The legal term merits, i.e., “the intrinsic rights or wrongs of a case or matter, without consideration of procedural details, personal feelings, etc.,” dates from the end of the 15th century. The noun comes from Anglo-French and Old French merit(e) “reward, moral worth” and Latin meritum “what one deserves, due reward, justification,” a noun use of meritum, the past participle of the verb merēre (also merērī ) “to earn, receive as a reward.” The verb merit comes from Middle French mériter “to reward, deserve” and Latin meritāre “to bring in money (regularly), draw pay as a soldier, serve in the army.” The earliest English sense of the noun is religious and theological, “the quality of (a person or action) being entitled to a reward from God,” which will be familiar to anyone who attended parochial school. Poignant and powerful, Without Merit explores the layers of lies that tie a family together and the power of love and truth.The noun merit first appears in English in the very early 13th century, and the verb much later, toward the end of the 15th century.

When her escape plan fails, Merit is forced to deal with the staggering consequences of telling the truth and losing the one boy she loves. Merit retreats deeper into herself, watching her family from the sidelines, when she learns a secret that no trophy in the world can fix.įed up with the lies, Merit decides to shatter the happy family illusion that she’s never been a part of before leaving them behind for good. His wit and unapologetic idealism disarm and spark renewed life into her-until she discovers that he’s completely unavailable. While browsing the local antiques shop for her next trophy, she finds Sagan. Merit Voss collects trophies she hasn’t earned and secrets her family forces her to keep. The once cancer-stricken mother lives in the basement, the father is married to the mother’s former nurse, the little half-brother isn’t allowed to do or eat anything fun, and the eldest siblings are irritatingly perfect. They live in a repurposed church, newly baptized Dollar Voss. Sometimes the only thing it deserves is forgiveness. Not every mistake deserves a consequence. From Colleen Hoover, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of It Ends With Us, comes a moving and haunting novel of family, love, and the power of the truth.

Without merit