Mercy by Rebecca Lim

Target Audience: Teens/Young Adults
Genre: Fantasy/Paranormal Romance/Sci-fi/

*Note: May contain mild spoilers. But nothing that will ruin your enjoyment*

Mercy was one of those books I had stored on my Kindle for a very long time and just didn't get around to reading. One of my problems is that I go through phases of reading certain types of books and at that time I was just sort of going out of my paranormal phase. I'm glad I waited because this book is incredible and I would have hated to have read this with a slightly disinterested mind. Anyway, here's a bit more info for you.

Mercy wakes up to find herself in the body of another, as has happened to her countless times before, though she still struggles to get used to it each time.  This time, she wakes up in the body of Carmen and is slightly puzzled as to why since each time she wakes up she's supposed to help said person with problems they may be having, but Carmen appears to have a decent life.
After getting to grips with where she is though, it becomes apparent that maybe Carmen isn't the one who needs her help and that maybe it's the family she is staying with whose daughter; Lauren, vanished. Especially in need of help is Ryan, Lauren's twin who refuses to except that she is gone and is determined to find her.
Coupled with this, Mercy is starting to remember things, things from before she fell so far from Heaven and why it happened. And is the man in her dreams who claims he loves her really the one to trust?

So taking into account my synopsis I know a lot of people will be thinking: 'not another fallen angel story!' well, this one is so different and so, as I've previously mentioned, absolutely incredible. Not only is this a stunning romance but it is also a fantasy/sci-fi with some serious twists to be unravelled and a dark mystery that will keep readers guessing to the very end.
I have huge respect for Mercy and though part of me should be horrified that she hijacks people's lives, I really didn't feel that, especially as the story progresses and Mercy really starts to investigate Lauren's disappearance.  What Miss Lim has managed to do with this book is weave an engrossing tale of 'The Fall', mixed with an unusual romance across three people (without a physical third person) and tell a gripping and horrifying mystery story that even has a: 'I never saw that coming' moment.

The elements of Mercy's past aren't suddenly 'info dumped' either, they are carefully told at the correct points in the story so that myself, as a reader, could make sense of them and so that they linked with ease into the general storyline. As for Mercy herself, I guess I did wonder if she did do something truly bad but honestly can we call her evil for doing something in the name of love and loyalty? Sometimes people mess up, angels included and to me she more than redeems herself with what she does in this book.

The mystery element of the story is incredible and the reasoning for the disappearance was so original, weird and yet utterly believable as I can so imagine some psycho out there doing what the bad guy in this does. Such is the world we live in. Sadly. In relation to that, the link to finding out who the kidnapper was, was equally clever and the link was so obviously there, yet I couldn't see it until it was pointed out right at the end. Simply Genius.
And you may be wondering about the romance? Well it's not overbearing. It's subtle, not 'at first sight' and built on a lot more than attractiveness, this is especially important considering Ryan is falling for an Angel in  Carmen's body. It does beg the question: do we fall in love with a person as we see them or as we know them? Would you know if your wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend, suddenly swapped their consciousness? It'd be nice to think so. Falling in love with someone you can't actually see, I think that would make it a stronger bond in some way, then your sure your falling for the person, not the outer shell.

Anyway, I digress. You'll understand it better if you read the book, and I urge you to do so.
This is a wonderful book and when your done with this one, you can then go on to read the next in the series; Exile. I know I will be!