Sinner (Priest, #3)

by Sierra Simone

[Cocktails and Books]

This review was originally posted on Cocktails and Books

Cocktails and Books received this book for free from Social Butterfly PR in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect our opinion of the book or the content of our review.Oh, Sean Bell, you were a hot mess of contradiction, but you had me praying with you at the end of this one.

Sierra Simone found my line with Priest.  You know, the line I didn't think I had but clearly did when it came to Father Bell and his attentiveness to a certain parishioner.  So with nervous excitement, I started Sean's story and fell under Sean's spell.

Sean, oldest of the Bell children, is the family fixer.  And he's in full fixer mode in this book.  Determined to fight his mother's cancer, keep his father moving and his younger brothers on the right path, he doesn't leave a lot of time for himself.  But that changes when he runs into a beautiful woman at a gala.  A woman he's known his entire life.  A woman whose faith will make he re-evaluate long-held beliefs.

I loved that it was a woman who was on the cusp of devoting herself to her beliefs that brought Sean to his knees.  His relationship with religion was fraught with pain and he couldn't reconcile his families biggest loss to what Zenny believed and what she was willing to walk away from.  But I think it was his relationship with Zenny and his understanding of why she was doing what she was that helped him come to term with what was happening with his mother.  Otherwise, I think we would have had a very different Sean Bell and the sinner label he wore would have had a much different meaning.

Sierra Simone has a knack for crafting these beautifully flawed characters who stay with you well after you finish the book.  Sean's struggle with his faith and wanting to make sure everyone his loves is happy will stay with me for a long time.