You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Merit is your average teenage girl with average teenage angst. She has a family that doesn’t communicate and it all comes to a head about 2/3 thru the book. It was lighthearted and not as romantic as her other books which was nice.
Without Merit was not my favorite CoHo novel. I appreciated the message in it regarding mental heath issues, but I feel like she missed the mark. Merit was a generally unlikable character and the end felt too rushed and clean cut. The story itself isn’t bad and it was a quick read so it got 3 stars from me.
Merit Voss collects trophies and secrets that she doesn't deserve. While browsing the local antique shop for her next trophy, Sagan caught her eye. As his wit and unapologetic idealism disarm her, she finds renewed life inside her until she discovers that he is unavailable. After learning a secret, no trophy can fix, Merit retreats into herself and watches her family from afar.
Getting fed up with the lies, Merit shatters the illusion of a happy family she's never been a part of before leaving them behind. Merit's escape plan fails, and she must deal with the devastating consequences of telling the truth and losing the boy she loves.
There is nothing good about this book. The book dealt with mental illness, sexuality, suicide, abuse, and even the Syrian refugee crisis, AND it had a romance, too. All of them were poorly done.
The story revolves around Merit Voss and her family. Because their father cheated on their sick mother, they live upstairs in a renovated church with their father and stepmother. The sick mother lives downstairs in the basement. It is not surprising that Merit retreats more and more into herself as she feels further alienated from her siblings—especially her older brother, Utah, and twin sister, Honor.
One day, Merit gets kissed by a hot dude named Sagan. When she reciprocates, she realizes she has been mistaken for her twin and kisses Honor's boyfriend. To make matters worse, she cannot stop thinking about him. Even worse, shortly after, Honor moves Sagan into the Voss household.
There is a difference in writing between creating well-rounded, complex, and unlikeable characters and just creating self-centered, obnoxious characters. Voss and his family certainly behave like assholes in this book, but it is all pardoned and forgotten without consequence.
I dislike more things about this book. The characters' actions are often selfish and hurtful, yet they are never held accountable. This lack of consequences undermines the story's credibility and makes it difficult to sympathize with them. Additionally, the plot feels disjointed, with certain events feeling rushed or unresolved, leaving readers frustrated and unsatisfied.
Ultimately, the lack of accountability and disjointed plot make this book frustrating and unsatisfying read.
Getting fed up with the lies, Merit shatters the illusion of a happy family she's never been a part of before leaving them behind. Merit's escape plan fails, and she must deal with the devastating consequences of telling the truth and losing the boy she loves.
There is nothing good about this book. The book dealt with mental illness, sexuality, suicide, abuse, and even the Syrian refugee crisis, AND it had a romance, too. All of them were poorly done.
The story revolves around Merit Voss and her family. Because their father cheated on their sick mother, they live upstairs in a renovated church with their father and stepmother. The sick mother lives downstairs in the basement. It is not surprising that Merit retreats more and more into herself as she feels further alienated from her siblings—especially her older brother, Utah, and twin sister, Honor.
One day, Merit gets kissed by a hot dude named Sagan. When she reciprocates, she realizes she has been mistaken for her twin and kisses Honor's boyfriend. To make matters worse, she cannot stop thinking about him. Even worse, shortly after, Honor moves Sagan into the Voss household.
There is a difference in writing between creating well-rounded, complex, and unlikeable characters and just creating self-centered, obnoxious characters. Voss and his family certainly behave like assholes in this book, but it is all pardoned and forgotten without consequence.
I dislike more things about this book. The characters' actions are often selfish and hurtful, yet they are never held accountable. This lack of consequences undermines the story's credibility and makes it difficult to sympathize with them. Additionally, the plot feels disjointed, with certain events feeling rushed or unresolved, leaving readers frustrated and unsatisfied.
Ultimately, the lack of accountability and disjointed plot make this book frustrating and unsatisfying read.
I love Colleen Hoover books, but this one wasn't my favorite. The writing style was great as always, but it felt like there were too many issues introduced, and there wasn't enough attention paid to the resolution of each one. I also didn't connect with any of the characters--by the end of the book, I felt like I still didn't know much about Merit at all.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
I was given this book from a good friend of mine who enjoyed it very much and I must say, I enjoyed it quite a lot as well! I was not expecting to like it as much as I did.
The writing was very well done, giving just enough details to make you interested, but still read more. But that is not why I gave this four stars, it was the twists and events that happens! I cannot say how many times I have said “wait, what?”, “OMG” or “I was not not expecting that!”.
I would highly recommend it for sure!
The writing was very well done, giving just enough details to make you interested, but still read more. But that is not why I gave this four stars, it was the twists and events that happens! I cannot say how many times I have said “wait, what?”, “OMG” or “I was not not expecting that!”.
I would highly recommend it for sure!
if i could go back and stop myself from reading anything by colleen hoover, i would. my bad guys. i genuinely don't like almost all of her books!!!
new rating: 2.75
------------
This book was literally so good!!! The first 80-ish pages were decent, but the rest were absolutely incredible.
The twists continually kept me invested & i finished in mere days! A solid 4 stars for sure!
The only thing that was questionable to me was luck & utah... iykyk.
Also SAGAN>>
HE'S LITERALLY SO AMAZING AND MY NEW FAV COHO CHARACTER. The lil book he made for moby
new rating: 2.75
------------
This book was literally so good!!! The first 80-ish pages were decent, but the rest were absolutely incredible.
The twists continually kept me invested & i finished in mere days! A solid 4 stars for sure!
The only thing that was questionable to me was luck & utah... iykyk.
Also SAGAN>>
HE'S LITERALLY SO AMAZING AND MY NEW FAV COHO CHARACTER. The lil book he made for moby
dark
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
it is a fun wild read.
I loved the characters, the dynamic of the book, the plots, the interaction between them was funny. I fairly enjoyed it.
I loved the characters, the dynamic of the book, the plots, the interaction between them was funny. I fairly enjoyed it.
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes