An intelligent, well-crafted and thought-provoking novel.
Rating: 4.0/5
"The Legacy" turned out to be quite a different read from the one I had envisaged, but not in a negative way at all.
Prior to his death, resulting from motor neuron disease, Jonathan Coulter made a rather unusual last will and testament: His three adult children, as joint executors of his estate, must decide how it will be dispersed. If they cannot reach agreement, they risk forfeiting their claims to any of it.
Certainly an intriguing premise. I had visions of it setting the stage for all manner of sibling rivalry and dirty deeds akin to those glossy US soap operas of the 1980s (Dallas, et al). However, what Caroline Bond has delivered is a far more considered and artfully crafted novel than that.
The quandary that Chloe, Liv and Noah find themselves confronted with is a situation that every reader will be able understand the relevance of ... either because they have already experienced something similar themselves, or because they could encounter it at some point in the future.
The writing is intelligent and captivating, with characterisation that is wholly credible. Subject matter that could easily have become superficial and played for pure entertainment value, as the reader watches the potential mayhem from a safe distance, develops into something that is, instead, regularly thought-provoking. - It hits closer to home and draws the reader in. I find it difficult to imagine many people being able to read this book without picturing themselves in similar predicament and trying to imagine how they and their family might behave.
I had not read any of Caroline Bond's work prior to this, but I shall certainly be keeping any eye out for her next publication.
"The Legacy" turned out to be quite a different read from the one I had envisaged, but not in a negative way at all.
Prior to his death, resulting from motor neuron disease, Jonathan Coulter made a rather unusual last will and testament: His three adult children, as joint executors of his estate, must decide how it will be dispersed. If they cannot reach agreement, they risk forfeiting their claims to any of it.
Certainly an intriguing premise. I had visions of it setting the stage for all manner of sibling rivalry and dirty deeds akin to those glossy US soap operas of the 1980s (Dallas, et al). However, what Caroline Bond has delivered is a far more considered and artfully crafted novel than that.
The quandary that Chloe, Liv and Noah find themselves confronted with is a situation that every reader will be able understand the relevance of ... either because they have already experienced something similar themselves, or because they could encounter it at some point in the future.
The writing is intelligent and captivating, with characterisation that is wholly credible. Subject matter that could easily have become superficial and played for pure entertainment value, as the reader watches the potential mayhem from a safe distance, develops into something that is, instead, regularly thought-provoking. - It hits closer to home and draws the reader in. I find it difficult to imagine many people being able to read this book without picturing themselves in similar predicament and trying to imagine how they and their family might behave.
I had not read any of Caroline Bond's work prior to this, but I shall certainly be keeping any eye out for her next publication.