"If we don't tell stories, they disappear. You must write everything, you must keep us alive."

This story left me speechless and with tears. Such a tragic tale of families split apart never to be seen again during the horrible Halocaust. Helen Auerbach in 1939 is brought to America. One of the fifty children. She never reveals a whole lot about her mother, father and brother she left behind. Deborah her daughter has never met them or her father. Who Helen tells died during the Korean War.
The Millers are exactly an imperfect family. Estranged from each other for years. Beck, the youngest granddaughter and closer to Helen inherits a mysterious jeweled brooch after Helen dies. Vicktor, a friend has it appraised and reveals to Beck that it is the missing Florentine diamond worth millions. How did Helen end up with the diamond? I absolutely loved this novel of suspense, sometimes laughing and crying while reading.
So much the family learns about their very eccentric grandmother and mother. And they learn so much about themselves.

Thank you to Park Row and NetGalley for the eARC

This was a well-written, well-constructed book. The characters are developed nicely and are perfectly imperfect. When their grandmother dies they have to come together and figure out how their grandmother had in her possession a yellow diamond brooch. They go on a journey to find out more about their family history while also dealing with their families current issues. In doing that, they develop a better understanding of their own relationships with one another. The story details to completely different timelines, being present day and World War II. It definitely shows how the past can influence the present. An excellent read.

I would like to thank the author/publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Helen Auerbach has died, leaving her disparate family at a loss for answers. What little they know of this woman becomes shrouded in mystery when among her possessions is found an over-sized diamond that resembles a rare jewel from the Hapsburg dynasty missing for decades. How did an immigrant Jewish child with no living family find herself the “owner” of the Florentine diamond? One by one her daughter and her three children, at odds with one another, become aware of this legacy along with other hidden jewels. Having difficulty keeping this knowledge to themselves, they find suddenly the world knows and the entire family comes under scrutiny and, worst of all, their beloved grandmother is labeled a thief. Hiding secrets of their own, they join together in a quest to prove her innocence. Each in his own way contributes; revelations occur. Things are looking up when an unforeseen betrayal destroys their solidarity. Amy Meyerson’s characters are far from lovable, yet the story behind their dysfunctional family is intriguing and, despite their flaws, I could not give up on their (hi)story to the very last word.

Surprised I requested this as modern story plot with historical flashback subplot is one of my least favorite tropes. Not for me.

Such a well-written, engaging family saga. I loved this one!

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed the overall mystery and the family history that was presented in this book. The story was well put together and engaging. I personally felt that the ending left me with more questions than I personally would have liked, but otherwise this was a solid story.

The Millers are an imperfect family, who have trouble getting along. When their grandmother dies, they all put aside their troubles to attend the shiva. Beck, who was closest to Helen, their grandmother, inherits a jeweled brooch that contains a yellow diamond. Beck has it appraised by her friend Vicktor, who tells her that it is the missing Florentine diamond which is worth millions if the Millers can prove that Helen acquired the diamond legally.
This sets the Millers off on a journey to find out about their family history, while at the same time dealing with their current family issues. In discovering Helen's past, they discover themselves and they develop an understanding of their relationships with each other.
This story encompasses two separate time periods of present day and WWII. It explores how family and love grows and changes. It shows how the past can influence your future. The story teaches you that you can have an imperfect life but still have a life worth living.
This story will make you laugh and cry. It will make you take a look at your own life and your own family history. It will take you on a history ride back to Vienna. It will both break your heart and fill it with love.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. The opinions are my own.

Drew me right in to the story the family the history.So well written so involving a book and an author I will be recommending.#netgalley#harlequin

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

This was an interesting read about the diamond legacy. Lots of mystery within the family and I really enjoyed the characters and how they grew in this book!

Now excuse me while I go dig out my copy of The Bookshop of Yesterdays.

I really enjoyed every aspect of this book, characters, family dynamic, pacing, plot were all very well done. Right from the start I was pulled into the story and found it hard to put down.

This is very engaging and well written. With an interesting plot and well crafted characters, this book shows the author's talent nicely. The fact that is based on part on true events, make this more compelling. Recommended.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

I found Imperfects to be a good mystery style fiction story that did a good job of keeping me pulled in for the last half of the book. I had a hard time putting it down. I have to admit, however, that it did take me a few chapters to get into the book. I had a hard time making sense of who everyone was, and tend to not really enjoy books that bounce too much between individuals and time frames. This can be truly confusing. However, once I got to about the halfway point, I really started to get pulled in.

The author, Ms. Meyerson, did a wonderful job in writing this story. She truly is a gifted writer. She clearly did her research, and brought the reader wonderful opportunities into a time period that would be hard to imagine living thru. This is the main reason I stuck with the book until it finally pulled me in. The book was very well written with minimal grammatical errors. I enjoyed reading about characters that I have little in common with in real life, as I do tend to often most enjoy books that represent my own beliefs and way of life. However, I do enjoy entering into views of others thru books. I love that it makes me think deeper, and helps me to understand more within the broader diversity of thoughts around me. This is one of the things I love most about books.

The only reason that I gave this book a 4 star instead of 5 is because I felt that too much was left undone at the end. I know that not all authors like to wrap up endings in a nice little bow. However, I really would have liked to know what happened with Viktor. I'd like to know how he pulled off the escape, and where he ended up. I also would have liked to know more about Deborah and her experiences with feeling emotions thru stones and inanimate objects. Beck and Viktor seemed to have too much of a relationship for him to just steal the diamond and leave her in a pinch. He had far too many opportunities to have stolen from her before. This left me feeling like Viktor's character was not developed enough during the storyline. These feelings of loose ends made it hard for me to give a 5 star, and made 4 stars feel a bit liberal. I felt like I gave the book quite a ways in to finally pull my interest, and then at the end there was no real reward. There was no real sense of closure. Therefore, I believe this author to be an excellent writer. However, I'm not sure I will seek out this author for more books in the future simply because I felt so unsatisfied at the ending. I won't necessarily steer clear of this author either. If I see another book that looks interesting, I will likely give it another shot in hopes that the satisfaction at the closing will be more complete.

Thank you, Netgalley, for giving me this opportunity to read books for reviews. I feel truly honored for this privilege!

Since I’m getting burned out on WWII stories I was nervous for this one, but Meyerson did a fantastic job constructing the intricacies of a multi-generational family and all of the drama, angst, and love that comes with familial relationships.

This is an extraordinary novel. I was spellbound as it unfolded. I couldn’t put it down since I became totally fascinated by the lives of the Millers and the extraordinary diamond that served as the catalyst for this novel.

Upon the death of grandma Helen, the Millers learn about the fabled diamond that she had hidden since she was brought to America to escape the Holocaust. From this moment on, the author weaves a spell, combining history with her strongly drawn characters. The diamond drives the actions of the characters, but not as one might expect.

There is nothing simplistic or trite about this book. Everything the reader predicts is upended by the strong and original writing.

We could have wished for a different resolution, but that would have lessened the impact of this beautifully written novel.

Bravo, Amy Myerson for creating an utterly readable novel that I predict will be the best book of the summer and adored by dozens of book clubs and discussion groups. I know I will be highly recommending this to all my followers.

Thank you Netgalley for this opportunity to read and review this magical novel.

I thought this was a fantastic book. It was exceptionally well-written, and I really loved how there is a historical story incorporated but not using the usual time jumps; the historical story comes through as the characters do research and look into the diamond and how it might have come to be in Helen's possession. I thought the characters were well-written, and even though there was a little too much family drama for my liking, it still worked well with the story. And I would really love to see Jake's movie about Helen and Flora become an actual movie, that's how well it was written. I could not put this book down it was so good.