Review: Sinner by Sierra Simone

Possible spoilers present. Read at your own risk.

Sinner was a complex book.

It caught me off-guard how complex it was. From the teasers I knew it was a DIRTY book, and my girl Sierra can write some scandalous stuff. I was anticipating the dirty, but what Sierra gave me was so much more than that.

Sean Bell is a conflicted person. He is self-depreciating at times. He loves his family, and tries to be the best eldest son that he possibly can. Sean also has a love-hate relationship with God. He blames God for taking someone important away from him. He has no place for a God who continues to make him suffer.

Enter Zenny. A young woman who is on the precipice of promising herself away to God. To the same God that Sean actively hates. Zenny was sure, where Sean was undecided. She knew what she wanted from life at a very young age, and she had worked towards that goal ever since. She was confident that nothing could sway her from becoming a nun, but Zenny did want to experience some things before she signed herself away to service to God. And who better than to experience it with, other than Sean. Her elder brothers best friend. A man more than a decade older than her. A man who is a self-proclaimed manwhore.

This book was at times hard to read, because of Sean's internal conflict. It resonated within me, because Sean's conflict was something that many others have gone through, including myself. I felt at times Zenny was teaching Sean, and what surprised me was how open he was to that. He didn't condemn her for her choices, and Zenny was staunch in her beliefs. At times she was the one that took control of the relationship, and Sean let her. It was beautiful to read.

This book was heartwrenching, it was sexy (as per Sierra's norm), and it was extremely articulate. I felt like Sierra put exactly what she thought onto paper fro this book.

I think Sinner will stay with me for a long, long time.