The Gallery of Unfinished Girls

Last year, 17-year-old Mercy Moreno won the county art competition with an interpretation of salmonella; the expectation that she’ll come up with something brilliant for this year’s competition is overwhelming. Coupled with her personal dramas—she might be in love with her best friend Victoria, and her grandmother is in a coma in Puerto Rico—Mercy wonders if she’s an artistic hack. When a woman named Lilia moves in next door and encourages Mercy to join the Estate, a dilapidated condo converted into artists’ spaces, Mercy once again feels the desire to create. Mercy is seduced by the power she feels there, but the Estate isn’t exactly what it seems. The strength of Karcz’s debut novel lies in Mercy’s friendship with Victoria, relationship with her younger sister, and confusion over whether to confess her love to Victoria. Those strands are at times overshadowed by Mercy’s insecurities about her art and the magical realism of the Estate, but the novel’s mix of self-discovery, art making, and the unknown should resonate with fans of A.S. King’s work, especially Still Life with Tornado. Ages 13–up. [em]Agent: Victoria Marini, Irene Goodman Literary. (July) [/em]