Named one of NPR’s Best Books of 2017“Both original and moving—and a whole lot of fun.”—CAROLINE LEAVITT, New York Times Book Review“A must-read.”—People“Fans of Salinger’s stories about Manhattan’s elite will enjoy this novel about privileged siblings who grapple with the state of their inheritance and long-held secrets that emerge in the wake of their father’s death.”—InStyle Six months after … long-held secrets that emerge in the wake of their father’s death.”—InStyle
Six months after Rupert Falkes dies, leaving a grieving widow and five adult sons, an unknown woman sues his estate, claiming she had two sons by him. The Falkes brothers are pitched into turmoil, at once missing their father and feeling betrayed by him. In disconcerting contrast, their mother, Eleanor, is cool and calm, showing preternatural composure.
Eleanor and Rupert had made an admirable life together—Eleanor with her sly wit and generosity, Rupert with his ambition and English charm—and they were proud of their handsome, talented sons: Harry, a brash law professor; Will, a savvy Hollywood agent; Sam, an astute doctor and scientific researcher; Jack, a jazz trumpet prodigy; Tom, a public-spirited federal prosecutor. The brothers see their identity and success as inextricably tied to family loyalty—a loyalty they always believed their father shared. Struggling to reclaim their identity, the brothers find Eleanor’s sympathy toward the woman and her sons confounding. Widowhood has let her cast off the rigid propriety of her stifling upbringing, and the brothers begin to question whether they knew either of their parents at all.
A riveting portrait of a family, told with compassion, insight, and wit, The Heirs wrestles with the tangled nature of inheritance and legacy for one unforgettable, patrician New York family. Moving seamlessly through a constellation of rich, arresting voices, The Heirs is a tale out Edith Wharton for the 21st century.
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This was interesting enough and well-written enough to keep me hanging in, but was actually a total time-suck! Back away from the book.
The best book I’ve read in awhile. Fast paced and witty.
Very well written. Deep character development occurred like the peeling of an onion, layer after layer. I was interested in the family until the very last page.
clever.
well written
A very good historical novel. A very worthwhile read.
I really enjoyed the relationships between the characters and how the author lets you learn about the characters without judging them.
I think this book would be best read as a hard copy rather than Kindle. I needed to be able to refer back to get things straight and this is hard to do on Kindle.
Not only a good read but wonderful example of all too human but excellent parenting
It was a struggle to finish this book. The story moved along slowly, and other books were much more enticing. The Falkes men were entitled, self-indulgent brats, and difficult to like. Actually, I didn’t manage to like them at all. Susanna was a rather sweet character, but slightly ruined by the fact that she fell for someone who would never love her how she deserved to be loved. Reading The Heirs was frustrating with difficult characters like these! It often seemed like Rieger tried to include components to The Heirs that might be a draw to certain readers, but did not add any benefit to the story.
The story read like it was supposed to sound really dramatic, but the drama fell short for me. I almost gave up finishing the novel several times. Despite all of this, there was a section that included a reference I really appreciated on page 116:
“I want a scientific breakthrough, a miracle.
‘Not very English of you,’ Francie said. We still ‘go gentle into that good night.’ ”
I loved that Rieger included that poem! All in all, though, I do not recommend this book. It was unfortunately a bit of a boring read, and did not keep my interests at all. The story could have been much shorter and still given much of the same information, just at a faster pace (which would have been preferable).
Disclaimer: I received this book for free from Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.