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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I got this book because I thought it was a rom-com; it was in a table for rom-coms at the bookstore and the cover is in the same style. It was absolutely not a rom-com, and nothing like I expected, and I absolutely loved it. I loved the family members, I loved the mystery, I loved the narrative style. At first it was hard to follow, as the narration switched between characters, but then I got it. Yes, it had some slow moments, but the beauty of this book is almost in those slow moments. I just loved it, and I really didn’t expect to, which makes it even more beautiful.
When their grandmother Helen dies, three estranged siblings and their mother come together again with explosive results. They can barely stay in the same room without an argument, but when a large diamond gets left in the will, the Millers must work together to solve the mystery of how the alleged Florentine diamond came to be in Helen's possession. Will the mystery bring them back together or drive a permanent wedge between them.
I found a reason to dislike every one of the Millers, but in their imperfections, they were each perfect characters for this story. Great fiction based on the true mystery of the missing Florentine diamond.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley. The views and opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
I found a reason to dislike every one of the Millers, but in their imperfections, they were each perfect characters for this story. Great fiction based on the true mystery of the missing Florentine diamond.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley. The views and opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
The storyline was compelling enough, but I struggled with how dysfunctional the family dynamics were and how they just kind of accepted their dysfunction as ~who they are~. Additionally, all of their pasts/presents had some extreme milestone: abandoning children & wracking up debt in their name, being expelled from high school/law school for breaking into the computer to edit grades, an FBI warrant, a major screenplay. It just felt like a lot for a group of people who weren't terribly likeable.
I also struggled with the "tell, don't show" style of writing at times. At first it was spread out enough in the story that it was just a teensy annoyance, but by the end, when all the loose ends were beginning to wrap up, I felt like I was getting smothered with "and that's why this is the way it is in the novel" and it took away from the actual plot for me.
A small detail, but two of the main men in the story (the son and one of the husbands) were named Jake and Ryan and I kept getting the 4-letter, male names confused so I'd start a new passage and wonder why this male cared about X before realizing it was the wrong one. Again, minor but such an easy change to rename one of them to something even a letter or two longer!
All in all, 3 stars. I wanted to keep reading and see where the plot was going, but I liked THE BOOKSHOP OF YESTERDAYS better.
I also struggled with the "tell, don't show" style of writing at times. At first it was spread out enough in the story that it was just a teensy annoyance, but by the end, when all the loose ends were beginning to wrap up, I felt like I was getting smothered with "and that's why this is the way it is in the novel" and it took away from the actual plot for me.
A small detail, but two of the main men in the story (the son and one of the husbands) were named Jake and Ryan and I kept getting the 4-letter, male names confused so I'd start a new passage and wonder why this male cared about X before realizing it was the wrong one. Again, minor but such an easy change to rename one of them to something even a letter or two longer!
All in all, 3 stars. I wanted to keep reading and see where the plot was going, but I liked THE BOOKSHOP OF YESTERDAYS better.
I’m trying to figure out how to articulate into comprehensible words how much I loved this book. I’ll try my best.
The Imperfects launches into a tale of the Miller family - a broken, dysfunctional family where half the members are not speaking to each other. When their grandmother dies, leaving behind a will that states they must come together and reunite; they begrudgingly abide by her wishes. When looking through the paperwork, dividing up assets, and determining who gets what, the family discovers a heirloom they never knew their grandmother had. She wasn’t a woman known for keeping valuable things and this piece was more than just valuable - it harbored many secrets.
Amy Meyerson writes this book from the perspectives of the Miller siblings (Beck, Ashley, and Jake) as well as the perspective of their mother, Deborah. It also details parts of their grandmother, Helen’s life and details of their great-grandmother, Flora’s life.
If you like contemporary fiction and historical fiction this book is perfect for you! This book presses these genres together so beautifully that I couldn’t stop myself from turning the pages. While the Miller family tries to learn the origin of their grandmother’s story, the origin of this valuable piece, you will uncover all kinds of intriguing data from WWI & WWII. The fall of an empire, the loss of family jewels, the devastation of the holocaust - it all unwinds into a glorious story that I can’t keep from gushing over.
I highly recommend this one!
TW: Loss of a Loved One, Mentions of WWI & WWII.
*I received a gifted copy of this book from the publisher for my honest review.
The Imperfects launches into a tale of the Miller family - a broken, dysfunctional family where half the members are not speaking to each other. When their grandmother dies, leaving behind a will that states they must come together and reunite; they begrudgingly abide by her wishes. When looking through the paperwork, dividing up assets, and determining who gets what, the family discovers a heirloom they never knew their grandmother had. She wasn’t a woman known for keeping valuable things and this piece was more than just valuable - it harbored many secrets.
Amy Meyerson writes this book from the perspectives of the Miller siblings (Beck, Ashley, and Jake) as well as the perspective of their mother, Deborah. It also details parts of their grandmother, Helen’s life and details of their great-grandmother, Flora’s life.
If you like contemporary fiction and historical fiction this book is perfect for you! This book presses these genres together so beautifully that I couldn’t stop myself from turning the pages. While the Miller family tries to learn the origin of their grandmother’s story, the origin of this valuable piece, you will uncover all kinds of intriguing data from WWI & WWII. The fall of an empire, the loss of family jewels, the devastation of the holocaust - it all unwinds into a glorious story that I can’t keep from gushing over.
I highly recommend this one!
TW: Loss of a Loved One, Mentions of WWI & WWII.
*I received a gifted copy of this book from the publisher for my honest review.
This book has everything I love: realistic sibling relationships, family secrets, and royal history! It started slowly but I kept returning to it to find out what happened next.
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was not a bad book, but not outstanding either. I feel the most historical fiction releases I’ve read tend to mix many elements that in the end, draw the reader’s attention from the historical, fascinating elements that could make the story unforgettable. The Imperfects is the story of a family who receives a diamond as part of their inheritance, but obviously, it is not as wonderful as it seems. Soon, all of them realize they did not know who the matriarch of the family truly was and how she came into the possession of such an exquisite jewel. Helen is the grandmother who passes away, and her family (daughter, two granddaughters and a grandson) come together after being stranged for some time to discover the history of the diamond and Helen’s past. Helen was an Austrian Jew who came to the United States as a girl, bringing a diamond belonging to the Habsburg dynasty. This premise sounds very interesting and could have been explored further in my opinion. However, the author chose to mix this premise with the portrait of a dysfunctional family, no other than Helen’s relatives. While I liked the realistic portrait of the complexity of families, I felt this element took away the drama of the historical fiction. Also, I felt all of the characters where kind of naïve and a bit dumb and I could not believe that out of the three grandchildren (all above 30) none was mature enough to deal with things. Another aspect that bothered me was that you have to suspend your belief in many parts of the story and there are many things that feel just too convenient to be believable. For example, how come that Becca, the eldest granddaughter, happens to have a friend who is a jewel expert? I mean, for me these professions are kind of specific, is not the type of person you easily meet. Also, Deborah was so annoying. Ok, there are parents that truly never mature but her personality was just, stupid. 65 years old and you still can be fooled by love? Sorry but no. The ending was also kind of disappointing and just confirmed my impression that Deborah was not a very intelligent women. So… while not all of the story was bad I felt it was a missed opportunity in building a stronger historical fiction that could hook the reader and the story of dysfunctional families could have been a whole different book.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don’t know why I read this, honestly. It’s not the type of book I usually like, and I proved myself right on that front because I did not enjoy it at all. The characters were horrendous, almost every word of dialogue was a cliché, and the plot itself was incredibly boring. I skimmed the last 40 pages because I couldn’t take it anymore.
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes