Mercy

My Rating: 4 stars


I really enjoyed reading Mercy. It was a compelling read with great characters and a strong plot.

The book begins with Mercy awakening in the body of an insecure teenager called Carmen, who is on a trip to Paradise in a music program. For Mercy, this is nothing new, because she repeatedly finds herself 'soul-jacking' different girls; sharing their bodies and controlling their minds and actions. She has been a young mother, an abused girlfriend and a wealthy, spoilt girl. It is implied that this is a form of punishment, although the reader does not find out what her wrongdoing is. Not knowing her own identity, she calls herself Mercy, in hope that someone takes mercy upon her and ends her suffering. The one thing she remembers is Luc, who is her love, inhibits her dreams and tries to find her as she is forced into different people's lives around the world.

Back in her currently host body, Mercy arrives at her host family, the Daleys, who are depressed and still grieving their daughter, Lauren Daley who was kidnapped from her bedroom two years ago, never to bee seen again.

Ryan Daley, her twin brother still continues to search for his sister, believing that she is still alive. From some intuition, Mercy realizes that he is right and begins to help him find her.

Meanwhile, Mercy is bullied by her some of her peers in the music program, due to her small body and teenage eczema but also due to angelic voice being the envy of others.

Throughout the book, Mercy stands up for Carmen, and deals with her peers and settles into her new life. She also develops a friendship with Ryan, which clues at future romance.

This book is full of suspense and mystery, and it kept me properly engaged and impatient for the next one. There is an obvious background story to this series, one which I cannot wait to explore. And although I felt unsure of Luc being a good character, I loved the others, especially Mercy. She had great depth and her narration was concise and wholly satisfying. Being in those different lives and bodies makes Mercy sound sage and intelligent, both old and young. Her able character and astute personality set her apart from other YA heroines, making hers a great story.

The mystery of the missing girls and Mercy's own being constituted into making an engaging novel for all YA readers and I cannot wait to read the others. Rebecca Lim has written an amazing story and I cannot wait to read her other works.