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There are currently 21 member reviews
for The Necklace
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Cheryl M. (Le Claire, IA)
Who Wouldn't Want The Necklace?
The Necklace by Claire McMillan has something with which everyone can identify. The book maintains interest with topics of family connections, dynamics at holiday dinners, and youthful hopes and dreams. Cornelia, "Nell", a strong and likeable main character, looks to find her place in the family and the world. She and cousins Pansy and Emerson continue sibling rivalries started in their grandparents' generation; Ethan, Ambrose, and Lou Lou were close and competitive siblings. Aunt Lou Lou raised Nell's mother, when her own mother, May, died young. Nell's mother also died young.
Growing up, Nell often felt like the black sheep of the family. Nell's place in the family, and that of her mother, seemed at issue. She often found herself in the place of honor next to Lou Lou at holiday dinners during the infrequent visits to the family estate. Lou Lou impressed and embarrassed her with tidbits of important social graces that all young girls of a certain social status should know.
Upon Lou Lou's death, the cousins gather at the family home to mourn their grandmother and aunt. As an attorney, Nell is designated the executor of the estate. Lou Lou bequeathed each of the three cousins an equal share of the estate plus some individual gifts. Nell's specific gift was The Necklace, which was not immediately located. When found, in the back of a dresser drawer in a random drawstring bag, it appears to be nothing more than garish costume jewelry. When appraised, the rare and valuable necklace becomes a cause of disagreement in the division of the estate. The book explores attempts to negotiate ownership of the necklace, its history, and of family issues long past.
The Necklace is an enjoyable book. The well-written book is a quick, easy read.
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RoseMarie G
The Necklace
I'll be honest ... read first few pages and thought do I want to continue? As I read further, I started to enjoy it more. I liked the alternating between past & present between Nell & her greedy family members and a love triangle among May, Ambrose & Ethan, Nell's ancestors. Good beach read; wonder if it will become a movie?
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Dianne S. (Green Valley, AZ)
A Tidy Tale
I titled this review "A Tidy Tale" because at tale's end all the loose ends were nice tied up . The story was told in two time periods which alternated between chapters. At first I was confused about the characters and who they were in relation to time and to each other, but eventually it didn't matter because with each chapter came another "clue", if you will, and eventually you knew everything to needed to know to get the big picture.
It was an enjoyable and believable story and I would definitely recommend it to someone that enjoys a good historical mystery but doesn't want a lot of irrelevant facts in the story.
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Virginia P. (Tallahassee, FL)
The Necklace
I enjoyed reading The Necklace as a piece of escapist writing perfect for a summer day or two. While it's an often told story about two men loving the same woman and families bickering over an inheritance, the writing is good and the method of alternating chapters with two different periods of time keeps the reader engaged. I would not recommend this book for a book club discussion as I don't think there are any issues worthy of discussion; however, it is a good story and definitely worth spending a few hours reading.
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Rosemary T. (San Antonio, TX)
The Necklace by Claire McMillan
Although the storyline is fairly predictable, there are enough twists to hold the readers interest. The author successfully switches back and forth between the extravagant lifestyle of the 1920's to the present day relatives having to deal with a deteriorating estate. This novel has a little of something for everyone---love, greed, jealously, betrayal, and of course, the mystery of an inherited necklace. Definitely a good summer read.
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Diana C. (Delray Beach, FL)
Short on literary substance
This is a story about a necklace, once part of an Indian royal dynasty, that made it into the hands of a wealthy American family in the early 20th century. I liked this story, but throughout I felt as if there was more that needed to be told. Whether it was because the characters were just short of complete or because some avenues were left unexplored when it came to the story of the family's history, or maybe it's a combination of the two, it left me wanting more substance. The author's ease in weaving the tales of the two parallel stories helped to hide the story's literary deficiencies.
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Claire M. (Sarasota, FL)
The Necklace
The Necklace is a good bet for a lazy afternoon in a hammock on the porch or a chair at the beach. It lacked character development and really any kind of emotional depth. Having said that, it is a story of family secrets and greed, jealous rivalry between brothers, and perhaps with the development of Nell, and certainly more about her mother it would be quite engaging in how the outcasts of the Quincy family were far more grounded and what actually led to the semi-estrangement. Although the story of May and Ambrose is central, Nell would have been a better focal point.
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