Scorched Grace

What makes it funny?

Holiday confiscates cigarettes from students, then smokes them because wasting things is a sin. In the opening chapter, she also calls her escape from a staff meeting a moment of spiritual reflection. A reader in a funny-detective book group praised the humor and the feel of New Orleans.

The comedy at work

Holiday borrows the language of religious duty to defend her rule-breaking. Her first-person voice can move from devotion to profanity in a breath, and her quick judgments of others leave room for blunt admissions about herself.

Try this if…

For readers drawn to hardboiled narration, queer crime fiction and a protagonist whose religious belief remains serious through all her swearing. The school fires carry real danger; Holiday's sharp tongue accompanies a dark investigation.

Good to know

The author flags suicide, addiction, mentions of hate crimes and teenage sexual abuse, homophobia, racism, sexism, past incest and harassment, a toxic relationship, animal death, graphic injury and sexual scenes; her full advisory gives further detail. Kirkus enjoyed aspects of Holiday's voice but criticized the plotting and tonal shifts. The reader-recommended order starts here, followed by Blessed Water and Divine Ruin.