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This was a great, unique dystopian novel. This book followed Mercury the whole time while she is looking for a way out of her polished life. It starts off with her on the run then forced back into her family home. That is when she meets the mysterious Hawk and he introduces her into the world she has never really faced. The pacing for this story was very well done as it moves from plot to plot as the resistance tries to figure out ways to take down the Five. There were parts in the novel where you could tell this was a dystopian world but I wish there was more. It wasn’t until about 60% in the book does it really dive into this horrible disease plaguing New America and how hard it really is to live in the poorer parts. While riots are mentioned and the decline of society is there, I was expecting it to be more prevalent. Even with the mention, Mercury wonders pretty freely through the streets with no guards. If the world was really that bad then I feel like she would have had to do more sneaking or the description of the outside would have been worse. It was hard to get a real feel of decay New America.

Mercury was an enjoyable character to follow. I appreciated the start of the novel and seeing her trying to break free on her own. When she’s brought back home, it is very easy to see her discontent on being apart of the Masters’ family. It is evident that she wants to make some difference but doesn’t know how. That’s why I was a little disappointed she wasn’t immediately invested into Hawk’s resistance. Certain events that happen later in the book explain why she was a little reluctant at first, but with those combined reasons and her attitude, I would have thought she would have been immediately invested into this cause without hesitation. Regardless, she was a strong character and I am glad that she had her morals and was able to stick with them. Her relationship with the other characters were great as well, even though, purposefully, frustrating - I was very pleased with how everything ended.

Final Thoughts
Overall, Mercury Rises by Scarlett Kol was an engaging read. I really enjoyed this dystopian story and the uniqueness of the plot. Even though I wish we would have received more about the state of decay of New America and the deadly virus, it was still an captivating world. This definitely had a Robin Hood retelling aspect to it but I am glad it wasn’t the main focus of the story. Mercury was a great protagonist who really held her morals high and didn’t just want to sit back while innocent people were suffering. While she was a little hesitant to join the resistance her attitude made it apparent that she truly wanted to help. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dystopian resistant novels with threats of a deadly virus.