Shea puts a lot of stock in what her Nona says, so when Shea’s boyfriend proposes using an engagement ring, that’s an heirloom, she freaks out. Because the grandmother always said that she should never accept a proposal that comes with an heirloom ring, among other unusual superstitions. She wants to say yes, but she’s her grandmothers granddaughter, and so she sets out on a quest to find the previous owners of the ring to find out if they had happily ever afters or some thing less desirable. An unique premise and engaging characters made this a very enjoyable read.

I was hopeful when I started this book, but I have to say it’s one of the only book I’ve really wanted to DNF, but I’m glad I stuck through to the end. While I enjoy both romance and fantasy books, the entire premise is just too wild for me.

Shea is proposed to by her boyfriend John (who despite being so “perfect” buys her a vintage ring, which she’s said she would never want) and immediately goes jaunting off to find the background of the ring. Not too crazy, I get that. Where it loses the plot for me is when she decides to fly halfway across the world for a week and go from LA to a small town in northern Italy. Come on the flight by itself is 13 hours, and you’re going to do that twice in a week? No thank you.

Cue meeting different people and taking a journey around Europe and the US to learn more about the ring over the course of a couple weeks.

Throughout the book, Shea learns a lot about herself and how her past has framed her current ideas of love and marriage. I thought the last 20% of the book was the best part, where she truly has introspection and begins to think about what she wants her life and future to look like.

Thank you to Penguin Books and NetGalley for this ARC that was provided in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wow!! Going into “The Heirloom” I was prepared for another easy romance read. It was an easy read but it’s not just your story line where she finds a man and she falls in love - the end! Every time I thought I had this book figured out or knew what was going to happen next, there was a new twist that threw me off! It did start to get a little lengthy in the middle but with another twist by the end it all made sense. I will not lie, the end was my favorite and actually helped me with some things I am currently going through in my own life. This is one I would read again and again.

Nonna always knows best!! Words to live by! This was such a wonderful story about family and love. Anyone looking for a captivating and engaging story to keep them entertained needs to read this book. I loved the characters and how they developed and grew throughout the story.

3 1/2 Stars

I think the reader's enjoyment of this book is really anchored to whether somebody can get on board with the plot. If you think it's absurd that the main character, Shea, won't make a decision on her engagement until she flies across the world to several countries to hunt down the history of her heirloom engagement ring to make sure it doesn't have bad karma, then this book just won't be for you. However, if you can suspend your disbelief on the overall premise, I think you would find the story enjoyable and more like a fun scavenger hunt. The hardest plot point for me to overcome was that Shea's fiance John knew how adamantly opposed Shea was to an heirloom engagement ring, but bought her one anyways. I think the story would have been more believable if Shea had kept this fact from John rather than making sure he knew as one of her "big 4" dealbreakers on the first few dates. I also took issue with the love triangle piece - I think it made what could be a fun sister bonding trip into something really uncomfortable and kind of forced. I did love the settings of Italy and Portugal, though! Overall, this book was good, but I do think it had potential to be great.

Many thanks to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the advanced eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Heirloom
By Jessie Rosen
Pub Date: May 7, 2024
Penguin Group Putnam
* fiction
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
The Heirloom takes readers on an introspective journey alongside Shea, a woman at the crossroads of her life , triggered by her boyfriend’s proposal. The book requires a bit of suspension of belief as Shea investigates the ring’s history,
I would recommend this for readers who want to fall in love in Italy.
3 stars

I loved the premise of this book! A woman accepts a marriage from a man she loves but has reservations then travels around to find herself. But oh man, the writing was a little rough and the plot was muddled. Also the main character Shea is completely unlikable and annoying. I really wanted to like this book because the cover is beautiful.
Best of luck to this author!

Jessie Rosen does a great job of writing books with just a touch of romance instead of full rom-coms. The first half of this book was a bit slow but once I got about 60% in, I couldn’t put it down and finished it in one night.

I started this book off feeling very optimistic. It was lighthearted, easy to dive into. But as I dug in I found myself just wanting it to be over. I groaned when the first owner of the ring was found but they had to continue their search for two more owners. And while it was obvious there would be a love triangle with Graham, I just didn’t care. I came to realize the characters just were flat. Not a lot of description about them or connections with each other. John was especially not built. I first wanted Graham to work and a great love to be found, but I wasn’t buying they were connected. I think it was a convenience. And while I admired the lesson of John and Shea working it out in the end, I was just ready for the ending that I wasn’t invested in them. I would have loved to see Shea and her sister speaking Italian fluently while visiting Italy, especially with all the history they say they have there.
I just reviewed The Heirloom by Jessie Rosen. #TheHeirloom #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

I struggled with this one. The concept was great but it just fell flat for me. I almost DNF’d it a few times. The last part of the book held my attention more then the the first so I’m happy I ultimately finished.

There was a lot going on with this book, and at times the story felt a little far fetched. While I loved the concept of heirlooms and superstitions that come with them (good and bad), I felt like I wanted more from this story than what I got. That said, the dialogue in this story was particularly strong and believable. I really loved the interactions between most of the characters.

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Thank you to NetGalley. for providing me an e-arc of this title. This review contains my honest thoughts.

I like it when you are reading a book and the up and downs in the book coincide with the up and downs in your life. It is a comforting experience. This book does that for me. Shea is the heroine of the story. She grows a lot in the book. She is strong, then weak and then strong again. She is in love with John ~ or is she? The characters are well written and the storyline flows well. This author has something special and I hope she continues to follow her dream. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest review.

📚ARC Book Review 📚

Title: The Heirloom by Jessie Rosen

⛔️ might contain spoilers

Rating: 📖📖 (2/5)

🔖Heirloom, Marriage, Engagement, Divorce, True love

📲 read on kindlebasic #kindlebasic2022 #kindlebasicdenim

👦👧 Shea(female lead) who received an heirloom ring from John (male lead).
📝 Superstitious Shea could’t wear the heirloom engagement ring given by her fiancé John so she travelled afar just to know its history getting her tangled with a writer-Graham and even cost her a fight with her sister Annie. Seeking for the ring’s origin brought her to different places and sought different people just to make her realize what the ring really meant
✅ Oh well i’m not really a fan of this book but this somehow have lessons with self-realization, beliefs and superstitions, sisterhood and woman empowerment.
❌ From the get go i wanted to DNF it the very first few pages hence it was a struggle to finish it. As a courtesy to the advance copy given to me I am giving it a review. I find the story line really absurd and unbelievable, coz agreeing to a marriage doesn’t depend on superstitions. Everything is just so wrong and She getting to her answer leads her to more questions like she found the owner only to find that it’s not the real owner and then it goes on and on. Like how many owners can this ring have-felt like needs to be done that way to prolong the story coz if it only has one owner then story is cut short. And who would kiss and fall for another man while your in search for an answer of your engagement ring—like seriously. This is really a pain to read and I just cant believe there’s really nothing much to look forward even in the beginning.I’m just glad they finally ended up together or if not this book might be my worst read for this year.
Thank you to the author #jessierosen and #Penguingroupputnam for the advance copy

#bookstagram #bookworm #bookreview #jessierosenauthor #TheHeirloom #netgalley#jessierosenbooks #fantasy #superstitions #heirloom #engagementring #justread #justreadbymingerardino #booklover #booknerd #bookworm #kindle #kindleunlimited #kindlebasic #kindlebasic2022

Where to start! Admittedly, I almost DNF this book multiple times, but I’m glad I stuck with it until the end.

Things I loved about The Heirloom: The dialogue between characters was excellent! I loved the banter between Shea and other characters. The premise of this story was lovely and new. I liked Shea as a character! she is clever and quirky. I think the ending of the book is pristine. Shea had many questions that needed answers, and after everything she went through, I was glad she took the time to work on herself and make changes in her life for the better. I was thrilled with who she ended up with at the end and felt it was right. They really seem perfect together.

Things I didn’t enjoy: There was too much Italian without translation. I truly enjoy other languages in a book, but if they aren’t commonly known or a cognate, I appreciate the direct translation. Same with some of the niche references. I had to stop reading to Google unfamiliar references and language, and it was a little too much work for a fun read. There were also too many twists and turns and back stories and random characters to keep track of, almost to the very end of the book. I don’t mind that in a fantasy story, but not so much in regular fiction. I also have a hard line when it comes to cheating. It’s immediately unenjoyable to me and almost DNF because of it.

I thought the concept was so sweet as a fiction novel, but it didn’t land as a romance. I think this book is going to be enjoyable to MANY people! There were just a few things that didn’t land for me personally, but I feel that Jessie is a wonderful writer and told a great story. Congratulations on your debut novel, Jessie!

Annnnddd this is why I don't read romance. I don't recommend The Heirloom unless you're fascinated with irrational superstitions, love predictable plots, and enjoy personality-less characters.

Plot: Shea (this character had so little physical description that I found myself referencing the GoT Shea for a mental picture haha) has this totally unrealistic superstition about heirloom jewelry. The author was trying to create a narrative around the assumption that readers would connect with/understand this notion. I have never heard anything of the sort and frankly, it made the rest of the plot pretty squishy. Naturally, her boyfriend John proposes with...you guessed it---an heirloom ring!!! This man did not know his woman very well. A trip to the jeweler together to pick out her ideal engagement ring and this book would have no need to be written. When there's a plot hole that large, I can't sit back and ignore it. Shea decides she MUST go to Italy and find out the history of her ring's prior owner for herself. This would be the only way she could wear it and marry her fiancé in good conscience. Her sister and an investigative journalist tag along on her journey and manage to complicate matters even more. Read if you dare to find out how this thrilling saga could possibly turn out!

The Heirloom fell short for me and I found myself rushing through it, anxious for it to be over. It drags on for at least 5 chapters too long at the end and reminded me why I don't delve into this genre much. The entire book was a cliche and felt like 5 stereotypical romance books smushed into one. This one is proof that setting your book in Italy ≠ automatic winner.

Thank you so much to Penguin Group Putnam, Jessie Rosen, and NetGalley for the ARC of The Heirloom!

This may be the first book I've ever wanted to label as a Romcom/Thriller. I loved the page-turning adventure lead by the beloved lead charter Shea to uncover the origin and owners of her newly acquired engagement ring. I appreciate that Shea while relatable and honest -- is not without her own pitfalls and flaws. The layered friendship and family dynamics of both the lead and all supporting characters were beautifully written. The ending left me wanting more in the best way.

Lovers of One Italian Summer, The Heirloom is your next favorite read! After John proposes to Shea with a vintage, previously owned ring (the one thing Shea told him to never do), she sets off on a journey to discover the ring’s former owners and ensure there is no bad karma in its history. This book is sweet and while it’s a kind of cheesy premise, the story manages to balance deep emotion when digging into Shea’s childhood and her dedication to the ring superstition.

If you enjoy an intriguing story including a jewelry mystery, travel, romance and personal growth then this debut novel by Jessie Rosen will be a great choice for you. I loved the adventure the main character went on in search of the history of the heirloom ring she received from her fiancée. As she grew so did her relationships with her family and fiancé grew too.
Thanks to NetGalley, Jessie Rosen and the publisher to read and review this novel before publication

Let me start this off by saying I love a book set in Italy. It's one of my dream vacation spots, so reading books set there always gives me a good vibe.

I wouldn't say Their Heirloom is about romance. It was more about finding yourself and how your beliefs can hold you back from living your best life. Shea's superstitions held her back from a lot and clouded her judgment. Throughout the book, you follow her as she tries to determine if her vintage engagement ring is cursed before she gets married to her boyfriend. It had all the leads to be a cute rom-com but went a different route. Not to say the story wasn't good, but I wish it were a little more rom-com-y.

I would recommend this book to people who are trying to grow and figure things out. It's a relatable, emotional and funny story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. #netgalley #TheHeirloom

Dreamy travel to Portugal and Italy? Yes please!
Mystery and lore with family love? Yes again!
Adventure and history? Don't mind if I do!

This was such a delightful contemporary story that became so much more than I anticipated! I love all things Italy, since living there for a few years, but really enjoyed the journey Shea took introspectively, as well. This was a great mix of adventure and history with a touch of whimsical mystery. I appreciated the underlying theme of strong women, despite the significant differences between the lives of Nonna & Shea.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read this advanced e-reader copy in exchange for my honest opinions!