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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Sexual harassment
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
17yo main character named Merit. Her twin sister is Honor. Brothers Utah and Moby. Uncle is Luck. Boyfriend is Sagan. Dad is Barnaby with two wives named Victoria. Their family is very unusual. Merit is depressed and she misreads the situations around her. Her family isn't as messed up or malicious as she thinks, and after they talk through their issues, everyone is much happier.
Weird family. Not happy with how all the problems stemmed from misunderstandings. The ‘with merit’ tattoo was lame.
Despite all that, this was a page turner that I finished in two days.
Weird family. Not happy with how all the problems stemmed from misunderstandings. The ‘with merit’ tattoo was lame.
Despite all that, this was a page turner that I finished in two days.
There's something so addicting about Colleen Hoover's writing for me, to the point where I might not even be enjoying the book but I still can't put it down! That's quite the gift, truly. Even though her books are hit and miss for me, and even though the synopsis of "Without Merit" didn't fully intrigue me, I was willing to give it a shot in the hopes that I would be gripped for the duration of the experience. And I was! I read it straight through, and by my status updates, it is evident that I was enjoying every minute. But then it ended, and I didn't write my review right away, and I had time to mull over my thoughts, and I realized there were some things that just didn't work for me.
One of the main problems I had was with Merit. I feel like she was merely a product of her environment and the events that happened to her, and that other than buying trophies at antique stores, she herself didn't have much of a personality. I suppose that could have been a byproduct of her depression, which is totally realistic and understandable, but it also makes it difficult to connect with her because she's so bland. Merit is not as smart as her older brother and twin sister, she's not popular like her twin, she's not athletic, she's not interested in anything and she has no future ambitions. She doesn't have a part-time job, she doesn't volunteer, and she's not part of any committees or extracurricular groups. She hasn't applied for college, and she may not even graduate. No hobbies or friends are introduced. I get it, she's depressed and it's hard to get excited about anything when you're in that frame of mind, her family is completely unconventional, and a horrible thing happened to her when she was younger. I understand all that, and I appreciated Merit's sarcastic and snarky attitude, but at the same time, I had a hard time liking her. I especially had a hard time believing Sagan would want to take her on with all her emotional baggage just because of one fountain kiss when he didn't even know who she was! Unless Sagan is just one of those guys who wants to be a knight in shining armor and rescue the damsel in distress, I can't see why he'd want to get tangled up in all of that.
3.5 stars - "Without Merit" was thoroughly entertaining and I enjoyed it, but it fell short in a couple of areas.
One of the main problems I had was with Merit. I feel like she was merely a product of her environment and the events that happened to her, and that other than buying trophies at antique stores, she herself didn't have much of a personality. I suppose that could have been a byproduct of her depression, which is totally realistic and understandable, but it also makes it difficult to connect with her because she's so bland. Merit is not as smart as her older brother and twin sister, she's not popular like her twin, she's not athletic, she's not interested in anything and she has no future ambitions. She doesn't have a part-time job, she doesn't volunteer, and she's not part of any committees or extracurricular groups. She hasn't applied for college, and she may not even graduate. No hobbies or friends are introduced. I get it, she's depressed and it's hard to get excited about anything when you're in that frame of mind, her family is completely unconventional, and a horrible thing happened to her when she was younger. I understand all that, and I appreciated Merit's sarcastic and snarky attitude, but at the same time, I had a hard time liking her. I especially had a hard time believing Sagan would want to take her on with all her emotional baggage just because of one fountain kiss when he didn't even know who she was! Unless Sagan is just one of those guys who wants to be a knight in shining armor and rescue the damsel in distress, I can't see why he'd want to get tangled up in all of that.
3.5 stars - "Without Merit" was thoroughly entertaining and I enjoyed it, but it fell short in a couple of areas.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"You bury me."
Ahhhh! Colleen Hoover is the queen of emotional stories. I especially loved this book because the characters are quirky! This family is my kind of weird and I adored them!!
The story examines perspective, mental health, a little bit of romance and just...life!
"Not every mistake deserves a consequence. Sometimes the only thing it deserves is forgiveness."
This book made me laugh out loud and at other times, made me sad. It's definitely a favorite of the CoHo books I've read.
Ahhhh! Colleen Hoover is the queen of emotional stories. I especially loved this book because the characters are quirky! This family is my kind of weird and I adored them!!
The story examines perspective, mental health, a little bit of romance and just...life!
"Not every mistake deserves a consequence. Sometimes the only thing it deserves is forgiveness."
This book made me laugh out loud and at other times, made me sad. It's definitely a favorite of the CoHo books I've read.
This book started slow for me, but I really liked it. Great highlight on mental health, and all the different issues with mental health.