Page 112 ~ “Most girls would just start a burn book.”
Rating: 4/5
Forgive us, Father, for we have sinned.
Brooklyn Stevens sits in a pool of her own blood, tied up and gagged. No one outside of these dank basement walls knows she’s here. No one can hear her scream.
Sofia Flores knows she shouldn’t have gotten involved. When she befriended Riley, Grace, and Alexis on her first day at school, she admired them, with their perfect hair and their good-girl ways. They said they wanted to save Brooklyn. They wanted to help her. Sofia didn’t realize they believed Brooklyn was possessed.
Now, Riley and the girls are performing an exorcism on Brooklyn—but their idea of an exorcism is closer to torture than salvation. All Sofia wants is to get out of this house. But there is no way out. Sofia can’t go against the other girls . . . unless she wants to be next. . . .
Page 112 ~ “Most girls would just start a burn book.”
I think this quote definitely sums up how I feel about this book. This was definitely an exhilarating read. This whole book just screams “Mean Girls meets Stephen King.” Where the group of popular girls tries to save the weirdo. They believe she’s been possessed by a demon and try to perform an exorcism on her. But their exorcism is more like torture.
Now when I say “Mean Girls meets Stephen King” I literally mean just that. The Merciless feels like Mean Girls went horror. Immediately after I started reading it, everything felt familiar. The entire set up and all. If you aren’t familiar with Mean Girls, it’s where there’s a new girl, who then befriends the “weirdo,” then she’s asked to sit with the “popular girls” in this case known as “The Plastics,” lastly she’s then invited to join the popular girls’ group. After this, the “weirdo” convinces the new girl to keep being friends with the “popular girls” so they can laugh at all the stupid stuff they say and do.
The Merciless feels like Mean Girls went horror. Immediately after I started reading it, everything felt familiar. The entire set up and all.
The set up for this book is very similar, almost the same in fact. Sofia is the new girl, she’s invited to sit with the popular girls, then is invited to join their little sisterhood. The only difference is she hasn’t quite befriended the “weirdo” yet. And unlike Mean Girls where the weirdo convinces the new to continue being friends with the popular girl, the popular girls ask the new girl to befriend the “weirdo” so they can understand why she’s so odd and “what happened to her.”
See doesn’t it sound familiar? This comparison definitely made this book more entertaining for me to read. There were even similar character comparisons to the individual popular girls. There was clearly a “Regina” and a “Gretchen.” Even the description of their hangout sounded just like Regina’s room, including the wall of pictures.
This book reminded me of one of my recent reads, The Wicked Deep. Not by content but by how it was written. The majority of this book is filled with secrets, but most of them that come to light are quite obvious. Creating a lack of surprise. Yet even though most of the events, actions, and secrets were obvious, it was still entertaining to read. I never felt bored, there was always something going on. I was completely captivated by the story, I wanted to know how it ended.
The majority of this book is filled with secrets, but most of them that come to light are quite obvious. Creating a lack of surprise. Yet even though most of the events, actions, and secrets were obvious, it was still entertaining to read.
One thing that really helped me enjoy this book was that I knew it was a series and the second book was about Sofia, the third about Brooklyn. Not fully sure about the fourth book. I didn’t know anything beyond their focus on the different characters.
Overall, I felt this book to be a unique and entertaining read. I definitely want to read the rest of the series. Hopefully, it’ll answer some of my remaining questions. We’ll have to wait and see! This book flowed super well, there was never a dull moment. I never felt bored. I think if you are a fan of Mean Girls and enjoy horror books, you’ll enjoy this one! I know I did! Keep reading for more of my thoughts on The Merciless!
Warning! Spoilers :)
Back on the secrets, like I said the majority of the secrets that came out were kind of obvious to me. Including Brooklyn actually being possessed. The only secret I didn’t expect was that Sofia was also possessed. Everything else I expected, but Sofia’s secret, was actually shocking.
There were definitely some parts of the book that left me confused. When Sofia’s secrets were exposed, and we learned she too is possessed. Why is her Grandmother only then saying “Diablo” to her? I initially thought she got possessed when she got Brooklyn’s blood in her mouth. In fact, she was already possessed. Was the demon just dormant and unseen by her Grandmother until Brooklyn’s failed exorcism? Otherwise, her Grandmother wouldn’t just now be saying it at the end. It definitely raised some questions.
There were a few details that left me disappointed. Such as the tale of the Quetzalcoatl. Sofia made it seem so important. Yet we were never told more about it. It seemed so prominent because Sofia kept drawing it. I would have liked to hear more about that tale or the tale that her Grandmother told her.