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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
This was my first time with a BOTM and it was amazing! I typically don’t pick up literary fictions, but I really loved this book and found parts of each character resonating with me throughout.
This was a fascinating story about life itself. The nuance, the little details that make us human, and how we deal with our own humanity. I found myself underlining and rereading impactful moments throughout the book.
I’ll leave it with one quote that really hit me: “[I wonder] if that was how life passed by, trading wounds through handshakes and family dinners and regret.”
This was a fascinating story about life itself. The nuance, the little details that make us human, and how we deal with our own humanity. I found myself underlining and rereading impactful moments throughout the book.
I’ll leave it with one quote that really hit me: “[I wonder] if that was how life passed by, trading wounds through handshakes and family dinners and regret.”
This books has been calling to me since it released. I’m so glad I finally got around to reading this complex family drama. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Its slower pace and detailed character study was exactly what I didn’t know I needed. I also loved references to places I know well having lived in the greater Pittsburgh region for around 7 years. 4.75 stars. Really loved this one, so close to (and may become) a 5 star read for me as time passes and I reflect more.
“Here was the moment she waited for and she wanted to give it back.”
Let me first say I was not compensated for my review.
Mercury is a well-developed wonderful read with fleshed out characters. I enjoyed the simple writing style and how quickly I connected with the characters and the story. The story is about a dysfunctional family—gritty, raw and complex. The Joseph family are looking glass selves basing themselves on how they think Marley sees them, and using that conclusion to justify the choices they made —or make. I enjoyed how well the surprises and revelations were woven in. I also admire how she wrote about how mental illness was handled after the Vietnam War, also how the family managed it. This story kept me captivated from the beginning to the end. I will be looking for more books from this author! Highly recommended.
Let me first say I was not compensated for my review.
Mercury is a well-developed wonderful read with fleshed out characters. I enjoyed the simple writing style and how quickly I connected with the characters and the story. The story is about a dysfunctional family—gritty, raw and complex. The Joseph family are looking glass selves basing themselves on how they think Marley sees them, and using that conclusion to justify the choices they made —or make. I enjoyed how well the surprises and revelations were woven in. I also admire how she wrote about how mental illness was handled after the Vietnam War, also how the family managed it. This story kept me captivated from the beginning to the end. I will be looking for more books from this author! Highly recommended.
Despite only being 316 pages, this was the longest book I’ve ever read. Maybe it was bc there was 6 main characters? Maybe it was bc the body found in the church attic has nothing to do with the story at all? Maybe it’s the incessant timeline jumps? Maybe it’s because you get the background story of the remaining 4 main characters in the last 30% of the book? Either way, I’m tired. 3 stars
A beautiful and emotional story about deep family roots and relationships. I loved so much about this book. It was slow, heartbreaking, and familiar in all the best ways. Looking forward to reading more from Amy Jo!
Mercury was the first book I finished in 2024 and what a great start! I loved every moment of this character driven novel. I loved Amy Jo Burn's first novel, Shiner, and this sophomore novel was even better for me.
Set in Mercury, Pennsylvania, Maryley West comes into town and the first thing she observes is a group of men on a roof. Her life quickly intersects with these men, the Josephs. Soon, she becomes a part of their life, marrying one brother, becoming a sort of mother to another and a guiding light for the rest. When tragedy strikes the family is forced to reckon with their current situation and Marley is pulled under their ambivalence. A few years later another circumstance arises which draws all the tensions of this family to the surface.
This is extremely character driven but at the same time I turned the pages so quickly wanting to know who the plot would resolve. Marley is such a beautiful character amidst such hard things, and the Joseph brothers all were so deeply flawed, yet so expertly crafted. This family will be embedded in my heart for a long while. Burns is so good at writing complex characters and I thought she knocked this one out of the park.
Set in Mercury, Pennsylvania, Maryley West comes into town and the first thing she observes is a group of men on a roof. Her life quickly intersects with these men, the Josephs. Soon, she becomes a part of their life, marrying one brother, becoming a sort of mother to another and a guiding light for the rest. When tragedy strikes the family is forced to reckon with their current situation and Marley is pulled under their ambivalence. A few years later another circumstance arises which draws all the tensions of this family to the surface.
This is extremely character driven but at the same time I turned the pages so quickly wanting to know who the plot would resolve. Marley is such a beautiful character amidst such hard things, and the Joseph brothers all were so deeply flawed, yet so expertly crafted. This family will be embedded in my heart for a long while. Burns is so good at writing complex characters and I thought she knocked this one out of the park.
Slow burn family drama with rich characters that hooked me, but sort of meandered at the end. I wish it would have ended 50 pages earlier.
slow-paced
It was the most okay-est okay read I have ever read. I don't remember anything major happening and the story was just okay. The family drama was fine, when the suspenseful scenes happened I could feel my heart race a bit but then it would go back down and i would find myself almost bored with the rest of the story. Just an okay story, it feels repetitive to say but that's all there is.
This was outside my usual reading genres but I loved it. A slow-moving, mostly character driven family drama in the 1990s Pennsylvania Rust Belt.
“Men do things, and women apologize for them.”
Marley moves to Mercury, Pennsylvania with her mother prior to her senior year in HS. Almost immediately, she’s part of the Joseph family - Mick, Elise, Waylon, Baylor, and Shay - but is she really?
“What did it mean, Marley wondered, to be married to one Joseph, but wife or mother to them all?”
Weaving in mystery, commentary on family roles, motherhood, and loyalty, Mercury is certainly a book that will stick with me for a long time.
I received an advanced reading copy, receipt of which did not impact my review.
“Men do things, and women apologize for them.”
Marley moves to Mercury, Pennsylvania with her mother prior to her senior year in HS. Almost immediately, she’s part of the Joseph family - Mick, Elise, Waylon, Baylor, and Shay - but is she really?
“What did it mean, Marley wondered, to be married to one Joseph, but wife or mother to them all?”
Weaving in mystery, commentary on family roles, motherhood, and loyalty, Mercury is certainly a book that will stick with me for a long time.
I received an advanced reading copy, receipt of which did not impact my review.
