REVIEW!
The Merciless by Danielle Vega
4/5 Stars
What can I say about The Merciless?
Well, for starters, it is indeed very VERY creepy. The characters are almost all anti-heroes with a false sense of purpose. While there may or may not be paranormal forces in this novel (must…not…spoil…this…book), the fact that HUMANS are capable of such horrendous things, is terrifying in itself. We’re constantly asking which character is the bad guy and if they’re all bad guys in their own twisted way.
The pacing is very quick once it gets into the heart of the novel (young girl, tied up, and covered in blood–it’s in the synopsis!), and it’s very hard to put it down.
The concept is terrifying because it plays on such a huge societal (and controversial) theme: religion. I’m not much of a religious person, but even I can see how terrifying the quote on the back of the novel is: “Forgive us, Father, for WE have sinned.” It forces the reader to question if humans are as bad as demons, or if demons are a creation of negative human mentality. When all else fails in our world, why not say that the person we see as slighting us is possessed? Atheists may have a field day with this one, while other religious readers might feel terrified because of the idea that the very thing they fear may be coming to life within these pages.
The ending is definitely one of those endings that doesn’t sugarcoat everything, which is perfect. If the rest of the novel is a dark and chaotic tale of sins and damnation, why does the ending have to be happy and peaceful?
While I wouldn’t exactly call this a horror novel, I would definitely label it as a psychological thriller, or suspense. This is only horror to those who allow it to be terrifying, and this is suspenseful for those who see that humanity might just be as dark as demons.
The minor issues I had with this were editing, some small issues with continuity, and missed opportunities with some of the characters. At the beginning of the novel, it felt like things were being rushed, just so we could get through the whole introductory part of the novel. If the characters were drawn out a bit more, then this story could have been truly horrifying.
I recommend this to anyone who’s into young adult novels with a darker theme. If you’re looking for that next gory, heart-pounding, stomach turning story you’ve been craving, then check this one out.
Check it out on Goodreads here.
Happy reading!
