Amy Meyerson’s The Imperfects will remind you to never give up on family

Amy Meyerson’s thrilling new novel, The Imperfects, tells the story of an estranged family forced back together to uncover a long-kept family secret.

Everyone keeps secrets. Most of us don’t think about who might uncover our secrets once we’re no longer around to hide them.

In Amy Meyerson‘s The Imperfects, Ashley, Jake, Beck, and Deborah Miller’s lives are all rudely interrupted when the family matriarch, Helen, dies unexpectedly. All are forced to return to their former home to go through her possessions and pay their respects.

Things take an even more unexpected turn when they discover the diamond Helen kept hidden in that house could be worth millions of dollars … and might not have even rightfully belonged to her in the first place.

Thus begins a risky quest to figure out where Helen’s diamond came from and whether or not it was the original property of distant royalty.

There’s a lot going on in this book aside from the main Florentine Diamond storyline. Each sibling and their mother all have their own subplots weaving in and out of the Helen mystery, so if the gemology doesn’t hook you, all the family drama definitely will.

Meyerson’s author’s note unpacks the origins of her novel, highlighting her fascination with gemology and her desire to construct a narrative around a diamond. Her interest in this subject shines through beautifully in the way the Florentine Diamond becomes a character in its own right as the story progresses, as well as the catalyst that forces the novel’s central characters to gather around it.

You’ll love The Imperfects if stories about complex family dynamics, juicy long-lost secrets, and valuable gems catch your interest. Anyone interested in stories set around the Holocaust might also find some of the backstory intriguing. There’s a great twist near the end, too, and it does have a bittersweet conclusion that will answer just enough of your questions … but maybe not all of them.

The Millers’ story — at least parts of it — will feel familiar to many who have the pleasure of reading this book. We’ve all done things we’ve later regretted. We’ve all hurt the people we love most when it was never our intention to do so. It’s hard being a sibling; a child; a partner; a mother. But somewhere down the line, life always tosses you a challenge you can’t overcome alone.

Sometimes it takes a tragedy to realize how important it really is to take care of your family, no matter what the past may have done to try breaking you apart.

The Imperfects is available in print, ebook, and audiobook formats.