3.5 stars.

This book really made me mad at first and I kept shaking my head at the main character. It was hard for me to believe that they would let a superstition rule their life and be blinded to themselves and others. The story was very different and adventurous, but in the end, it wasn't something I would read again. It was basically a giant goose chase to prove something.

Thank you NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons, and author Jessie Rosen for this gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

THE HEIRLOOM - Jessie Rosen

Searching for Love? - 3 stars

Plot - 3 stars - Shea Anderson’s beloved Nonna had lots of rules for having a healthy life, primary of which was to never accept a marriage proposal that comes with an heirloom ring. Happily ever after is hard enough without additional bad karma. Unfortunately, Shea's practically perfect boyfriend, John, proposes with an heirloom ring. She wants to say yes, but she's determined to set on a mission to ensure the ring contains forever. She will find its previous owners wherever they may be. Along with her sister and a helpful journalist, Shea embarks on her search for the truth.

Writing - 3 stars - Rosen writes in an easy-to-read manner, but I was a little disconcerted right from the beginning when the parameters that Shea followed in her clues didn't quite add up for me. The whole premise of the story, while interesting and a little different, felt sad to me since Shea was sacrificing her relationship with John for this seemingly wild goose chase.

Characters - 3.5 stars - John is the perfect partner for Shea. He understands her idiosyncrasies and is the most patient man ever. We see him in action as a middle school teacher, and he's terrific. It was Shea that often annoyed me because of her obsession with her ring. Rather than seeing it as a token of John's love (and caring, since he gave it a lot of thought before purchasing it), she instead leans into the superstition that her Nonna held. And through her research and travels, she would often miss the point of the whole exercise--finding negatives where none really existed. Very frustrating.

Title - 3 stars - Pretty self-explanatory since the whole book is about the heirloom ring give to Shea and her search to find its previous owners.

Cover - 4 stars - Although kind of a cartoon-y cover (as is the recent trend), the scene represents the trip Shea took, and the bright colors are pretty and catch the eye.

Overall - 3 stars - Although I understood the premise of the story when I began, I was disappointed by the fact that Shea continued to insist that she had to discover the ring's origins because it was clear that this stance hurt John (a very likeable character right from the beginning) and their relationship. It was surprising to me that she was so laser-focused on her goal that she couldn't recognize that. As far as the book itself went, I felt the search continued past its interest point. After the first couple of finds, I was ready for her to go for her HEA, but unfortunately the book continued with further related searches through a few more chapters, and things slowed down in the middle of the story. Luckily, with John's reappearance and Shea's acceptance of the ring's past, the book picked up again for a happy ending. I know that Graham and Shea clearly ended their temporary relationship, but that part still felt a little rushed and almost unfinished. Overall, this was an intriguing book, and I will look for more from this new-to-me author.

This was difficult for me to get invested. The premise though silly I could get on board with the fun of shenanigans but the wild goose chase that potentially put her relationship at risk seemed so far fetched all for something so silly.

What a great plot concept! If you like romance, travel, and storytelling, check this out!

I appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a review.

What I thought would happen didn’t. I’m not convinced about the relationship between John and Shea.
I loved Shea’s name.
I loved all the traveling and the research.
The rest of the book was ok but some of the chapters were a bit of a slog to get through.
The ending was not what I had anticipated at all.

This was seriously so good! I totally relate with superstitions and such coming from Louisiana. Everything holds energy and you can manipulate/ change the energy of things based on their surroundings. This was more than I expected from this book. I highly recommend!

"The Heirloom" poses a simple question. Do heirlooms carry the energy of their past owners?

When Shea Anderson’s boyfriend of the past four years proposes to her with a beautiful heirloom engagement ring, knowing she is superstitious about heirlooms, thanks to her Italian grandmother, she doesn't know what to think. Of course, she wants to marry John, but can she enter into a marriage with an heirloom engagement ring that might curse their life together?

Thus begins a quest, ostensibly to learn the history of the ring, but ultimately to understand Shea's heart and mind. And it turns out that she has a lot from her past that needs resolving before she can enter into a healthy marriage with anyone, regardless of whether her engagement ring is an heirloom or not. But that's what this quest reveals to her and it transitions into a healing journey that I think will resonate with many readers who question whether love can truly last.

I will admit that at times, I found Shea to be "a bit much." In her search for answers, she ended up hurting a lot of people who love her, which made her not very likeable at times. But that's all part of the transformation she undergoes along the way. I just spent too much of the story not really liking her for me to say this was a great book. I primarily kept reading because I was invested in learning the ring's history as well, which was interesting and convoluted.

Thank you to Jessie Rosen, Penguin Group, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

I loved being transported around the world in this book! Shea is given an heirloom engagement ring and due to superstitions passed down to her by her Nona, she is in a mission to find the original owner of the ring and learn the love stories associated with the ring. This is a story of love, family, finding yourself and connecting with loved ones who have passed.

Ok, once I looked past the fact that I wanted to slap the main girl in this book multiple times, I loved this! I could 100% see this as a great chick flick, and would absolutely watch. It’s a yes from me! (Just know, you might want to kick Shea in the shin from time to time.)

I liked the idea behind grandma's advice and the multigenerational journey our character went on. However, I do think it drug on a bit and got a bit bogged down near the end.

I received an advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

I've always agreed with the notion that heirloom pieces hold energy from the past, so it was nice to relate. This book was a journey on self growth and actually changed the way I perceive heirloom pieces as well. A nice, light read with a happy ending.

I did not expect to love this book as much as I did. The author crafted this highly enjoyable, adventurous, I believe in soulmates but I’m also superstitious romance. It was witty, heartfelt, and even had a few unexpected twists. Exploring themes of love, fate, self-discovery, and relationship security this book was absolutely unpredictable.

When John proposes to Shea with an heirloom ring her answer was yes. But that yes also came with a bit of unease and worry. Her Nonna had many rules surrounding superstitions one in particular was to NEVER accept an heirloom ring. To ensure her marriage proposal came with a happily ever after Shea sets out on a journey across the country to make sure there’s no bad karma in the mix.

The premise of the book is what made me love it so much. It was a little far fetched for Shea to travel to a million different places trying to trace the ring back to the original owner. But that’s what I enjoyed the most because sometimes people do the craziest things for love. In Shea’s instance she was trying to ensure her future was secure with John.

I know I’m not the only one who thought she was going to fall for Graham during that trip. When they started to get a little too close I was like come on Shea you’re losing focus. Then the kiss, the doubting, and confessing!!! She was gonna ruin her relationship before the ring had a chance.

Overall, this was so worth the read. The characters are flawed but also realistic and I thought it had the perfect ending. It lost half a star because it began to drag a bit but overall the book is very engaging and I highly recommend. Special thanks to the author & @putnambooks for my gifted e-ARC!!!

Rating: 4.5/5⭐️

I loved this book so much. I loved how she went running finding out if the bad karma was true on this ring. She finds out many secrets along the way. I loved the characters and the storyline. I would definitely recommend this book.

Shea is proposed to by John and what is supposed to be a happy occasion starts a journey of self growth. The only thing Shea insisted was she didn't want an heirloom ring. When John proposes with one she begins floundering. Thus begins the trek to find the history of this ring. This was a wonderful story full of flaws and hope. Be careful, this on is hard to put down!

I wanted to like this book but it was a touch too hallmark for me. I always wanted a relationship with an elderly family member but never had one. Reading about others relationships with their elderly family just seems fake to me.
Overall it’s a cute story but not my flavor anymore.

This was an easy, clean read. The plot was all over the place, but the ending brought it all together. It was interesting to find out the history of the ring and the stories of the owners. I liked the characters; especially the banter between Shea and Graham, the journalist. It added a bit of fun to the storyline. This is a good book to read if you are wanting to travel the world through a story!

Book 19 of 2024 - ☑️! Thank you so much to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons & Jessie Rosen for the ARC of The Heirloom in exchange for my honest review.

I had The Heirloom on my TBR the moment I found out about it. I’ve been following Jessie Rosen’s career for a minute, and I was thrilled to get a galley of her first book. In The Heirloom, when Shea Anderson is proposed to by her long-time boyfriend, John, all but one thing is perfect: the ring. She doesn’t take issue with the look of the ring; rather, it’s the fact that it’s an heirloom. Heirloom jewelry is something she’s take a particularly strong stance on, due to her Nonna’s influence. Shea’s Nonna has been a huge part of every facet of her life, from Shea’s love of movies, to her deep desire for a strong & forever marriage. Shea’s feelings about the ring lead her on a journey to multiple countries, as well as very deep and personal exploration while tracing the history of the heirloom and its owners.

This lovely book gripped me from the beginning, and I was looking forward to reading it any moment I got. Rosen’s descriptions are so vivid, it made you feel like you were in Italy, Portugal, LA and all of the places she mentioned - a great summer read all-around.

5/5 ⭐️! I look forward to reading more of Jessie’s work - I’m thrilled to learn her 2nd book is in the works! 💍 ✈️ 🧣 #NetGalley #TheHeirloom

This is a story of a girl searching for the story of a heirloom ring. I was hoping for a swooning romance with a brave rich story however the couple with the ring spend most of their time ignoring each other, which begs the question should they be together. It is a story that is about the journey and not the ending.

"The Heirloom" is a charming debut novel with an engaging plot and a protagonist with dimension. Rosen takes the reader on a fun goose chase as the protagonist gets to the bottom of her heirloom engagement ring's origin story and has to decide for herself whether she'll allow superstition to dictate her own happily ever after.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and Putnam Books in exchange for an honest review.

Shea has always been a devout believer in her Italian grandmother's superstitions, most importantly never to accept an heirloom ring lest the bad karma of previous relationships bring yours down. When her boyfriend, John, proposes with an heirloom ring, Shea is torn. She wants to say yes, but can't shake the superstition. She sets out to find the history of the ring's previous owner.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book, but as Shea's search kept dragging on, I grew very frustrated with our main character. I wanted to shake some sense into Shea several times. The twists in the ring's history got to be too unbelievable, but I think the ending was perfect. Shea's character worked on herself, grew, and ultimately, got a happy ending.