I have a
coworker at the bookstore that has been trying to get me to read Colleen Hoover
since we first discovered we were both romance fans. She has a book recommendation under nearly
every Colleen Hoover book that we stock.
I perused a book a while back but I wasn’t particularly drawn to the
author’s style of writing, nor her characters.
Plus I have so many books waiting to be read that I don’t have time to
settle on authors that I’m not insanely fond of. Still, when she offered me Without Merit I decided I liked the
cover enough to go for it.
As it sat on my
shelf I came across a few reviews from diehard fans who despised Without Merit and a few reviews from fair-weather
fans who loved it. The contrast
intrigued me—and my friend was begging for her book back—so I read it just the
other day. I was totally surprised by
what I found between the covers.
Apparently I was guilty of assuming that Colleen Hoover, with her masses
of fans, was one of those erotic romance writers whose books would make even
the seasoned writer blush. I’m not sure
what led me to that assumption, but boy was I wrong. I’ve actually started questioning why these
books are in the adult romance section of our store and not the young adult
section because the content was tamer than a Sarah Dessen book.
Without Merit, starring Merit Voss, was a quirky and
depressing book filled with eclectic characters that went from annoying to
hilarious and back again more times than I could count. Merit Voss’ strange family—which includes her
twin sister, older brother, younger half-brother, stepmother, father, sister’s
boyfriend, stepmother’s half-brother, and her basement dwelling mother—live in
an old converted church. Merit’s juggling
a lot of her secrets: a traumatic experience from her past, her sister’s
boyfriend’s kiss, her father’s affair, and on and on. As things go from bad to worse in her life
she begins to wonder whether the secrets are worth keeping inside or whether
she should spill everything and set herself free.
Negative
reviews referred to Merit as mopey and over-the-top dramatic, a girl who was
more infuriating than relatable. I’m not
sure what those other girls were like during their teenage years, but I have to
say that Merit’s mood swings, general unhappiness, and melodramatic actions
were definitely relatable to this once
upon a teenager. Her selfish actions
and subsequent shame were a flashback to my own feelings about many of my teen
years. Some of the other characters had
me rolling my eyes on occasion, but in all reality I think that made the whole
book more enjoyable because it felt more realistic. None of the characters were perfect and all
of them were perfectly infuriating in the way that only family can be.
I wouldn’t call
this a romance novel and I wouldn’t want anyone else to be under the impression
that they’re going to be reading about some hot, dirty sex. Alas, the most that happens here is a few teenage
kisses. That said, though it was the
romance that initially attracted me to this book it was the secondary drama
that kept me reading. Merit’s family is
pretty fucked up (pardon my French) and I found myself desperate to know how
they would resolve their problems.
Unbelievably I actually found myself crying while reading Without Merit. Can you believe that? I don’t remember the last time a book made me
cry. Movies? Sure.
Videos of soldiers coming home and surprising family members? Absolutely.
But a book? Maybe never. I was sort of chuckling under my breath
because it just seemed so ridiculous to be crying, but I’m telling you: the teenager that still lives inside me
related pretty hardcore to this book.
It wasn’t a
perfect book, but it was entertaining as all hell.
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