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Kirkus Reviews

Byhlesbrown

A Well-written, Effective Story

A gay Roman Catholic clergyman faces the sharp scrutiny of a homophobic dignitary in Brown’s novel, the fourth in a series.

This narrative details a particularly turbulent week in the life of Sean Foley, a beloved elder bishop in the Diocese of San Luis Obispo. Foley is best known for selflessly creating, developing, and sustaining the Life Force church group program, which supports at-risk local youth in his jurisdiction. At the age of 75, with retirement imminent, he looks back on a distinguished tenure and his life as a recovering alcoholic and survivor of child abuse.

… Vivid flashbacks generously depict Foley’s chaotic youth as the son of an abusive, homophobic father. These sequences add texture to the core themes of LGBTQ+ unity and equality and lend heft to the protagonist’s challenging mission to finish out his current position.

Employing convincingly realistic dialogue, an urgent plot, clearly motivated characters, and a breezy writing style, the author does an admirable and entertaining job of politicizing the Catholic priesthood experience with melodramatic flair and buzz. Brown’s memorable novel compassionately imparts themes of spirituality and love, examining how they intersect in modern life. A well-written, affecting story of justice and love amidst the rigid strictures of conservative religion.

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  • Luis J.

    Byhlesbrown

    That line in your blurb about Bishop Sean Foley facing an accuser who was “judge, jury, and executioner” made me stop mid-scroll like, “Alright, who brought courtroom thunder into the Vatican?” The tension between Foley and Cardinal Nwadike reads like someone took faith, politics, secrets, and emotional landmines, mixed them together, and said, “Good luck, reader.” I could practically hear the walls of Rome whispering.

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    Frank G. Dunn

    Byhlesbrown

    Randy, the acolyte, is bright, earnest, honest, talented, and very naive. With a deep sense of vocation to the priesthood, he learns that being gay is just one of many challenges to be met. Bullies, teen suicide, betrayal, family dysfunction, and having to fend for himself bring out his sterling qualities and his shadows as well. But nothing tests him quite so sharply as learning the truth about Michael, his first deep love. This coming-of-age story is Brown at his finest.

  • Ben R.

    Byhlesbrown

    There is something deeply magnetic about We Are Not Saints: The Monk. From the first encounter with Jeff Hensen’s journey, I felt the weight and wonder of a story shaped by struggle, faith, and the fierce search for meaning. The emotional clarity of his inner battle, the stark honesty of his wounds, and the quiet strength of his perseverance create a narrative that feels both raw and luminous. The way the book blends spiritual reflection, moral tension, and human vulnerability gives the story a living pulse that stays with the reader long after the final line.

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    Frank G. D.

    Byhlesbrown

    Intriguing PageTurner—Absolutely brilliant. Les Brown tells a story that is complex, multi-layered, full of strange landscapes as divergent as organized crime and monastic life, yet one so well crafted that the reader becomes engrossed in it, unable to put it down. Intriguing PageTurner—Absolutely brilliant. Les Brown tells a story that is complex, multi-layered, full of strange landscapes as divergent as organized crime and monastic life, yet one so well crafted that the reader becomes engrossed in it, unable to put it down.