Mercy

Mercy lives in Arbor Falls, a small town with a curse. Nothing ever grows, except a dark moldlike substance that creeps into the crevices of every home and building and spreads more prominent in homes of the “core curse families”—the descendants of those who were involved in a grisly murder that took place in the town over half a century ago. The exact details of the murder-suicide that ended in a house fire are unclear, but members of the curse families end up dying in mysterious ways while profusely apologizing. For this reason, the families have nicknamed the curse the Sorrowing. Mercy is the latest descendant of one of these families. When another family moves back into town, she ends up working with the oldest son to find out the truth of what happened that fateful night in the 1950s and to possibly free the town of its curse. This murder mystery with a supernatural twist falters with pacing, taking a long time with exposition and struggling to build suspense throughout the novel. Teen readers may also scoff at the characters’ use of texting and social media, as not only is it not an accurate portrayal of how most young people use them, but it sometimes even begs the question whether the author is familiar with how these platforms work. Readers from Mediterranean backgrounds might find it jarring that a half Italian, half Lebanese character from Italy is one of the curse’s most vocal skeptics, with no mention of the vast amount of traditions in both cultures around bad luck and curses.