church.
A charming and incisive debut.Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-374-26526-7
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2021
A moving, magical holiday romance.
Exes are reunited during a chaotic, miraculous Hanukkah season in Manhattan.
Evelyn Schwartz is at the top of her game at work, and all her effort and long, thankless hours have led to a project that will let her truly make a name for herself: executive producing a live televised musical of A Christmas Carol, which will have her working all through Hanukkah. When an injury lands her in the studio’s medical bay, she’s shocked—and infuriated—to see her ex-husband filling in for the usual on-set doctor. David Adler hasn’t seen his wife since he left her two years ago, moved out of the city, and started an animal rescue farm. Despite their unresolved history, they agree to be professional and get through this production. When Evelyn encounters the ghost of a former co-worker, she thinks she must be hallucinating even though that’s never been a symptom of her chronic migraines before. Throughout the eight days of Hanukkah as Evelyn counts down to her show, solving one problem after another, more spectral and outlandish visitors appear to show her eight heartbreaks of Hanukkah past. As Evelyn relives the things that brought her and David together and then tore them apart, her love for him is reignited. It’ll take a Hanukkah miracle, though, for them to work through their past heartache. Meltzer blends the deep, somber emotions of heartbreak and loss with moments of pure hilarity and adds a dash of holiday-season magic to create an affecting, heartfelt story. Tough topics are deftly handled with tenderness, care, and compassion, while the characters are allowed to be realistically messy and complex. Evelyn’s growth as she faces her grief feels more substantial than the romance, although the two meaningfully weave together and the couple’s happy ending is well earned.
A moving, magical holiday romance.Pub Date: Oct. 21, 2025
ISBN: 9780778334422
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
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