BOOK REVIEW
Anna taught us that online connections are sort of a diary that writes back.
In her thrilling new novel, Mercy Point, Anna Snoekstra explores the heart gripping tale of five teenagers who met online. Despite initial impressions, there are two things they have in common: they believe they’re all adopted, and they hate each other. At first, though, it’s quite the opposite: online, they are best friends. Prejudices (mostly) aside, the lie of a lifetime forces the five into cooperating and uncovering a secret larger than anyone could have imagined. The novel is 297 pages, follows a limited third person point of view, and chapters alternate between characters; the novel's central themes are family, friendship and identity, which I believe were all incredibly well conveyed.
The characters were all well written; they felt real, relatable and were incredibly diverse in their life and struggles. Even better, the characters were not defined by their differences; for instance, Emma is deaf, but it’s not the single most memorable thing about her. So often, novels stray from anything remotely different, especially in a protagonist. Mercy Point, therefore, was a brilliant breath of fresh air and an example for future media planning to incorporate diversity into their casting.
I think Snoekstra captured the fluidity of human nature extremely well; on one occasion, under pressure, Emma is, for a single moment, encompassed by hate for Michael, despite their newfound friendship. It is little moments like these that cement the novel in reality. Despite this, though, it felt like some instances of character development had little or no basis. This is shown specifically in Emma’s gradual warm-up to Michael; while sweet, it felt too abrupt to be believable, especially considering her stubborn nature. I still noticed some moments that suggested the swaying of tides, though, so it wasn’t completely random/unexpected. Otherwise, I felt Snoekstra succeeded in one, actually granting each character an individual arc, and two, exploring those arcs in a believable manner.
Anna Snoekstra, Author
One of my favourite characters is Tessie. I found her interesting and relatable; her character is one that struggles heavily with anxiety and insecurity, something that is seen a lot in today’s adolescents. For this reason I constantly found myself in a state of empathy, wanting to console her. This was especially true throughout Chapter 8, which contains such a buildup of raw emotion it feels explosive. Furthermore, her irritable nature, especially when confronted with a nagging presence (her mother), felt very familiar to me (my mum), and there I empathised further.
The style of writing contributed heavily to the eerie, dreamlike atmosphere of the novel. It was simple, but not in a way that suggested childishness—less was more. The novel is intentionally fast paced, but at times it felt like everything was moving too fast—sometimes an event had passed before a sense of tension could be fully developed. Nevertheless, it was still conveyed extremely well, and it may have only come off this way because I read it so quickly. Towards the end, though, when the climax was apparent, Snoekstra built up tension and a feeling of unsurety undeniably well.
Ending on a cliffhanger, the book currently has no follow ups, so I am (im)patiently awaiting a sequel. For certain, this book is one of my favourites—I can scarcely express how much I loved reading it. This being said, I would definitely recommend it to those looking for a fast-paced, enthralling read.
-M Lansley, Year 10