Heathen is such a culturally specific word, I immediately wanted to read this. This novel reads like a story passed down from your grandmother or favorite auntie and Mia McKenzie does a beautiful job painting a vivid portrait of Atlanta’s middle- and upper-class Black communities in the 1960s, capturing both the beauty and the constraints of the time.

While abortion is central to the plot, the story also thoughtfully explores the lives of Black queer people who were forced to live in secrecy and the underground communities they built to find safety and acceptance.

One of the strongest elements for me was how Doris’s faith is challenged. I appreciated the ways we got to she how her beliefs were challenged and began to evolve

I wished we had gotten more insight into the woman Doris ultimately became beyond antidotes.

Huge gratitude to NetGalley and Random House for the advanced copy. I’m so thankful I got the chance to read this early—because it’s not just a novel, it’s a necessary conversation, a quiet revolution, and a beautiful coming-of-age all rolled into one.

Set against the backdrop of 1960s Georgia, we meet Doris Steele—a 17-year-old Black girl growing up in a deeply religious, working-class community. When she finds herself pregnant and certain she’s not ready to raise a child, she turns to the only adult she feels safe confiding in: her teacher, Mrs. Lucas. With limited choices in her small town, Doris asks for help, and Mrs. Lucas agrees to take her to Atlanta for an abortion. What begins as a quiet weekend away unfolds into a life-altering experience.

Over the course of just a few days, Doris steps into a world she never imagined existed. She’s exposed to privilege, to queerness, to radical ideas, to people living boldly in their truths—and to the energy of the Civil Rights Movement as it pulses through the city. For a girl taught to stay small and obedient, it’s the first time she begins to truly question what she wants, what she believes, and what kind of life she might actually build for herself.

Mia McKenzie’s writing is electric. From the first few lines, I felt like I was right there beside Doris. Her voice is sharp, smart, funny, and honest—filled with just enough attitude to make you love her instantly. Every person Doris meets feels vivid and real, each encounter gently peeling back another layer of her world. While the themes explored—racism, bodily autonomy, sexuality, faith, and more—are weighty, they’re handled with thoughtfulness and compassion. Nothing felt heavy-handed or overwhelming—just honest and deeply human.

The story moves with purpose but never rushes. Watching Doris grow, question, and shift felt so natural—it didn’t feel like reading a book, it felt like witnessing someone find their voice. And honestly? I think this might be added to my favorite reads 2025 list. Given everything happening in today’s political and cultural climate, this book feels both deeply personal and incredibly relevant.

This was my first time reading Mia McKenzie’s work—and only my second historical fiction of 2025—but it left an undeniable mark on me. Bold, moving, and deeply human, this is a story I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

This was nice with a very motivating message about what it truly means to do what you want. We follow a loyal Christian girl named Doris, as she discovers she must have an abortion, (we never find out who the father is which annoys me), and she goes to her old teacher and asks for help. This sets off a chain of events that and introduces Doris to people who she never thought she would meet.

I enjoyed reminiscing with Doris and this past look on the weekend and moment that it all changed for her. This time spent made her want more and know that she has the choice to want what ever in life.

In the end, I enjoyed this and was happy with the story and message of this.

Do yourself a favor and get this book. It will definitely be in your top reads of the year, trust me! These Heathens followed 17 year old Doris Steele as she and her teacher went to Atlanta for a weekend. However, this wasn’t a vacation; Doris needed an abortion. Doris had no idea that this would be one of the most important and life changing weekends that she would ever experience. Can you imagine chance encounters with MLK Jr, Coretta Scott King, and Malcolm X? Over this fateful weekend, Doris came into her own and learned that what she wanted for her life was far more important than what everyone else thought. She was also introduced to another aspect of society: what it’s like to be black and queer in the south. Doris came face to face with her own judgmental and homophobic views and realized that at the end of the day, love is love. These Heathens was also hilarious and kept me engaged and entertained throughout the entire book. The side characters in this book also made the story for me. They are very important to Doris’ growth and give her some very good advice. Prepare to be transported to Atlanta for a very interesting weekend. Add this one to your tbr if you haven’t!

This book surprised me in all the best ways (I didn't read the premise). I loved everything from the 1960 celeb cameos, Black queer underground, nuances of progressive thought, the narrator and how important her voice was and is. Heavy topics, Mia McKenzie’s humor. Amazing book.

This one is powerful, raw, and unforgettable. It follows a tight circle of friends whose seemingly unbreakable bond is tested when a long-buried secret resurfaces after a death. Emotions snap, loyalties shift, and every character has to face who they really are.

The writing is fierce and unfiltered—intimate, sometimes raw, and always true to the complexities of friendship, identity, and grief. You’ll feel every fragment of love and hurt as the layers peel back.

If you're drawn to intense, character-driven stories about what holds us together—and what tears us apart—this one hits hard and stays with you long after the last page.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of These Heathens. This book had such an interesting premise with a mix of queerness, Civil Rights movement, humor and found family. I enjoyed how unique the story was. There were times in the middle where it seems to lose its way with the main plot, but overall it was tied together quite nicely and the main character was very likable and relatable.

Heathen: A rude uncouth ill-bred person lacking culture or refinement.

The heathens, and there are many of them in the story, These Heathens, may fit the definition of heathens but they are far from it. They are characters you will fall in love with and respect. They are black men and women just trying to live their best lives in Atlanta in 1960.

Mia McKenzie wrote an incredible book about being black in the 60’s. These Heathens is about how one weekend changed Doris’s life forever. It focuses on how we must all be true to ourselves and put ourselves first. That is truly the only way to live life happy.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I am not sure I would have ever read this if it wasn’t for exploring books on NetGalley.

These Heathens follows Doris, a 17-year-old girl living in a tiny town in Georgia, over one life-changing weekend. Although she's been raised to be pious and follow orders, Doris finds herself in a difficult situation...she's pregnant and she doesn't want the baby. She has little to no options until her favorite teacher agrees to take her to get an abortion in Atlanta.

When they arrive in Atlanta, Doris sees other kinds of lives. Exposed to the Civil Rights Movement, feminism, and homosexuality, Doris realizes that not everything should be decided by someone else. She has the power of choice.
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While the topics discussed in this book are heavy and incredibly important, this book is also hilarious. This is a coming of age story that comes alive on the page, following Doris during her life-changing weekend.

Mia McKenzie is able to create a fully fleshed out character and story with plenty of room to show growth and a better, unknown future.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A beautiful coming of age story of a seventeen year old Black girl in 1960s Georgia who travels with a teacher to Atlanta for an abortion, and spends a crazy weekend considering the forced obligations to others that her identity places on her and imagining what more she could want out of life. The questioning and detangling of religious teachings is where this book really shines.

What I loved most about this coming-of-age story were its powerful themes of sisterhood and the importance of having a village.

We follow seventeen-year-old Doris, a poor Black girl from rural Georgia who finds herself pregnant. Refusing to simply accept her fate, Doris bravely reaches out to her favorite teacher, Mrs. Lucas, for help. Together, they travel to Atlanta to spend a transformative weekend with Mrs. Lucas’s best friend.

Over the course of the weekend, Doris is faced with pivotal choices that force her to confront questions of love, identity, social injustice, and womanhood. I especially appreciated how the story centered Black women supporting one another and explored the nuances of autonomy and self-determination in the Jim Crow South.

There were moments when I had to remind myself that Doris was only seventeen—she often carried herself with a maturity beyond her years. My only critique is that the weekend felt a bit too eventful; at times it stretched believability that so much could unfold in such a short span.

Pick this one up if you’re a fan of coming-of-age stories and narratives that celebrate women’s autonomy and the strength of community.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

A story about a girl with a highly sheltered and religious upbringing grappling between what she was always taught as Gospel truth and what Her truth is! This is a book set in the 1960s in Georgia (mainly Atlanta), where 17 year old Doris is struggling with the intersection of her faith and social issues. When she gets pregnant and goes to Atlanta for an abortion, we see her entire worldview open up and change as she realizes a lot of the beliefs she was told to have might not feel right for her. She encounters all sorts of “heathens” (civil rights activists, gay people, partiers, etc) and grapples with that throughout the story.
I found it so interesting and cool to see her tolerance and acceptance and excitement change throughout the book and I also thought it was a really good way to express the important of being pro choice.
I’m glad I read this and highly recommend to everyone!!!

Let me just say, These Heathens by Mia McKenzie completely blew me away. I picked it up not quite sure what to expect. I mean, that title alone is a whole mood. But wow, it was sharp, bold, and deeply emotional in a way that really snuck up on me.

From the first chapter, I was hooked. McKenzie has this incredible voice that feels so real. It's raw but also funny, defiant, and often painfully honest. The characters felt like people I know or people I could run into on the street. They're complicated, messy, and brilliant. And the way the story unfolds? It doesn't follow a neat little narrative with a happy ending. It challenges you. It asks hard questions, especially about family, identity, and justice.

There were moments when I had to pause and just sit with what I read. Other times I was laughing or shaking my head thinking, “I cannot believe she just wrote that, but I’m so glad she did.”

It’s not an easy read emotionally, and it's definitely not the kind of book you breeze through without thinking. But that’s what I loved most about it. It made me feel things. It made me think. And by the end, I had that bittersweet feeling where you’re proud of the characters for surviving what they’ve been through, but also a little sad to let them go.

If you're into stories that are fearless and deeply rooted in truth with characters who feel like they're living and breathing right off the page, These Heathens is absolutely worth reading. Mia McKenzie did something really special with this one.

I absolutely loved this!! A powerful setting and characters. The plot was a bit thin at times but didn’t take me too much out of the story.

With a witty voice and a vivid sense of place, These Heathens is a spirited exploration of how the radical decision to act on your desires can change your life.

Doris’s decision to get an abortion brings her to Atlanta in the 1960s, where she’s the guest at a Sylvia’s house (her first foray into the sphere of a wealthy black family). In the course of one weekend, she connects with atheists, leaders of the civil rights movement, her favorite teacher’s queer community, and several celebrities, who show Doris it’s possible for someone like her to choose her own path.

With a sarcasm that’s not dry, but hysterically juicy, Doris renders her (strong) opinions as she experiences a renaissance of worldview. Initially scandalized by the “inverts” and “heathens” crawling all over Sylvia’s house, Doris eventually comes to look up to them for their boldness.

I found These Heathens so fun and heartfelt. The setting in Atlanta at this pivotal time in history was fascinating. I would recommend it to anyone who loves historical fiction, witty prose, or queer drama.

From the synopsis of the story, These Heathens, had me hooked into obtaining a early copy for review. I honestly didn’t know what to expect going into the novel, but was pleasantly surprised by what I found.

McKenzie crafts a very engaging narrative of a coming-of-age story set during the Civil Rights era while also highlighting events from the past. Doris, our main character, comes from a small town in Georgia and has her worldview opened up when she spends time in Atlanta. Coming from a sheltered and very religious background, she is shocked by the “heathen like” behavior of people that live in the big city. It’s a a spin on the fish-out-of-water take that force Doris to question everything she’s ever known and sit with her discomfort of her narrow-minded view. Throughout her journey we are treated to a colorful cast of characters that ground the novel in realism, but also offer depth to themes of the story.

The novel touches on many serious topics but does so in a way that opens itself to larger discussions about race, sexuality, identity, and abortion. Doris has to face the dilemma of being her own woman and finding out what that means to her. Her one-on-one moments with other women in the story give her a hope for the future instead of the limited life she’s been giving during many quiet moments of conversation in the novel:

“When you think about it. Men can give their lives to a cause, or they can keep their lives for themselves. It seems to me that women don’t get to choose that way , because our lives already belong to everyone else. We’re obligated to our mothers and fathers, our husbands and children, to everyone before ourselves. Our lives are never really ours, to give away or to keep.”

As a whole what made this reading experience so memorable for me what that it was so humorous. Doris is a well-written fleshed out leading lady with snark and witty banter that rivals many of her encounters in the novel. I was surprised at how much I laughed throughout the book. I feel like that is the definite strength of McKenzie’s writing of how she is able to balance humor with serious topics throughout the novel. I enjoyed every moment of the story and my only complaint is that the novel ended to soon for my liking.

I would recommend this to readers who love historical fiction, stories with heart, and a journey of self-discovery. I will definitely be seeking more of Mckenzie’s writing going forward.

This historical fiction novel was exceptional. The inclusion of LGBTQ+ themes, even with a non-LGBTQ+ protagonist, provided valuable context. The portrayal of prominent civil rights leaders during the movement's peak was insightful. The author's humanization of Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife was particularly compelling. The protagonist's journey, including her experience in Atlanta while seeking an abortion, was both engaging and impactful. I completed the book in a single sitting and highly recommend it. I eagerly anticipate future works from this author.

2.5 ⭐️. this was a thoughtful taste of the 1960's civil rights movement from the pov of a young girl. while I did really love the vibes & energy of this story, I felt like the historical characters weren't utilized well and that the female main character acted in ways that felt so out of character towards the end of the book.

ty to random house publishing group & netgalley for an advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book felt very unique to me! It's a historical fiction story, but it highlights a lot of current topics like abortion and queerness. I really enjoyed the storyline of Doris learning so much when she left her small town, and I identified with that as someone who grew up in a small town and then went off to college and learned a lot.

I loved how the story wove in historical characters and also that the other characters were multi-layered, even in a relatively short book.

The plotline with Erik felt a little random to me, and parts felt like we flipped to that pretty quickly, but I think McKenzie did tie it all together in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book!

Skye Falling was one of my favorite books in 2021 so I was super excited to see that Mia McKenzie had a new book coming out and this one did not disappoint. From early in the book I was so invested in the characters and I loved how she wove together so many social issues seamlessly while still feeling readable and interesting.