Wise Blood (by Flannery O’Connor)

Wow, what a book. It's like a characteristic O'Connor short story writ large, with its Southern gothic themes, its complex take on religious faith and grace, its impeccable dialogue and descriptions, its unsympathetic characters, and its dark humor.

Wise Blood had its origins in a series of O'Connor's short stories, and this sometimes shows--certain chapters read like standalone vignettes and it's a bit choppy. But that's only a minor issue when a novel has this much depth -- it was amazing discussion fodder for our League of Unreliable Narrators book club.