What do readers think of The Devoted by Blair Hurley? Write your own review.

The Devoted is a strange tale of a woman's attempted journey toward self-discovery and independence. The author tells the story of Nicole Hennessey's journey through the lens of her rejection of Catholicism while growing up in Boston during the height of the Church's sexual abuse abuse scandel to her embracing Zen Buddhism for spiritual fulfillment only to later be molested by her roshI or Zen Master. The story is both ironic and tragic in its telling. Even though the story evolves around Nicole's attempt to end the abuse, she seems self destructive in her attempt. And, the author wraps up the story in a way you'd want for an outcome but it seemed to me to be too abrupt and discordant in a way. While enjoyed learning about Buddhism and the author's writing, I just couldn't resonate with the character or the story.

Enter the world of extremely impressionable Nicole Hennessy and find yourself in an environment of uncertainty, one in which not a single character is happy. Nicole, her brother, her mother, her Zen master, acquaintances, are all in search of an elusive "something." Nothing about this book is appealing or redeeming; I read to the end hoping to find something to like but never did in this rambling novel. Plot elements include the mystical worlds of Catholicism and Buddhism, seduction, depression, guilt. The Devoted by Blair Hurley is definitely not a book I would recommend to anyone.

I did try to like this book. The premise is intriguing although I would argue that Buddhism is a major religion and not a cult. However, Nicole never came alive for me and neither did the Master. Unfortunately, I only made it 1/3 of the way through the book before giving up on it. Hurley's descriptions of Boston were excellent.

I just could not get into this book. I didn't care about or connect with any of the characters. I thought the storyline was boring right from the start. I tried several times to read this, but it was a struggle every time.

I struggled to finish this book and wanted to bail several times. I usually like a character trying to find their way and lots of family drama, but this one just didn't resonate with me.