Mercy House

by Alena Dillon Narrated by Dawn Harvey, Catherine Ho, Scarlette Hayes, Eboni Flowers, Caitlin Kelly, Bahni Turpin

Overview

“A life-altering debut featuring fierce, funny, and irreverent women who battle the most powerful institution in the world. This is the book we've all been waiting for.”-Amy Schumer

She would stop at nothing to protect the women under her care.

Inside a century-old row house in Brooklyn, renegade Sister Evelyn and her fellow nuns preside over a safe haven for the abused and abandoned. Gruff and indomitable on the surface, warm and wry underneath, little daunts Evelyn, until she receives word that Mercy House will be investigated by Bishop Hawkins, a man with whom she shares a dark history. In order to protect everything they've built, the nuns must conceal many of their methods, which are forbidden by the Catholic Church.

Evelyn will go to great lengths to defend all that she loves. She confronts a gang member, defies the church, challenges her own beliefs, and faces her past. She is bolstered by the other nuns and the vibrant, diverse residents of the shelter-Lucia, Mei-Li, Desiree, Esther, and Katrina-whose differences are outweighed by what unites them: they've all been broken by men but are determined to rebuild.

Amidst her fight, Evelyn discovers the extraordinary power of mercy and the grace it grants, not just to those who receive it, but to those strong enough to bestow it.

Editorial Reviews

FEBRUARY 2020 - AudioFile

Alena Dillon’s debut novel reveals the inequities and injustices wrought by the misuse of power. Stellar performances by an amazing cast peel away layers of pain, abuse, rage, and distrust. Three Catholic nuns in Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy neighborhood run a shelter for women brutalized by the men in their lives. Bishop Hawkins, who believes their work offends Catholic doctrine, is determined to close the house. He butts heads with Sister Evelyn, beautifully portrayed by Dawn Harvey. With her own dark secrets, Evelyn protects the women in her charge as fiercely as a mother tiger. We hear horrific tales from Mei-Li (Catherine Ho), Lucia (Scarlette Hayes), Desirée (Eboni Flowers), Katrina (Caitlin Kelly) and Esther (Bahni Turpin), and each woman’s story is delivered with heartbreaking honesty. Absolutely riveting. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Publishers Weekly

01/27/2020

Dillon’s stirring, fiery debut pits a fearless nun’s full-throated cri de cœur against the abuses of predator priests and domestic violence. In Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Mercy House offers shelter to battered women and girls. A 69-year-old nun named Sister Evelyn (“Evie”) cares for them with two other older nuns, Sister Josephine and Sister Maria. Evie will stop at nothing to protect the sheltered women, and when an abuser shows up at Mercy House with a gun, Evie torches him with flame-lit Lysol. After a surprise visit from Bishop Hawkins, who had sexually assaulted Evie when she was a novitiate in the 1960s, she rightfully fears that he will try to use his authority to shut down Mercy House because of the Lysol incident and other infractions. Evie butts heads with Josephine over her decision to help a rape victim get an abortion, and receives censure from Hawkins for performing Reiki, lamenting how little she can do against a church that has always placed women below priests. Dillon balances her protagonist’s righteous anger with an earnest exploration of Evie’s faith and devotion to justice and community service. This uncompromising story will light up book clubs. (Feb.)

From the Publisher

A life-altering debut featuring fierce, funny, and irreverent women who battle the most powerful institution in the world. This is the book we’ve all been waiting for.”
— Amy Schumer

"Never underestimate the power of a group of women. Fierce, thoughtful, and dramatic—this is a story of true courage." — Susan Wiggs, New York Times bestselling author

“In Mercy House, Alena Dillon gives us one of fiction’s more unlikely lovable heroines: elderly, dynamic Sister Evelyn, whose tale—and that of her housemates—is as unexpected as it is moving. This is a thoughtful, accomplished debut.” — Therese Ann Fowler, New York Times bestselling author of Z, A Well-Behaved Woman, and A Good Neighborhood

“[A] stirring, fiery debut...Dillon balances her protagonist’s righteous anger with an earnest exploration of Evie’s faith and devotion to justice and community service. This uncompromising story will light up book clubs.” — Publishers Weekly

"...Dillon's debut novel is heartwarming to its core. With a widely diverse cast of supporting characters, author Dillon brings Bed-Stuy to life. Realistic in scope and pious without being preachy, Mercy House will appeal to fans of Naomi Ragen's The Devil in Jerusalem (2015) and Autumn J. Bright's Lovely (2017)." — Booklist

"Dillon’s debut novel is heartwarming and easy to read, it never glosses over the history of abuse and sexism in the Catholic church...Those interested in religious fiction will also appreciate a simple narrative tackling complex church events. Perfect for reading groups." — Library Journal

"For fans of Ann Patchett’s The Patron Saint of Liars or Maile Meloy’s Liars and Saints, Mercy House is a must-read." — San Francisco Book Review

Susan Wiggs

"Never underestimate the power of a group of women. Fierce, thoughtful, and dramatic—this is a story of true courage."

Booklist

"...Dillon's debut novel is heartwarming to its core. With a widely diverse cast of supporting characters, author Dillon brings Bed-Stuy to life. Realistic in scope and pious without being preachy, Mercy House will appeal to fans of Naomi Ragen's The Devil in Jerusalem (2015) and Autumn J. Bright's Lovely (2017)."

San Francisco Book Review

"For fans of Ann Patchett’s The Patron Saint of Liars or Maile Meloy’s Liars and Saints, Mercy House is a must-read."

Amy Schumer

A life-altering debut featuring fierce, funny, and irreverent women who battle the most powerful institution in the world. This is the book we’ve all been waiting for.”

Therese Ann Fowler

In Mercy House, Alena Dillon gives us one of fiction’s more unlikely lovable heroines: elderly, dynamic Sister Evelyn, whose tale—and that of her housemates—is as unexpected as it is moving. This is a thoughtful, accomplished debut.

Booklist

"...Dillon's debut novel is heartwarming to its core. With a widely diverse cast of supporting characters, author Dillon brings Bed-Stuy to life. Realistic in scope and pious without being preachy, Mercy House will appeal to fans of Naomi Ragen's The Devil in Jerusalem (2015) and Autumn J. Bright's Lovely (2017)."

FEBRUARY 2020 - AudioFile

Alena Dillon’s debut novel reveals the inequities and injustices wrought by the misuse of power. Stellar performances by an amazing cast peel away layers of pain, abuse, rage, and distrust. Three Catholic nuns in Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy neighborhood run a shelter for women brutalized by the men in their lives. Bishop Hawkins, who believes their work offends Catholic doctrine, is determined to close the house. He butts heads with Sister Evelyn, beautifully portrayed by Dawn Harvey. With her own dark secrets, Evelyn protects the women in her charge as fiercely as a mother tiger. We hear horrific tales from Mei-Li (Catherine Ho), Lucia (Scarlette Hayes), Desirée (Eboni Flowers), Katrina (Caitlin Kelly) and Esther (Bahni Turpin), and each woman’s story is delivered with heartbreaking honesty. Absolutely riveting. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172952142
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	02/11/2020
Edition description:	Unabridged

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