A spellbinding confession of what it means to abandon one life for another, The Devoted bristles with psychological and erotic tension.
“She comes early, wet with rain, and confronts him in the back hall of the Zendo. ‘I need to know some things,’ she says. ‘You better come in,’ he says, and holds open the door …”
Nicole Hennessy’s life revolves around her Zen practice at the Boston Zendo, seeking spiritual solace in the tenets of Buddhism. After a decade of grueling spiritual practice under her master’s tutelage, living on a shoestring as a shop clerk, Nicole has become sexually and emotionally entangled with her mentor. To break free, she must retrace her entire life’s journey—from her strict Irish Catholic upbringing to her drug-fueled year as a teenage runaway. Even as she reinvents herself in New York City, her master’s intoxicating voice pursues her, whispering dangerously in her ear. Somehow, he knows everything.
A hypnotic and daring debut, The Devoted asks what it takes, and what you’ll sacrifice, to find enlightenment.
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“Hurley’s outstanding first novel tells an engrossing tale about a young woman seeking a spirituality that can only be found within herself…All lovers of great fiction with complex characters as well as anyone fascinated by narratives about religious cults will want this insightful story.”
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Library Journal (starred review)