Say a Little Prayer by Jenna Voris is a heartfelt and moving novel that beautifully explores themes of love, faith, and the power of hope. The story follows a protagonist grappling with personal challenges and the impact of their relationships on their journey of self-discovery. Voris’s writing is both lyrical and poignant, drawing readers in with vivid descriptions and emotional depth. I appreciated how the book thoughtfully addresses the complexities of life while weaving in elements of spirituality and resilience. This novel is a touching and uplifting read that encourages reflection and reminds us of the strength we can find in ourselves and others.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group for accepting my request for an ACR of this book!
3.5/5
“There are lots of reasons why I prefer the indoors, and most of them, I realize, have to do with the fact that I've never once encountered a bear in my house.”
For the pros of this book, I loved the chapter titles and the plot as a whole. For my cons though… I found Riley to be a little stubborn, so much so that it made it a little difficult for her to be likable. But the way she told the story made it more lighthearted in a way to where her voice was the choice I would have picked to tell this story. Her character was different then who you would usually read in the perspective from. I will say as well, the climax was phenomenal.

I really enjoyed the book! As someone who spent most of my life in the evangelical church and someone who felt the bitter sting of rejection from that church when I came out, I was reluctant when I picked this one up. But the author navigates the story so well it quickly became one of my favorites. Low angst and low steam but good character development and a solid plot line to follow. If you liked the Miseducation of Cameron Post, this one's for you. 5/5 stars for this one! Special thanks to @netgalley for this advanced copy.

I really enjoyed this read! Blew through it in one day. I did just want to note two things because I dont think the book was represented well in the blurb.

1) the blurb makes it sound like the "falling for the pastor's daughter" will be a gradual process over the course of camp. But from the beginning, it's already clear that Riley has a strong attraction to and interest in Julia so I just felt like that "wow I like this person" moment wasnt really there, and I wouldn't say it is the biggest part of the plot.

2) the blurb makes this book sound a lot more lighthearted than it is. The book deals heavily with abuse of power, weaponization of religion, use of religion to manipulate, and emotional abuse. I think those with any level of religious trauma, particularly within the Christian faith, might want to be aware of that going in.

Overall, would definitely recommend, but want folks to go into it with a full picture!!

Ok a PK growing up this book was amazing and made me feel all the feels. I love the idea of messing stuff up and causing a stir. I give this 5 stars

I received this book as an ARC.

This was a fun and quick read. The story follows Riley as she is essentially forced to attend church camp after getting into a fight with a classmate who insults her sister. Riley's best friends are the children of the local church's pastor. Riley and her family are estranged from the church following her sister's abortion. Riley and the siblings are still friends regardless of their father's attitude towards Riley and her sister. While attending the camp, Riley attempts to prove to her friends that their father is wrong by committing every deadly sin within the course of a couple days and not getting struck down.

I liked that this book did named chapter titles. I was confused on how important Riley seems to think her role in 'Shrek the Musical' is, but maybe this is because I was never a high school theater kid. Overall, I liked it. 4/5

Having never had a sleep away camp experience or any direct experience with religious homophobia, I went into this read with a pretty open mind. Written in first person & in YA format, this story was a really good time with great pacing & development.

Although the resolution of the primary issue (the horrible pastor who treats anyone who doesn't bow & scrape to his religious perspective) leaves me wishing I could march into the pages & throw some punches, I think it's actually a more realistic ending.

Those years of late adolescence are rough for anyone, throw in some sexuality grappling & religious intolerance & it becomes a powderkeg. The struggles & triumphs are really well captured here by Jenna Voris. Recommended!

Thanks to Penguin Group for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley & PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Viking Books for Young Readers for this ARC! Say a Little Prayer by Jenna Voris is a heartfelt and evocative exploration of love, longing, and the power of connection. The narrative beautifully captures the emotional landscape of relationships, illustrating the moments of vulnerability that define our experiences. Voris's writing is both lyrical and relatable, drawing readers into the characters' journeys as they navigate life's challenges and triumphs. With its poignant themes and rich character development, this book resonates deeply with anyone who has ever loved or lost.

This book was so relatable especially with taking place at a Baptist camp, which was really nostalgic to read. I absolutely loved how awkward and REAL Riley is, even painfully at times. This is a must read for young queer teens dealing with religious trauma, as this would have helped me a lot in my teens!

Jenna Voris the woman you are <3 When I say that Say A Little Prayer was SO MUCH FUN you know that I mean it! The chapter titles were HILARIOUS and Shrek The Musical Representation that made me giggle and kick my legs (and immediately listen to the cast album again) The aspects of religion and how queer people are treated in religious spaces were done very well and Riley’s experience with the church hit me in a lot of places and felt to earnest. I loved the funny and realistic cast of characters and strangely I loved Greer (I am a Paris Gellar fan first and a human second)

Voris explores the intersection of queerness and faith in this delightfully messy sapphic romcom, which sees one girl doing everything in her power to break the rules at church camp, while falling for her best friend, the pastor's daughter. The result is a thought-provoking yet entertaining romance filled with heart, soul, and a fair share of righteous rebellion.

Having grown up in the church and experiencing these kinds of things myself, it was scary how accurate and on point it was. Voris captures perfectly how it feels to be anything but obedient and the perfect religious girl in the church and the conflicting feelings of wanting to be a part of the church "family" and still being themselves. So glad that the Riley was able to find her way in the end and stand for herself without losing any of her determination, personality, or steadfastness.

This hit me in ways I wasn’t expecting as a queer former southern Baptist youth group kid. There were moments that had me laughing out loud and moments that made my chest hurt so bad that I had to put the book down and walk away for a while. I loved all of the characters and felt such kinship to all of them. This book has so much heart and I really enjoyed it.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

After an incident at school, Riley has a choice: either be suspended or spend spring break at the local church's youth camp. The same church that drove her family away. Riley has no desire to reenter the church's grip, but she decides she can handle it. One week at camp. Only once she has taken the bus two hours away from home and from quick escape, she learns that they will be made, every single day, to learn about the seven deadly sins and how to avoid them. But Riley makes the decision to prove that the pastor's teachings can't always be right — she decides to find ways to break every single deadly sin while at camp, in a positive way. Her plan just gets trickier when she has to face the fact that she is falling for the pastor's daughter. 

As someone who grew up in the church, and had some uncomfortable experiences at church camp, this was a healing read for me. I was nervous in the beginning, wondering what direction the book would take. While the book was sometimes irreverent, it remained respectful, and therefore powerful. It never trashed the characters' experiences, similar to the experiences that I've deconstructed but that defined so many years of my life. I cried over multiple sections of the book, as it acknowledged and worked through a lot of what I've dealt with. This book prods and examines definitions of faith & care & manipulation & fear & love. Thank you for putting into words an experience that is sometimes hard to step away from and examine. 

This is a fun and heartfelt teen camp story, at its heart, with a lovely LGBTQ love story. It is worth a read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the editors for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Say a Little Prayer was a fun read that covers serious topics. Riley and her family left the town church about a year ago, after her sister was vilified for having an abortion. Riley is bisexual and that also isn't well-regarded by church leader Pastor Young. While Riley doesn't regret the decision, it does feel complicated: her best friend is Pastor Young's daughter and a lot of the town's social happenings are tied up in the church. When Riley gets in trouble at school, her way out of suspension is a week at church camp.

The book follows a somewhat predictable arc with Riley as a likable protagonist, despite her missteps. Riley's journey in learning about herself, the layered complexities of humans, and a vindicating ending make this an easy read. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Recommended.

A bisexual junior is forced to spend her spring break at church camp with the congregation that rejected her family. Instead of living by the seven virtues (one virtue for each day of camp, of course!) she decides to go after the seven deadly sins instead…while also maybe falling for her best friend, who happens to be the pastor’s daughter.
This book has such a fresh voice and is genuinely hilarious without trying too hard or being over the top. Everything from the chapter titles to the comedic timing of the dialogue is spot on—smart, quick, and truly funny—which is so hard to do. There were many times while reading I thought, “this would make a great teen movie.” I’d love to see Say A Little Prayer adapted because it is just THAT good. Sweet, irreverent, and nuanced. Ex-church kids will feel so seen by this!

This book was absolutely incredible and something I didn’t know I needed someone to write until I read it. Growing up around the same type of setting and situations, down to the camp and games, this book really struck home for me and it was fun reading about an experience I am all too familiar with. I really really loved it. It was snarky and fun and relatable and cute.

There were parts of this book that resonated with me so, so strongly (especially as someone who grew up with church--but thankfully got out before high school). The way the author depicted the little hypocrisies of those who claim to worship God while projecting an holier-than-thou image was spot-on. The way the church and those in it rely on methods of guilt and fear to make their messages stick; the conflict that a young person faces when coming up against the wall of reality versus faith; how it's difficult to stick with faith when parts of the church believe you or your loved ones are "wrong"; but also how there's a sense of kindness and community inherit to faith that often gets lost because of some bad faith (ha!) actors. All of this was just really spot-on and spoke to an author who Gets It.

I think, though, where I struggled a bit was the romance didn't quite feel as fleshed out as I wanted it to be. I think the ending of the book both came on a bit too suddenly and also seemed to smooth things over too quickly to be satisfying.

I definitely appreciated what the author was trying to do (and what they did well), I just wanted and needed a bit more to really make it hit for me. Still recommend it, though, especially if you're someone who struggles or struggled with faith and the community surrounding it.

This book is so relatable and laugh out loud funny. Truly fantastic. Growing up in a small town church I totally relate to this book. The feelings of anger and resentment... Why does one small town pastor get to decide who we are? If we're good people?

This book met all of my expectations!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! Summer camp excitement is present, but it strikes a balance between serious content and lightheartedness to keep the topic approachable. People can relate to and believe the characters. I was a little concerned that it would be a biased tirade about everything religious, but faith is not demonized; instead, difficult problems are discussed and considered. This was a well-written, entertaining, and captivating story!