'Devoted' by Jennifer Mathieu

[NachosFlandersStyle]

This was mentioned in the Cynthia Jeub thread, but I can't be the only one here who's been up into the wee hours devouring this book. Since the author is from a mainstream background I was worried that it would just rehash stuff I've seen here, or that it would read like exploitation. But I thought it was very well done and did a good job humanizing the issue. I can't speak to the realism of the family dynamics, but I've known quite a few ex-believers just like Lauren. And while I don't read teen novels very often, I thought the teenage feelings were really relatable, even though I've never been in any similar situation. Anyone else have thoughts?

[DaffyDill]

Sounds like a good book. There are pretty good reviews here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22718682-devoted

Must add it to my list. :D

[FundieFarmer]

I'm there with you. I bought it in the morning and had finished it by mid-afternoon. It's a quick read (if you read quickly, I guess) and was really good. I agree that for a YA book, it was actually very well-written for adults as well.

[elizasc]

Thanks for the suggestion

[December]

Just started reading it myself. Seems good so far... Not inaccessible to adults even if it's YA. Probably generating more publicity than it might've considering the Duggar scandal too.

[authorlady]

Hi! I'm actually the author of Devoted, Jennifer Mathieu, and I want to thank everyone for reading my novel. :-)

I've actually been a longtime lurker on this site as I've been fascinated (in some ways, obsessed!) with the Duggars and QF culture for years - I've just never posted. After reading Kathryn Joyce's book Quiverfull: Inside the Christian Patriarchy, I knew I wanted to write a young adult novel set in the QF world.

In my research for the book, I interviewed several young women who were raised QF, and their openness and willingness to share their experiences helped me tremendously. Actually, this site helped send me to the sites of active QF families, and that assisted me in my research as well.

I'm glad this book is resonating with adults, too. I have actually met several adult women who have read the book who were raised in similar lifestyles and who appreciate the story.

Thanks so much for reading!

[FundieFarmer]

Hi! I'm actually the author of Devoted, Jennifer Mathieu, and I want to thank everyone for reading my novel. :-)

I've actually been a longtime lurker on this site as I've been fascinated (in some ways, obsessed!) with the Duggars and QF culture for years - I've just never posted. After reading Kathryn Joyce's book Quiverfull: Inside the Christian Patriarchy, I knew I wanted to write a young adult novel set in the QF world.

In my research for the book, I interviewed several young women who were raised QF, and their openness and willingness to share their experiences helped me tremendously. Actually, this site helped send me to the sites of active QF families, and that assisted me in my research as well.

I'm glad this book is resonating with adults, too. I have actually met several adult women who have read the book who were raised in similar lifestyles and who appreciate the story.

Thanks so much for reading!

Hi!

I came to the book by Cynthia Jeub. Her review spurred me to read in order to get a better picture of what she experienced leaving. It echoed very much the stories of the FLDS women who have escaped. As I said upthread (and in an Amazon review! :lol: ) I very much enjoyed the book, and found it applicable across many ages.

I'd love to know (if you can answer!) if any of the families we discuss here were particularly influential in the book, and if you have any families you enjoy or still follow?

Nice to "meet" you!

[RosyDaisy]

Hey, Jennifer, thanks for dropping by. My young niece just bought your book, and I'm going to as well.

[roddma]

I don't have the $9.99 for Kindle edition now, but will keep it in mind.

[authorlady]

Fundie Farmer, thanks for reading and for posting an Amazon review! Those really help. (By the way, I've read three FLDS memoirs and found them fascinating and disturbing.) Rosy Daisy, I'm glad your niece bought the book, and I hope you enjoy it, and Roddma, the good thing about books is they never go anywhere, so it will be waiting for you when you are able to get it. :-)

I spent a lot of time reading about the Jeub Family, the Wallers, the Bates family, and of course, the Duggars. Vyckie Garrison of No Longer Quivering was super helpful via her site. The young woman who was my biggest source on this book comes from a family of nine and they were part of Sovereign Grace Ministries...

Cosmo magazine ran an interview I did with her on their website:

http://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainme ... interview/

She is now overseas as part of the Peace Corps, and she doesn't really like to talk about her QF childhood anymore...she has moved on and I'm so so so proud of her. I dedicated Devoted to her because she was such an enormous resource and she made sure I hit the right notes.

I'm very curious as to what will happen with the QF world now that the Duggar abuse scandal has erupted...there are many QF kids who were raised in the 80s and 90s when the Christian Patriarchy movement was really taking off (after Mary Pride's book and just this whole reaction to feminism, progressive stuff of the 60s and 70s), but they are coming of age now and telling their stories. Homeschoolers Anonymous and other groups are speaking out. Curious to see what will happen.

[roddma]

I thought of writing similar fiction. I did write a short story, though not especially about QF. There are all kinds of cults.

[December]

Finally had time to sit down and finish the book... it was really great! Once I got going, I couldn't put it down till I finished. I think it did a good job putting Quiverfull and all that other stuff into context for a younger reader, while still making the novel accessible through the typical YA theme of finding yourself. Wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone on FJ!

Jennifer, thanks for stopping by! I will leave an Amazon review later when I have a moment. Any plans to write a follow-up book, or is this planned as a stand-alone?

[authorlady]

December, thanks so much for reading! And thanks so much for recommending it, too. :-) Amazon reviews are super helpful - thank you for that as well!

Right now, this is planned as a standalone. Without giving away any spoilers, in earlier drafts I did keep following Rachel past the end of DEVOTED, but it became clear to me that that's really it's own story. Much of it depends on sales...if DEVOTED does okay, my publisher might be open to a sequel. I'd love to write about her again - and the other characters, too...and I have to decide what happens to Ruth. My editor and I have conflicting opinions about that. ;-)

Again, thanks for reading and spreading the word!

[anniebgood]

I just got my book today and I am already 1/2 way through. It's so interesting to be inside her head and know that she's destined for more than a life as a brood mare. Will read more after it cools down a bit here.

You are a very good author and I will give the book a good review at Amazon and Goodreads when I am finished.

[authorlady]

Anniebgood, thank you for reading! Glad you're enjoying it! And thanks for the Amazon review...they really help. :) Goodreads, too.

[azombieatemyshoelace]

I read this book and loved it. I also enjoyed the author's first book, which I was lucky enough to get to review before the book even came out.

[apandaaries]

December, thanks so much for reading! And thanks so much for recommending it, too. :-) Amazon reviews are super helpful - thank you for that as well!

Right now, this is planned as a standalone. Without giving away any spoilers, in earlier drafts I did keep following Rachel past the end of DEVOTED, but it became clear to me that that's really it's own story. Much of it depends on sales...if DEVOTED does okay, my publisher might be open to a sequel. I'd love to write about her again - and the other characters, too...and I have to decide what happens to Ruth. My editor and I have conflicting opinions about that. ;-)

Again, thanks for reading and spreading the word!

Hey there, Jennifer! I just ordered Devoted the other day and found it awaiting me upon return from vacation. I plan on reading it with my 11 year old daughter. She's accustomed to my weird focus on strange religious cults, so this should be fun. :D Thanks for getting this out there! I'm hoping more and more of the truth of these ideas held by strange cults can be exposed to the mainstream.

[anniebgood]

Anniebgood, thank you for reading! Glad you're enjoying it! And thanks for the Amazon review...they really help. :) Goodreads, too.

Just posted the review to Amazon and to Goodreads. I loved the book. I was cheering for Rachel, crying for Ruth, and thanking God for the Treats. I'd love to see another book picking up when Rachel picks a college and starts an entire different kind of learning. I was so aggravated at her father and her mother, perhaps one day in a different book they'll meet on neutral ground due to a tragedy in the family. (My uncle disowned my cousin when she married a man of color and she was only allowed to come home when her mother was dying, because her mother in law called her father and told him what a controlling asshole he was and who was he to deny her the right to see her mother under such circumstances. He caved. And oh were the tables turned when his pride and joy son married a woman from Togo that he met in the Peace Corps.)

Ah I got OT and there ya go. Thanks for such a great read.

[crawfishgirl]

I just finished the book. I enjoyed it - it felt strange to read a book that has the same terminology that is used on the fundie blogs, though that's the point of it. It was a good glimpse into the life of these fundie daughters, and how difficult it is to break away from this suffocating lifestyle. For some reason, I thought of the Maxwells while reading it, and even though they seem to have more money and don't attend an actual church, the atmosphere in the home must be similar.

I'll be writing a good review on Amazon and Goodreads.

[anniebgood]

I gave the book to my mom, who's 90. She said do people really live like that? She said she thought that kind of crap went out of fashion. Mom says what she means. She was one of 9 with a Baptist father and a Methodist mother, and they went to an EUB church because they couldn't find a church either of them liked. She said it was one of her favorite books of the year.

[Guest]

I read this book in a couple of days (despite having finals over the summer and two young children), I just could not put it down. It was SO GOOD. Please write a sequel, Jennifer! I'd love to see what happens to the characters next!

[salsa]

so glad to learn about this book! I often read (or re-read) YA fiction for my bedtime reading; YA is about the level I'm awake enough to read... ;)

[HarleyQuinn]

I just started reading this. It's kind of amazing to see some of the things we snark on so much here in that book.

Sweet Fellowship

Helpmeet

Cheerful continence.

Modest.

:lol: