Without Merit

I couldn't put this book down. I wanted to, but I couldn't. I was tired and needed sleep, but instead, I kept reading.

I don't know if I was more fascinated with the book's main character, Merit, or her bizarre family. To think of a family living in a repurposed church was odd enough. The fact that they kept the crucified Jesus on the wall because it was built-in was even weirder.

Merit and Honor are identical twins in their last year of high school, but that's sort of where their similarities end. It doesn't help that Merit is attracted to the guy she thinks is her twin's boyfriend. This is only one of Merit's misperceptions, but it's hardly her fault. No one tells anyone anything in the family. Dad never says why he divorced mom, who still lives in the church/house basement. Or why he married his ex-wife's nurse.

The twins' older brother, Utah, is as confused as everyone else, especially after their step-uncle, Luck moves in. But then, Sagan, who Merit believes to be her sister's boyfriend, has also moved in—not that anyone told Merit. And I won't even try to tell you how the former church's former pastor's dog plays into all this, but he/she/it does.

What starts as a book of a calamity of people turns into a book about the truth about family. Hoover does a masterful job of never leaving us wondering about anyone in a book full of strange motivations.

Needless to say, I had to finish it, just to know if these crazy (but basically nice) people made it through the chaos. Get the large print edition of this book so you can read it when your eyes are tired because putting it down isn't an option.