You guys know I’ve been reading a ton lately, gobbling up all of the recommended books my library could give me, and I was intrigued by the chance to read and review a book being released this March.
The Unraveling of Mercy Louis is about Mercy, a small town basketball star, Illa, the tiny, invisible manager of the team, an event that almost destroyed the town three years ago, and the witch hunt of the town’s girls after a disturbing discovery is made on the last day of school. It takes place in Port Sabine in Southeast Texas, on the bayou and border of Texas and Louisiana…a place I know a little about since at least three of my close friends live in the area, and switches back and forth between the points of view of Mercy and Illa.
Keija Parssinen’s writing is intelligent and thoughtful, forcing the reader to think along the way, getting wrapped up in the setting and the characters. Only in the very first transition between the first person Mercy chapters and the third person Illa chapters did I pause…the rest of the transitions were easy, thanks to Keija’s graceful writing. Mercy truly is the center of the story, and her “unraveling” sends Illa and the rest of the residents of the town into a tailspin, while the relationship between Mercy, the town’s golden girl, and Illa, the manager that idolizes her, evolves unexpectedly and significantly.
Mercy Louis examines what it’s really like to be family….not just your blood, but the family you make with friends and a close-knit, hard-working team idolized by the town. What lengths do you have to go to to choose your own path when your life is defined by the pressure placed upon you and the town’s expectations swallow you whole?
Would you like to win a copy of The Unraveling of Mercy Louise for yourself? (Of course you do!) Just leave me a comment below with your favorite genre of books or what you’re reading now to enter. I’ll choose a winner at random on 3/11!
I received a copy of the book to review, but all opinions are 100% my own. For more cars on the book review train, check out what Andrea of Good Girl Gone Redneck and Nicole Leigh Shaw had to say, and go over to Julie C. Gardner’s place tomorrow.
My review is next week! I have some different thoughts about the book 🙂
Glad you enjoyed it!
Man! It's hard to wait to read everyone's review. I want to know NOW!
🙂
Wonderful review – thank you so much for taking the time to participate Greta! xo
I love mystery, thrillers, historical drama, etc. I am currently reading Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and am loving it!!!
I'm intrigued since it's set in the area near where I live! Lately I've been reading whatever people suggest on Goodreads. 🙂
I love that you pointed out the focus on family – that's it not just blood you're born into, but the family you create for yourself.
I loved the title more and more and everyone, everything and the story unraveled!
This is very cool…I wish I could just get paid for reading books 🙂 I'm in a memoir phase right now and there's a huge stack of library books calling my name.
I love to read fiction novels. However, during my commute to work I like to listen to autobiographical humor like David Sedaris. I am currently reading The Wolves of the Calla, Stephen King's 5th installment in the Dark Tower series.
Oooh, this looks like a good one! I have a stack of books on my desk to read, hundreds in my Goodreads queue, and I keep reading about new books that people are reviewing and loving. This is one for me to add to my list.
I want to read that book! I've been having a really hard time picking anything lately, nothing seems to really be that interesting – this one sure sounds like I would enjoy it though!