I am officially a Deesha Philyaw fan. I don't often pick up short story collections, but this was phenomenal. From the first page of each story - and the first line of some - you are heavily invested in these characters. So much so that it's a delight when some of them reappear later on in the collection. Each story gets better and better, despite starting off strong already - like every new year should... I can't wait to see what Deesha Philyaw gives us next.

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies is a compelling fiction debut from a promising author. As the title suggests the stories in this collection are centred on Black women who have complex relationships to their church and to God. In a concise and stirring prose Deesha Philyaw explores the lives, desires, and fears of her characters, focusing on the friction between their beliefs—often instilled by their parents or communities—and their sense of self. Philyaw captures Black girlhood and womanhood, showing the importance of female solidarity and human connection. While not all of the stories have a contemporary setting, the topics Philyaw touches on are still relevant: race, faith, sexuality, sex, love, family, belonging. Fraught mother-daughter relationships appear in more than one story, and it is a sign of Philyaw's writing skills that she is able to portray each woman (be it the daughter or the mother) with nuance. Philyaw, similarly to Danielle Evans, who simply excels at writing short stories, balances moments of poignancy with humour (I simply loved the grandmother in 'Dear Sister').
The dialogues, settings, and ideas depicted in these pages are vividly rendered. My favourite stories were 'Dear Sister', 'Peach Cobbler', 'Snowfall' (this one was a heartbreaker), and 'How To Make Love To a Physicist' (the style in this one is really fun). The other stories are certainly enjoyable and well-written did not strike me as the ones I've just mentioned.
I would definitely recommend this to fans of authors such as Danielle Evans and Zalika Reid-Benta and I am looking forward to Philyaw's next book.

ps: rereading this made me appreciate it even more. There is something about Philyaw's prose that I find deeply captivating.

So well written a book women will share with friends.Each story a gem from the first story on I was totally involved glad it is receiving awards .I’m looking forward to more by this author.#netgalley #secretlivesofchurchladies.

I blitzed through this book over the weekend as I just could not get enough. Light and witty I enjoyed every second. I really hope there is a sequel. I'll be recommending this to people for years to come. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was so good. I wish the book was longer. I want there to be a sequel to this collection. The characters were so vivid to me.

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw is an astute and nuanced short story collection about women and their desires and relationships.