My heart pounds so hard I worry the whole room can hear it. I press myself against the cold stone wall at the very back of the recreation hall, habit pulled tight around me, trying to disappear into the shadows. The senior sisters sit in a loose cluster near the front, laughing softly as the old projector flickers to life. Novices are strictly banned from movie night. I know this. I should have stayed in my cell like a good little nun-to-be.

But the loneliness has been eating me alive for weeks. The four of them—Sister Maria, Sister Elena, Sister Lucia, and Sister Rosa—have made sure of that. They trip...