Book Review: Sweet Mercy // by Ann Tatlock

Book Name // Sweet Mercy
Author // Ann Tatlock
Published // 2013 Bethany House

photo courtesy goodreads.com

 Review //

When Eve’s father announces that their family is going to be leaving St. Paul and moving to her uncle’s lodge in Ohio, she couldn’t be more thrilled. As a young girl, she’s grown weary of witnessing crime and murder. Living in a city filled with gangsters and bootlegging has imprinted memories in her young mind that she wishes weren’t there and she looks to the lodge in Ohio as a safe place to start over. 

At first, Eve enjoys being around her generous uncle Cyrus and easily makes friends with guests at the lodge and with her cousin, Jones. She helps with the duties of the lodge whenever needed and cheerfully feeds the poor men from the nearby shantytown. But when she begins to realize that things at the lodge are not what they seem, how can she know who to trust? Are her new friends who they say they are? Who can she turn to in this world of secrets and betrayal? And dare she risk endangering those closest to her by revealing what she learns? 

Ann Tatlock weaves intriguing bits of history into this Prohibition Era novel and draws us into the story with her fascinating characters. We see Eve’s friendships develop (and, some of them, die) and can’t help but hope that Link will be the one person she can trust. As we watch her summer unfold, Ann captivates our attention as one surprise after another keeps us turning pages. Sweet Mercy is a thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying read that left me pondering bits of our nation’s history in ways I did not expect. I enjoyed Ann's character development and the plot of her story is intriguing, while somewhat expected. I found myself predicting what certain pieces of information would mean later in the story (for example, Jonas' radios), but still guessing what would happen next in the story. It was the perfect mix to keep me reading. Thank you for an enjoyable read, Ms. Tatlock!

Get your copy of Sweet Mercy today (the link on the left is for the printed edition and the link on the right is an ebook/Kindle version).