Member Reviews
This book was very enjoyable. I learned a lot about gemstones and the Hope Diamond. It also gave me insight to being a female new reported in the early 1900s. The story kept my attention until the very end. Some areas of the book were a little tedious to get through.
There are many things I like about the new book, Cartier's Hope by M.J. Rose. First, is the heroine of the story and our main character, Vera Garland. I love Vera's other identity to Vee Swann who lives much in much more humble accommodations and works as a news reporter. Second is the setting: New York City and set in 1910. I also liked reading about the contrasts between the lower class and upper class through Vera/Vee's eyes.
Cartier's Hope tells the story of the Garland Family, their secrets and a rare diamond. In her quest for revenge, Vera falls for the assistant at the jeweler's and gets wrapped up in a world of deception and intrigue. Historical fiction intertwined with a romance novel. Very interesting plot lines!
The novel itself was slow but with perseverance I stuck it out. The writing was good, but there was just too much going on. About a third of the way into the book, the pace does start to pick up as there is more action...
Thank you to NetGalley, M.J. Rose, and Atria Books for this advanced reader copy of Cartier's Hope for me to read. As always, my opinions are my own.
I would like to thank Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.
I have voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is not my favorite book. I found it difficult to read and to stay with the story. I thought I would be fascinated with it because the Hope Diamond has long been something in which I had an interest.
The time frame is the Gilded Age and we get a glimpse of wealth as the heiress leaves her fabulous home to live in a tenement as she does writing for the newspaper under another name so she is not recognized.
The plot, though interesting, was slow in developing and the characters lacked something. I think too much was included in the story and it was fragmented. It included revenge, homosexuality, women’s rights, abortion, family stress, murder, the history of the diamond, diamond cutting and on and on which I feel detracted from what could have been a great story. Sorry. This is not one I would recommend.
#CartiersHope#NetGalley#Goodreads
The story takes place in New York City in 1910. Vera Garland is the daughter of a wealthy merchant but her alter ego is Vee Swann, investigative reporter, fighting for equal rights for women. After her father passes away she discovers a secret he kept all her life and she decides to go undercover again to right a wrong. Cartier's has the Hope Diamond for sale and Vera feels that he is exploiting the stories of bad luck associated with the diamond to inflate the price.
I thought the book was going to be more about the Hope Diamond but really it could just have been any jewelry. There was some history mentioned in the beginning of the story but the diamond never becomes a major part of the story until Chapter 13.
Garland's Emporium sounded like a wonderful place to shop and I especially liked the restaurants that were designed to reflect the tastes of Vera, her mother and sister. We learn a bit about Vera's father through remembered conversations but I never got a sense of who Vera really was. She was fighting for women's rights but I never felt her passion. She might have lived undercover in a tenement but she could always go home to her penthouse when things got tough. I didn't quite understand what her plan was even as it was happening and felt that she was hurting innocent people. None of the other characters were really explained much and the ending felt kind of flat.
I received this from Netgalley for an honest review.
Absolutely fabulous from start to finish, I enjoyed every minute of this story. It is exciting, intriguing, romantic and very satisfying. I love that the main character is someone who wants answers about the injustice in the world and also doesn't want to comply with societies standards and is willing to do what she can to change it. I love that Vera is fighting for the same problems as we are today and the romance between Vera and Jacob is yummy.
if you like the finest of Beatriz William and intriguing plot of Amanda Quick. you will absolutely love this story as much as I did.
I would love to see a sequel to this novel with Vee Swann going undercover while still being in a relationship with Jacob.
I LOVED this book!!!!! I've never read anything by MJ Rose before but that will definitely change. I started reading and couldn't put it down. I was fascinated by the historical details and really felt transported back in time to Gilded Age nyc. Vera was just a fantastic heroine, so smart and ambitious at a time when women just weren't. The love story was delicious and the subplots with her mother, sister, and journalist/women's suffrage made this book a 5 star. Truly impressed & highly recommend.
If you love historical novels you need to get your hands on M.J. Rose's latest novel Cartier's Hope. I will admit that it can be a tad long winded at times, but the story is solid and paints a beautiful- jewel themed picture that will not disappoint. Vera and her delightful secret pen name Vee Swann will make you proud of being a woman. She does not stand down from a fight and does anything to bring justice into the world.
I would like to thank the Publishers, the author and NETGALLEY for this book. It was given to me in exchange of an unbiased review.
Favorite Quote:"My father told me to hold on to love even when the world around me tried to snatch it away."
This one didn't quite live up to its potential. The idea for the story was a strong one, and I loved Vera, but overall it feels a little lacking. I think its because I expected more of a BANG when it came to her article and Oxly, but it was really anti-climactic considering it was supposed to be what was driving her for the entire book. For me the reveal of her romantic and professional past was almost more interesting than the main plot. I appreciate the way that the author wove in the history and lore of the Hope diamond while educating us about gemstones and how they used Vera and her ambition to give us a view into both the upper echelon of New York society and the social injustices of the time. I think that perhaps the author had a few too many things that they wanted this book to cover and instead of developing one or two ideas really well they just threw everything into the pot and hoped for the best which ended it in it becoming a bit lackluster.
A little revenge story, part of a series offering free publicity for various high-end jewelers. Protagonist Vera is a society lady with some sad love affairs in her past. She works in disguise as Vee, a working-class reporter who chronicles New York's tenements, unsafe factories, and other social issues. When Vera discovers that her father and her mother's brother were lovers being blackmailed by a publisher, she comes up with a plan to expose the publisher for his nefarious deeds without exposing her family to scandal. Along the way she has a romance with a jeweler who works at Cartier's, learns about paste gems, and gets beaten to revenge by her mother. The romance elements are either cringe-worth (the narrator recounts having her cellist lover play her like his cello) or without chemistry (her relationship with the jeweler seems added just so there can be an element of sex). The family relationships are messy and come and go in importance to the rest of the plot elements. The plot overall is convoluted and silly. For such smart and potentially interesting characters, I expected more intelligent thinking.
Magnificent descriptive writing especially the historical fiction. An exciting read that is hard to put down. In the age of New York City during a fabulous time in history.
I found this book to be full of mystic and mystery! This author knows how to capture your attention and develop characters that are authentic, interesting and unique!
I truly enjoyed the setting and era of the book, I found it to be educational concerning the Hope Diamond, jewelry making and lush surroundings. The mystery the author creates kept me wondering throughout the day what would happen next! Beautifully described and I wanted to be part of the plot! A must read!
Vera is a women making a name in the mens world of journalism. She is stepping outside of the norm of fashion and society. She is interested in discovering the secrets and rumors that the Hope Diamond value is being manipulated by Cartier. As she digs deeper she is trying to find her answers in a world that doesn't support women in mens careers.
Lush and lively, Cartier's Hope is a richly paced and enticing read, bearing all of MJ Rose's hallmark signatures of strong characterization and a compelling premise.
This was a wonderful book. Set in 1910. Vera Garland is a journalist and a modern women who is beset by societies protocols everywhere she turns. Actually a member of the upper class she uses a pseudonym to write important articles and try to effect social change. The Hope Diamond has arrived and she plans to use its story to revenge her father and other who have had society use and abuse them. A great look at early New York and a great mystery.
I was expecting this to be a lighter book, but it went a lot of different directions and certainly into more depth than I expected based on the cover. I enjoyed it greatly and had a hard time putting it down. The idea of secret identities and protecting the family name was quite interesting.
This is an interesting look at society in the Gilded Age. Vera is a socialite with a social conscience and wants to make her mark as an investigative reporter. It is also an intriguing commentary on Cartier and the infamous Hope Diamond. The characters are well defined and the setting is well described. A fascinating read.
I love being immersed in the Gilded Age with high society. This is a great book that features the famous Hope Diamond. Is it real, is it fake? Are the stories of it being cursed for real? Read the book and find out.
Cartier’s Hope by M.J. Rose is an intricate novel that is more then just a fictional story about the Hope Diamond. It is an historical fiction about the turn of the century 1900 in NY and gives us a glimpse of the two extremes that existed at that time. One sees how the majority lived: daily struggles to survive, eat, make a living, keeping safe, and the other half: the ultra-rich, the privileged. It also gives the reader a glimpse of how difficult it was for women at that time. It was near impossible to garner respect, equality, be available to opportunities that were openly given preference to men. Women were seen as objects, lesser beings, not as deserving, and had their “place” in the home and in the bed, not in the workforce. It is difficult to see how many obstacles women had to face on a day to day basis.
But, more then that, this novel is about the universal topics of hope, acceptance, respect, love, and redemption and the fascinating thing is that the author ties to all together to let the reader see that those needs transverse across “classes”. Those needs are just as important for the people living in the tenements and for those living in the gilded mansions.
There is romance, mystery, intrigue, suspense, and finally acceptance and hope. I am glad that Vera was finally able to experience that. A fitting end to an interesting novel.
4/5 stars
Thank you NetGalley and Atria books for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.
This is posted to my GR account immediately and will be posted to my Amazon, Bookbub, and B&N accounts upon publication.
MJ Rose's Cartier's Hope did not live up to her previous books. There was a lot of good about the book but it bogged down in places and took a long time to get to the main point. Vera Garland is a wealthy socialite. She has a conscience and fights for many rights for women, welfare reform, and better working conditions. Vera's uncle and then her father die, and Vera has had an accident and has hurt her back. She hears that Cartier's Jewelers has just acquired the Hope Diamond. She decides this could be her comeback article. But when she discovers her Uncle was being blackmailed she is out for revenge. Cartier's Hope is not one of MJ Rose's best works., but I would still recommend it.
This book absolutely, positively goes in my keeper file. A second chance romance that really puts this couple through heartbreaking emotional and physical pain.