The Shape of Mercy

The Shape of Mercy

By: Susan Meissner

Lauren Durough is privileged. She’s grown up under a family name associated with wealth and prestige. Lauren goes against the familial mold when she decides to bail on Stanford, study at a state school, and not select business as her major. Lauren’s love for English and desire to rebel against the stigma of the Durough name lands her with a job transcribing a journal for the elderly Abigail Boyles. The journal, passed down through generations of Abigails family, finds its way into Laurens heart and head as she transcribes it. By the time she is done, she finds herself not only connecting with Mercy Hayworth from hundreds of years prior, but wondering about the skeletons in Abigail’s closet, and how she herself views the world. Finds Mercy helps Lauren find out more about herself.

I really enjoyed this book. Being a history lover, I found the the cross between modern times and flashes into the life of Mercy and the diary really interesting. I also thought Meissner did a great job being historically accurate with the names and what happened to the women and men as they were tried and put into jail. While hesitant to read the book not knowing exactly how the story line would read, I was never once disappointed. As a reader that tends to skip ahead when things get exciting, I knew it was a good sign when 50 pages into the book I found myself looking ahead.

Not only was the overall plot an excellent portion of the book, but I also loved the way Meissner tied the three main women, Lauren, Abigail, and Mercy together. The all seemed to either be in similar places in their life or had been. They all learned so much from each other and I enjoyed the tie between the three women. It was interesting to watch the growth that Lauren and Abigail went through as they learned from Mercy and from each other. I also enjoyed that Meissner included a little love story line. As a lover of the romance novels, it was an excellent touch. The book was really good and I recommend it to anyone looking for a book about self-discovery with added touches of history.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. My opinions are my own and are not influenced in anyway.

P.S. My apologies to WaterBrook Muultnomah because it took me so long to read and post my review. Unfortunately, my school work once again had to come before my fun work!