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Devoted

Jennifer Mathieu (Goodreads Author)

3.97 · Rating details · 1,630 ratings · 397 reviews

Rachel Walker is devoted to God.

She prays every day, attends Calvary Christian Church with her family, helps care for her five younger siblings, dresses modestly, and prepares herself to be a wife and mother who serves the Lord with joy.

But Rachel is curious about the world her family has turned away from, and increasingly finds that neither the church nor her homeschool e ...more

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Hardcover, 336 pages

Published June 2nd 2015 by Roaring Brook Press

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Lists with This Book

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes

Cults, Sects, and Religious Conflict for Young Adults

240 books — 169 voters

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2015 Contemporary YA

253 books — 1,372 voters

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Average rating 3.97 ·

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· 1,630 ratings · 397 reviews

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Feb 24, 2015 Emily May rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, contemporary, 2015

What is it I plan to do with my one wild and precious life?
My wild life?
My precious life?

Jennifer Mathieu has done it again.

I was really pleasantly surprised by the author's debut novel - The Truth About Alice - and the way she flawlessly crafted many different characters and their perspectives, breaking apart high school cliques and stereotypes to sensitively portray each one as a human being. Her second book is just as good.

Here she returns with a story about seventeen-year-old Rachel Walk What is it I plan to do with my one wild and precious life?
My wild life?
My precious life?

Jennifer Mathieu has done it again.

I was really pleasantly surprised by the author's debut novel - The Truth About Alice - and the way she flawlessly crafted many different characters and their perspectives, breaking apart high school cliques and stereotypes to sensitively portray each one as a human being. Her second book is just as good.

Here she returns with a story about seventeen-year-old Rachel Walker - a girl who has spent her whole life devoted to God and preparing to be a good wife and mother. But when Rachel finds a blog from a girl who "escaped" their church, she starts to question everything she's been told about her reason for being alive. Suddenly, Rachel wants more; wants to be more. But what will she have to lose to get it?

This book could have easily turned into another scare story about religions, but the author handles it in a subtle way that works very well. I always find it hard to believe in those stories where girls are brought up devoutly religious, believe they should be subservient to their husbands and then overnight throw off their modest clothing and become full-blown feminists. Unfortunately, it's rarely that simple.

Mathieu shows that. And, though I am personally not religious, I appreciated the way she distinguished between believing in God and organized religion. Oh, and it was interesting to discover that Rachel's religion is very real - I even had to go look up the Quiverfull movement after reading because I was so curious.

Rachel herself is a very sympathetic character. Despite our completely different circumstances, I felt that I understood her feelings about her family, her church, God, life, her new friendships and her desire for knowledge and a career. The unfairness of her situation makes the book gripping, whilst the author's knack for well-developed characters makes this more than your typical fast-paced contemporary.

Engaging, emotional and informative.

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr ...more

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Dec 06, 2014 Giselle rated it liked it

Shelves: 2015, arc-physical, from-publishers, requested-for-review, 3-star, age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-religious

An unsolicited Advanced Reader Copy was provided by the publisher for review.

Rachel is a Christian living with her ten siblings and parents, she has no time for herself. Constantly taking care of her younger siblings and being a good girl so she could be married to a boy. Her parents tell her what to do, how to act, what to think. When her curiosity gets the better of her she reaches out to someone from her community that escaped their rigid lifestyle. Only to find out she wants out to live her ...more

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Dec 21, 2018 Cora Tea Party Princess rated it really liked it · review of another edition

5 Words: Belief, family, control, friendship, living.

Release Day Book Review: Devoted by Jennifer Mathieu.

Devoted is a very emotional story, and I think it was written with a lot of care and consideration - there is nothing vilifying about region itself, it is more a commentary on some more extreme beliefs and how they can effect individuals, families, and communities.

Rachel is such a deep and complicated character, and I found it so easy to feel sympathy for her. I felt dread when she did, love ...more

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Jun 04, 2015 Annamaria rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-in-english, physical-copy-wishlist

"What is it I plan to do with my one wild and precious life? "

I devoured this book! This was not my usual read but it stuck with me in ways I didn't think were possible.

I'm an atheist, still I liked the way the author didn't shame on religion and religious people. What the book criticizes is bigotry and oppression and the way religion, if manipulted in the wrong ways, brainwashes both adult and younger people.
I loved Rachel so much, she was such a relatable character. She's part of a Calvary Ch ...more

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Jun 02, 2015 Ashley DiNorcia rated it it was amazing

4.5
I've been looking forward to this book for so long and it was definitely worth the wait.
Will write more tomorrow. ...more

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Jul 04, 2014 Louisa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, 2015-read, tough-issues, worthy-of-rereading

Jennifer Mathieu is a YA author to watch. The Truth About Alice was similarly short in length, yet both books pack such a punch you're left in a daze of "how did I not read this before?".

What might my future husband think about the fact that I've read A Wrinkle in Time three times in the past few months and that I taught myself algebra? My future husband. I've been hearing about him since I was nine or ten, a shadowy figure God will deliver to me one day. He'll want a woman who submits to his

Jennifer Mathieu is a YA author to watch. The Truth About Alice was similarly short in length, yet both books pack such a punch you're left in a daze of "how did I not read this before?".

What might my future husband think about the fact that I've read A Wrinkle in Time three times in the past few months and that I taught myself algebra? My future husband. I've been hearing about him since I was nine or ten, a shadowy figure God will deliver to me one day. He'll want a woman who submits to his authority.

Rachel is one of ten children who live in a closeted, very Christian community - by which I mean it's essentially a cult. The women are expected to marry young, be subservient and produce bundles of children. Computer time is extremely limited, TV is non-existent, they're supposed to dress chastely, interaction with the outside world is close to none, and teens who act out (e.g. read pornographic magazines) get sent to a "Christian camp", where they pretty much brainwash all the rebelliousness out of you.

But Rachel wants out. She starts having doubts about her faith, nor does she feel right about her community. When she learns of Lauren Sullivan, a girl who left the community years ago, she starts realising she could have a normal life "outside". But is it worth the risk?

The whole book took me just under two hours to read, but left a deeper mark on me than much longer novels have before. It's not really about religion. Sure, their faith plays a huge part in the way they live. But the book is more of a testament to Rachel's bravery and her journey from subservient daughter to a semi-independent young woman.

Cults are freaky. Can't escape that. On a scale of 1 to 10, Calvary Christian honestly don't fit on the higher end - certainly those from The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly or Gated are much more intense. It's interesting, though, how pronounced the theme of feminism was throughout this. I appreciate how Rachel grows into her identity as an empowered female - perhaps not fully by the end of the book, but with great promise.

I'd definitely recommend picking this up + Mathieu's debut too if you haven't already! And can we have a sequel with her and Mark and their adorable synonyms?! Pleaseeeee? ...more

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Jul 02, 2020 Büşra Öztürk rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: kitaplığım, best-of-best, favoriler

Gerçekten o kadar beklentisiz başladım ki, her şeyin üstün körü geçilip biteceğini düşünüyordum. Yazarın diğer kitabını çok fazla sevmemiştim çünkü. Ama Benim Biricik Hayatım gerçek bir kendini bulma hikâyesi. Cemaatten soğuma aşamaları, Rachel'in daha 17 yaşında o kozadan bir hamlede çıkması ve kendi hayatına, dinine farklı bir bakış açısı ile bakıp araya aracı koymadan inancını yaşamasına bayıldım. Her sayfada mi gözleri dolar bir insanın benim doldu. Öyle ki kitabın benim için dönüm noktası o ...more

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May 09, 2015 Kelly added it

Shelves: ya-fiction, read-in-2015

Rachel Walker grew up in a Duggar-like family and decides she's ready to leave. So she does. This is the story of her making the choice and the consequences thereafter.

It's respectful of the religious movement while also respectful of Rachel needing to claim her own life for herself.

This ticked all my boxes, was well-written, well-paced, and totally fills the Duggar hole in my heart. Religious cult books are my jam, but it's even more so when both the person fleeing and the belief system itsel ...more

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Feb 01, 2019 ambsreads rated it liked it

read a book in a day AND worked 8 hours at work? i am a superhero

full review to come.

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Mar 23, 2015 Layla rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya, read-2015

I don’t know how to convince you to read Devoted, but I think you should. It’s not the sort of thing I usually pick up – I do read broadly, but my favorite books are more likely to be sci-fi or fantasy than contemporaries – but I’m glad that I did, in this case.

Devoted hasn’t seemed to receive much attention so far and I’m not sure why? Because this book is an excellent, though very quiet, character study. And in addition to this, it’s beautifully written and it engages with many issues that are ...more

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Jul 18, 2020 Sibel Gandy rated it liked it · review of another edition

Bu yazarın okuduğum 3 kitabı da okuyucusuna ders verir nitelikte,akıcı, güzel kitaplardı. Yaş itibariyle o dersleri çoktan öğrendiğim için beni çok etkilemedi kurgular 😊. Özellikle 16-25 yaş arası genç arkadaşlarım daha çok sevebilecekler ve faydalanabileceklerdir sanırım.

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Jun 03, 2015 Nasty Lady MJ rated it really liked it

Shelves: ripped-from-the-reality-show, quiverfull, cults, serious-contemporaries, informative

Also see the review and others on my blog.

I think we should address the elephant in the room-The Duggars.

Even though this book tells the story who believes in a similar version of Christianity than them I’m not going to try not to limit my references to those morons throughout this review (it will probably inevitably happen though and probably a lot given the circumstances since I will be talking about the quiverfull movement).

Coming into this reading experience, my only knowledge of them was of ...more

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Apr 12, 2020 ElsaMakotoRenge rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020-reads, contemporary, favorites, non-series-novels

SO good! I thought Rachel was very likable and I loved watching her develop as her own person throughout the story. Her friendship with Lauren was so sweet and I liked that the author chose to depict both Lauren’s and Rachel’s reactions to their upbringing as reasonable. And it was great that we got to see Rachel interact with non-extreme conservative “Christians” at Mark’s family’s church. The quiverfull movement is NOT the way Christianity is supposed to be-Rachel’s belief system is much more ...more

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Jul 21, 2014 Paige (Illegal in 3 Countries) rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, favorites

See more of my reviews on The YA Kitten! my copy was an ARC I got from the publisher for review.

Diversity Rating: 0 – What Diversity?

Racial-Ethnic: 0
QUILTBAG: 0
Disability: 1 (Rachel’s mom has postpartum depression)
Intersectionality: 0

Much to the misfortune of readers everywhere who are likely finding this novel in the midst of the Duggar sexual abuse revelations, Devoted was written and came out before any of that came to light. The thought of how many ways Jennifer Mathieu could have taken apart how these kinds of things are covered up in fundamentalist Christian and/or Quiverfull communities make me swoon a little. Alas, what’s done is done and there’s no going back to add more now. What Devoted gives us is the least biased, most thoughtful examination of Quiverfull culture and the lovely of one girl’s self-driven journey to leaving that community.

Rachel is the kind of girl any readers could be if they’d been born to a different parent. One of ten children, she’s been taking care of her siblings like a mother from a young age and indoctrinated with the idea her purpose in life is to be a good helpmeet to her future husband–and there will be a husband. There is no such thing as spinsterhood or homosexuality there. Rachel’s ability to simultaneously be the Everygirl without being a personality-free blank slate makes her the ideal narrator and her journey out of her Quiverfull community comes naturally.

Sometimes, it just takes something little to escape from a toxic place or mindset. You hear a woman protest why she’s expected to wear higher necklines but men aren’t expected to not look at women’s breasts. All of a sudden, you discover feminism. Rachel’s little moment is hearing about an exiled girl who moves back to town. While trying to find out more about Lauren with clandestine computer searches (even her computer time is heavily monitered!), concerns she already had about her family’s lifestyle lead to a hard choice: go get reprogrammed at a Christian camp or leave. Rachel, with Lauren’s help, leaves.

Rachel’s personality and struggles are so real they hurt. I don’t live in a religious family like she does, but both of us have families that hold values that we don’t and we deal with so much wrong because we care about our families too much to just leave. When Rachel does leave, it tears her apart to leave her siblings—especially her thirteen-year-old sister Ruth. As hard as it is to deal with my own family sometimes, I know it would tear me up just as badly to sever all ties to them in such a way.

Devoted‘s faults lie in how it doesn’t cut deep enough. We see moments of how abuse within families and the mistreatment of mental illness is covered up and perpetuated by such fundamentalist communities, but it doesn’t touch on other problems like the lack of sex education. A story from the New Republic titled “Sexual Assault at Patrick Henry College, God’s Harvard” speaks for itself with its title and is a must-read companion to Devoted. Even before the Duggar story came out, there have been multiple cases of people in Quiverfull/fundie communities being arrested for sexual abuse or assault against children.

Rachel’s good fortune to be a heterosexual girl in a place where being QUILTBAG would be downright dangerous leaves an intriguing angle unexplored. Were there even one QUILTBAG character among the cast, so much could be done. (Honestly, Rachel comes off to me as a lesbian who hasn’t been able to discover her sexuality yet due to constant heteronormative language and teaching.) Rachel herself doesn’t recognize the lack of diversity in her community and that’s understandable, but readers will see it and know there are places Devoted is pulling punches.

Still, Mathieu’s take on the community we’re so curious about that we’ve made the Duggars celebrities for having 19 children and ~kooky customs~ is a realistic one, not the overly sensational one readers may expect at first. No sensationalism here; just natural development and evolving criticism. Fans of her debut novel The Truth About Alice will love this book too and we can all look forward to her future YA novels together! ...more

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Jan 13, 2017 Shannon (It Starts At Midnight) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2015, june-2015, read-for-review

This book was amazing. I am always so fascinated by a religious cult situation, and while the Walker family may not be in a cult in the typical sense of the word, they are clearly not in a healthy situation. The girls are treated as second class citizens, only existing to do stuff for the men and make babies. Rachel doesn’t even have much of an education, just enough so that she can teach her younger siblings. All the people in the church are kept as sheltered as possible from the outside world, This book was amazing. I am always so fascinated by a religious cult situation, and while the Walker family may not be in a cult in the typical sense of the word, they are clearly not in a healthy situation. The girls are treated as second class citizens, only existing to do stuff for the men and make babies. Rachel doesn’t even have much of an education, just enough so that she can teach her younger siblings. All the people in the church are kept as sheltered as possible from the outside world, and if they dare try to forge their own path, they’re sent to a creepy “rehabilitation” (read: Brainwashing) camp.

Rachel has heard stories of people being sent away to this camp, and has witnessed them coming back as shells of their former selves. She’s also heard that a girl a bit older than her who had left the church has recently come back to town, and her curiosity is piqued. Rachel isn’t sure what she wants or should want out of life, but she does know that being a subservient baby maker isn’t it.

This book is hard to read, in the sense that you are left wanting to punch fictional characters and can’t. This “church” treats its congregation abysmally, stigmatizes mental health issues, and basically tries to paralyze the members into submission. The families are all quite poor, since they not only try to keep away from the outside world, but have gaggles of children to care for. When Rachel wants to read a book, she is caught and has to destroy it. It’s all so painful to read about, but I was so invested in her story, there was no way I was turning away.

It’s hard to say a lot about this book for fear of spoilers, but I will say that the most amazing thing about it is that religion is not vilified in any way. There are some lovely examples of religious groups that are so kind and wonderful, and the author is so careful to show that it is not all religions that are the problem, just this particular group of extremists. I am not religious myself, but I feel that people who are will really appreciate the tone of the book. It is also not at all preachy, it is about having the right to make your own choices and to live your own life. It’s about kindness and love and family and friendship. There is a beautiful poem that is referenced many times during the story, in the best of places. I am not going to share it, because reading it in context is much better.

Bottom Line: This book is fabulous. The characters, even the ones you won’t like, seem so incredibly real. I was so mad, so sad for Rachel and felt like she was a friend. The growth of some of the characters is overwhelming, and the fact that there are some who don’t grow makes it so realistic. This book was an absolute win. ...more

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Feb 20, 2015 Sam rated it it was amazing

Shelves: e-reads, books-i-own, arc-reviews, favorites

Huge thank you to Raincoast Canada for this ARC!

I fell deeply in love with Jennifer Mathieu's first novel The Truth About Alice last year and remembered being completely enamoured by her writing. There's a raw and rich quality to her work, and she leaves the reader with so much to think about both as the story progresses and when it ends. Colour me excited when Devoted showed up in the mail, because I admit, books on religion are something that always make me a touch nervous.

Devoted is written w Huge thank you to Raincoast Canada for this ARC!

I fell deeply in love with Jennifer Mathieu's first novel The Truth About Alice last year and remembered being completely enamoured by her writing. There's a raw and rich quality to her work, and she leaves the reader with so much to think about both as the story progresses and when it ends. Colour me excited when Devoted showed up in the mail, because I admit, books on religion are something that always make me a touch nervous.

Devoted is written with honesty, kindness, and raw force. Rachel is the kind of heroine who a reader can connect with because she is someone who is being ripped a part at the seams. We can sympathize with her because she wants to be a devoted Christian woman, but she also has a strong desire to see the world beyond the walls of Calvary Christian, the commune she lives in.

And here's the thing, the book does a wonderful and respectful job of looking at both of Rachel's wants. She understands what is right and wrong about the cult she grew up in, she's sympathetic to the people she once lived with, and yet the other half of her knows that (and through discovering Lauren's blog) that there's more to the world outside of it. She wants an education, she wants to have a job, she wants more for her life than simply baring children and being a good helpmeet.

I really adored the characters in this story. Rachel's family is exceptionally frustrating, but I found myself sympathizing with them at times, particularly Rachel's sister, Ruth, who seemed the most frazzled by Rachel's abrupt departure. I also loved Lauren and how she comforts Rachel, and I love her genuine attitude towards helping her get settled into a normal life. I loved the Treats family, especially Diane, who was just so nutty and fun. Mark was a cutie too, and I liked that Mathiu didn't try to force a romance between he and Rachel, but rather went very subtle about it. This book was more about Rachel's growth, and Mark has such a sweetness about him that he wants to encourage her transition than spoil it.

So I am two for two with Jennifer Mathieu, and I know that I'll be reading more of her books as they are published. She knows how to provide such thoughtful reads, and with such a touchy topic like religion, does it with such grace. I encourage everyone to check out Devoted, simply because it's one of those books that offers a perspective often not considered, and it leaves a such a last impression. This is a tough read, but it's the kind that is also so rewarding, that you'll still be thinking about it well after it's over. ...more

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Jun 16, 2019 K. rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019, audience-young-adult, contemporary, difficult-topics, library, setting-usa

Trigger warnings: misogyny, gaslighting, mentions of domestic violence, miscarriage, psychological abuse, terrible parenting.

This book is incredibly compelling and also utterly rage-inducing. Rachel has grown up in a household and in a church where a woman's place is in the home, surrounded by as many children as possible, doing everything that her husband tells her to do and never questioning anything. The religion depicted in the story is toxic and manipulative, a version of Christianity wher ...more

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Jan 11, 2019 Hâf rated it it was ok

I was excited to read Devoted as I adored Moxie, also by Jennifer Mathieu, it was such an empowering feminist novel set in modern day America. However Devoted turned out to be rather disappointing.
I found the first 150 pages incredibly uncomfortable, I discussed the issues I had with a few friends and they agreed that they found the same topics difficult to read. Rachel's family were very toxic, they considered themselves true Christians but they were manipulative and controlling. She was raised I was excited to read Devoted as I adored Moxie, also by Jennifer Mathieu, it was such an empowering feminist novel set in modern day America. However Devoted turned out to be rather disappointing.
I found the first 150 pages incredibly uncomfortable, I discussed the issues I had with a few friends and they agreed that they found the same topics difficult to read. Rachel's family were very toxic, they considered themselves true Christians but they were manipulative and controlling. She was raised to consider herself inferior to her brothers and that her only goal in life was to become a dutiful house wife.
One issue that really angered me was that the girls must dress modestly at all times in order to..(are you ready for this?).. help men to resist their womanly charms! The girls would even turn magazines around in shops that showed a woman on the cover to help their brothers live an easy life. Rachel was shamed in front of a group of women from her Church because she had accidentally pulled on a t-shirt that had become thin and see-through in its old age. I was ready to throw the book across the room, the only thing that kept me reading was the hope that Rachel would escape.
I understand that the aim of this book was to show Rachel's journey, from being closeted in a cult-like community to becoming independent and confident, but unfortunately, I could not get passed the hate I felt for her family. Her own mother watched as she was treated unfairly, her sisters and brothers stayed silent as she was ostracized.
In my honest opinion I think this book could have been ten times better if the focus had been on Rachel's recovery. It took far too many chapters for her situation to change at all, the first half of the book was filled with belittling behaviour from her father and older sister. She was forced to destroy the one thing that gave her any joy, a simple children's book. Once Rachel had freed herself from her father's clutches, we still continued to read about the attitudes of the Church and things that had happened in the past.
By the time I reached the final page, I surprisingly actually wanted more. I wanted to read about Rachel's first day at school, her first experience of a high school hallway at home time, how she'd handle the sudden ability to do anything and everything she wanted to do. If the story had focused more on Rachel's future opportunitues, it would have been much more enjoyable to read.
Although the story began to pick up in the second half, it didn't improve enough to redeem how uncomfortable the first half was to read. It was a huge shame. ...more

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Aug 11, 2020 Tülay Tellioğlu (morrkitap) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

5/5
Yabancı yayınlarından ilk çıktığı zamandan beri dikkatimi çekmiş konusu ile içimde derin bir okuma isteği uyandırmış bir kitaptı. Yakın zamanda kimsenin okuduğu görmediğim ve hakkında pek yorum okumadığım içim tereddüt ede ede sipariş vermiştim. Fakat o da ne?! Canım Büşra kitabı almış, yemiş bitirmiş öve öve bitiremiyor. O dakikadan sonra kargo yollarını dört gözle bekledim ve kitap geldiğinde ilk fırsatta okudum. Allahım nasıl güzel ve bir o kadar da acı bir kitap! Rachel gibi güçlü bir kar ...more

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Feb 17, 2016 Rin W. Vitale rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: beautiful-story, favorites

Summary:

Rachel Walker is devoted to God. She prays every day, attends Calvary Christian Church with her family, helps care for her five younger siblings, dresses modestly, and prepares herself to be a wife and mother who serves the Lord with joy. But Rachel is curious about the world her family has turned away from, and increasingly finds that neither the church nor her homeschool education has the answers she craves. Rachel has always found solace in her beliefs, but now she can’t shake the

...more

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Aug 21, 2015 Audrey Laurey rated it it was amazing

Devoted is the story of Rachel, a 17yo girl growing up in the Quiverfull Movement who is maturing to an age where she should be prepared to be the perfect "helpmeet". Something Quiverfull women are primed for since the day of their conception (i.e. Devout unquestioning wife, mother to as many children as her womb can produce, homeschool teacher, et al).

If you are like me, you can't stop reading about the Quiverfull Movement, or the Duggar's. The brainwashing, the victims of sexual abuse taking ...more

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Feb 08, 2015 Erin Lynn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2015-aaya-a-z-challenge, 2015-ebook-challenge, arc, contemporary, netgalley-edelweiss-challenge, realistic-fiction, young-adult, wishlist, 2016-tbtbsanta

Another powerful book from Mathieu, but in a more serene way than her debut, The Truth About Alice. It's only been a few short months since I've read Mathieu's stunning debut, The Truth About Alice, but I can tell you that the synopsis for this book, Devoted, is what really pushed me to read Alice. I don't know why - because I'm not a fan of books about religion - I had to read this book, but I did. I am one hundred percent glad that I read it because it's eye-opening and beautifully troubling. ...more

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May 03, 2016 Mississippi Library Commission rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fiction, ya, staff-reads

First, let us just say that Jennifer Mathieu is on our watch list. First with The Truth About Alice, and now with Devoted, she has created powerful books about teens with which they can identify. Devoted is Rachel's journey from downtrodden, dutiful daughter to a self-confident girl who takes pride in her talents and abilities. It was a beautiful story and an eye opener to the fundamentalist Quiverfull Movement. (view spoiler) ...more

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Feb 02, 2019 Kelly rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019-reads, 2019-releases-read, arcs-read, contemporary, favorites, physical-owned, young-adult

I love books about cults and this was right up my street. Rachel lives with her family and has unknowingly grown up as part of an extreme religious cult. Watching her life change before her eyes as she realises there is more to the world was beautiful. I adore every complex part of her and her captivating story.

full review to come

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Jan 11, 2016 Veronika rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2016-favorites, all-time-favorite, cheating, contemporary, emotional-roller-coaster, female-pov, hea, high-school, all-around-exciting, super-original

Originally posted at The Regal Critiques

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

I've had my fair share of disappointments involving books with religious main characters, so to say that I was scared to pick up Devoted would be an understatement. As an atheist, I usually find it hard to form a connection with religious characters, but NOT in Devoted. This book outlived all my expectations and it had EVERYTHING I want in a Contemporary novel. Like...

A STORY THAT WA ...more

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Apr 29, 2015 Brittany S. rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemp-realistic-ya, from-pub-macmillan, ya, arc-physical-copy

A special thanks to Mary Van Akin from Macmillan for giving me a little push to read this book!
Initial Impressions 5/1/15: Wow, this book was so interesting! With the religious topic and themes, I just wasn't sure I was going to enjoy this one (usually that's something I actively avoid) but since the main character Rachel is the one in her family who is starting to "stray" from the rules of religion (or at least her religious community's beliefs), it was very easy to connect with Rachel and it A special thanks to Mary Van Akin from Macmillan for giving me a little push to read this book!
Initial Impressions 5/1/15: Wow, this book was so interesting! With the religious topic and themes, I just wasn't sure I was going to enjoy this one (usually that's something I actively avoid) but since the main character Rachel is the one in her family who is starting to "stray" from the rules of religion (or at least her religious community's beliefs), it was very easy to connect with Rachel and it was nice to be on the side that was moving away from the strict rules. It was also less focus on religion and more on the moral beliefs that her church and community prized so that worked out really well too.
It was also really interesting to read because the lines were very gray in some areas. Clearly many people will be upset reading about a group of people who are interpreting the bible so literally that it's becoming law, including the (for lack of a better word at the moment) oppression of women. But there's also the fact that religion is involved in the beliefs so it's like how far is TOO FAR. How much will we allow someone's religion to dictate their moral standards? How far can those ideas be taken before the religion becomes a cult? It was just very interesting to see how different people viewed this community and this culture and this religion.
Definitely looking forward to talking about this book more in my review! It was already on my radar but I'm really glad Mary gave me a little nudge to start it!

Review as originally posted HERE on The Book Addict's Guide 6/12/15: DEVOTED is Jennifer Mathieu’s second novel and because of my enthusiasm for THE TRUTH ABOUT ALICE, I was already a little bit interested when I had first heard of the concept from Jennifer on a Fierce Reads tour. I have to admit that my interest was there, but I wasn’t wholly convinced to pick it up but I’m so, so glad I did and I’m especially thankful that the publicist, Mary Van Akin, was there to encourage me to read it as well!

If you’ve looked into the book at all, you know that it’s about a girl named Rachel Walker who has grown up in a very Christian family and has spent her life being a good daughter and staying devoted to God… and I will be perfectly honest with you that the religious mentions and Christian themes immediately had me hesitating. I’m not a religious person (even though I went to a Catholic school for 10 years… actually, that’s probably WHY I’m not a religious person) so I tend to steer clear of any books with Christian or strong religious themes. It’s just usually not something I enjoy and it’s very hard for me to read. The wonderful thing about DEVOTED is that it’s really not a religious book. The story really revolves around Rachel and the fact that she’s starting to question everything. She still loves her family and she still loves God but all of the rules are becoming a bit much and she doesn’t feel like she’s as devoted as the rest of her family.

The religious movement featured in the book isn’t quite a cult but one character does compare it to a cult due to its strict rules and highly protective nature. It’s especially patriarchal with women being told that they’re there to start a family, be a good wife, and remain a good Christian woman, always thinking of God, their husbands, and families first. Sometimes it’s a bit hard to read — especially if you’re strongly feminist — but it’s very eye-opening and a reminder that these communities do exist and people really do follow these rules tightly.

I really, really liked Rachel’s character. So much. It’s a very difficult thing to break away from your family’s and your community’s beliefs to explore your own. As a teenager and a young adult (hell, even as an adult), I found myself forming my own opinions but still generally latching on to the ideals and principles on which my family raised me. I still share the same general opinions as my family and my husband and that’s only natural — but I really admired Rachel’s courage to push outside of her sheltered world to explore what else is out there. She has to defy her parents to do so, abandon her family, and really question everything she’s been taught in order to discover what she really and truly believes. It’s essentially starting her life completely lover and catching up to where the rest of the world is now.

I felt like this was a very character-driven book, closely following Rachel’s story and including some powerful and heart-warming stories from the people she meets along her journey. It’s definitely a quieter book but it felt so powerful and I was so emotionally invested in it. I really cared for Rachel and she became such a real person to me. There was also just something about this book — I couldn’t put it down! I was so interested and yet a bit horrified at the Walkers’ religious practices but witnessing Rachel’s struggle to rebel against her parents as a teenager but in such an atypical manner was truly fascinating. I definitely felt compelled by her story and I’m so glad I got to read it!

If you’ve gotten this far in my review, I really hope that means you’re considering picking up the book! Please don’t let the religious nature scare you away. I promise you that it’s not something I’d ordinarily pick up either but the story is so interesting and the characters are so wonderful… you would really be missing out to pass it up! I’m so glad I was reassured that reading it was the right choice and I really hope the spark has now caught you too! DEVOTED was such a well-crafted and powerful book and you can bet that I’m picking up anything that Jennifer Mathieu writes here on out, regardless of topic. She knows how to handle these enormous and yet sensitive topics in just the perfect way and I look forward to reading more of her work in the years to come!
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Dec 17, 2018 Kate (Reading Through Infinity) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: feminism, ya

Jennifer Mathieu knocks it out the ball park again with another feminist triumph. This is about a young girl, Rachel, who grows up as part of a born again Christian sect, but begins to question the oppressive elements of her religion. The narrative is emotional, insightful, and sensitive in its discussion of radical religion. Rachel, as a main character, is easy to warm to and sympathise with. She's gentle and kind, but has formidable inner courage that I really liked. After having been told wha ...more

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Sep 23, 2014 Drew rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, christian, contemporary

4.5

Devoted is a quiet, moving, and eye-opening book by the author of the spectacular novel The Truth About Alice. It really was unlike anything I expected, and I think the summary gives you the wrong idea. I thought this was going to be a Christian-hating book about a girl who turns her back on her faith, and for that reason I wasn't interested in reading it, but I'm so glad I gave it a try because it completely took me by surprise.

I'm not sure if Jennifer Mathieu is a Christian or not, but I lo ...more

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Apr 23, 2019 Sarah rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 STARS

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Thank you to Hachette Australia for providing me with an unsolicited ARC to review. All thoughts are my own.

Trigger Warnings: Emotional and physical abuse, miscarriage, depression and anxiety.

Well where do I start… This book took a long time for me to read – why you ask? Religion.
Religion is something that I struggle with personally and Devoted focuses on it throughout the whole novel. Throughout the first half of Devoted religion is wielded as a scare tactic, it is used t ...more

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Feb 20, 2015 PinkAmy loves books, cats and naps rated it it was amazing

5 of 5 A++++

At age seventeen, Rachel Walker begins to question the strict rules of her fundamentalist puritanical church, where fear and shame are preached from the pulpit and at home. She's homeschooled, prevented from reading books other than textbooks and the bible. When rumors that a troubled girl named Lauren is back in town, Rachel sneaks onto the computer and finds Lauren's blog about running away and leaving the church she calls a cult. For the first time, Rachel imagines a life where sh 5 of 5 A++++

At age seventeen, Rachel Walker begins to question the strict rules of her fundamentalist puritanical church, where fear and shame are preached from the pulpit and at home. She's homeschooled, prevented from reading books other than textbooks and the bible. When rumors that a troubled girl named Lauren is back in town, Rachel sneaks onto the computer and finds Lauren's blog about running away and leaving the church she calls a cult. For the first time, Rachel imagines a life where she's free to read books, and learn, where she isn't subservient to men and where she can become something other than a wife and mother. But, if Rachel gets caught emailing Lauren, she might just be sent away to a christian labor camp where she'll be brainwashed into submission.

I felt like I won the ARC lottery when I received the email from Net Galley this morning saying I was selected to read DEVOTED, Jennifer Mathieu's second book, in exchange for my honest review. I postponed my todo list and hunkered down with my Kindle and my cat. I normally never read books with religious backdrops, but after Mathieu's stunning debut THE TRUTH ABOUT ALICE, I wanted to read everything she wrote, including her grocery list.

A few pages into reading, realized DEVOTED wasn't a story with religious themes, but a breathtaking coming of age novel about family, loyalty, judgment, independence and what we owe ourselves vs what others tell us we owe them. The first half of the book reads with the level of intensity of a good thriller. I found myself holding my breath, worried at any minute Rachel would be caught using the computer and when caught would she be beaten, shamed in front of the church or sent away to labor camp. While the second half was purposely less intense, the pace was still fast, because I couldn't wait see what happened next. Rachel is an incredibly complex and easy to fall in love with from the get go. DEVOTED is very much a character study on her coming of age. Lauren is also multilayered, full of anger at her former church and full of love in mentoring Rachel. Rachel's family were more one dimensional, though each of her nine siblings had unique qualities, including her closest sister Ruth.

I would give DEVOTED more than five stars if I could. DEVOTED has my highest recommendation. Mathieu's sentences practically sing off the pages in the way that made me feel sad when I knew the end was near. I wanted the story to go on and on, already hoping that there could be a follow up. I'm eagerly awaiting her next book, which she's probably/hopefully still writing. Thanks again to Net Galley and Mathieu for this beautiful story and opportunity to read it early. ...more

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About Jennifer Mathieu

Jennifer Mathieu

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I'm a high school English teacher, writer, wife, and mom who writes books for and about young adults. My novels include MOXIE, THE TRUTH ABOUT ALICE, DEVOTED, and AFTERWARD.

My fifth novel, THE LIARS OF MARIPOSA ISLAND, will be out in September 2019.

My novel MOXIE will soon be a movie for Netflix directed by none other than Amy Poehler! It has a special Tumblr I adore that you can check out at www ...more