Rachel Reviews: Hessman's Necklace by Nicholas Litchfield
Meet Ray, a good-looking, whisky-swigging, ladies' man who's a thief for hire as he tries to get a necklace from a vicar and his beau
I had high hopes for Hessman's Necklace from the outset and I wasn't disappointed. It was fast-paced, descriptive, with a tight plot and convincingly drawn characters throughout. It was, it was fair to say, a good read.
We first meet Ray engaging in one of his favourite pastimes: a casual romp in the bedroom with someone of the opposite sex. Litchfield's style of writing at this stage is light, full of humour and whilst Ray's attitude to his date may not present either of them in the best light, it is an entertaining way to meet Ray and gain an idea of his motivations and the type of character he is. He's not unlikeable but he is a bit of a rogue.
So when his boss, Walter, has a job for him which is ostensibly to steal a necklace but to do it through the seduction of a woman, it seems that Ray may have a good chance of success - but has Walter underestimated the Reverend, the preacher who has the necklace and his mistress, Merriam who wears it, and has Ray actually been commissioned to perform a robbery which is far more complex and dangerous than first presented?
Well, you will have to read this to find out, of course and it's definitely worth the effort. Ray is no hero; he is very much flawed but he is also very much aware of it. He doesn't lie to himself and is a simple being who enjoys sensual pleasure and the idea of the finer things in life but suffers as a result of his own largesse and lack of discipline. He's a chancer but he's harmless and as a reader, you want him to be successful in his heist and certainly don't want any harm to befall him.
The tone of the book does steadily change as the action progresses and the stakes get higher for our man. The beginning of the book and the way we meet him is comic and there is a wryness of humour throughout which permeates the text; however, as Ray gets deeper into his mission, it is clear that this is no simple task and that he is going to have to have his wits about him and Litchfield infuses the book with more tension and less humour, leading convincingly to a surprising climax.
I would recommend - good story, well delivered.
Rachel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
This review was first published on Discovery where I was privileged to read it as an ARC:
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Comments (5)
I had to look up largesse haha. This one feels like one I more easily get into, especially with the idea of the necklace heist.
I enjoyed your well written (as always) review.
This does seem intriguing but not enough to make my TBR hehehe. Loved your review! How have you been doing, Super Rach?
'A casual romp'. I am liking this so far. I like how we know that during this time, Litchfield writing was light. Steal a necklace through seducing a woman? Even more spicy. I like the questions you raised, your way of teasing us into reading this book, sneaky but effective. You placed the book cover at the perfect part. Only to scroll and see 'well, you will have to read...' 🤔 We won't want any harm to befall him. Despite his... Not so great qualities. Looks like the author did a great job there. So he starts with humour, then stops to give us tension so that it leads to a convincingly surprising climax. Sounds like I could learn a lot from this book, I'll keep an eye out. Expertly presented as always, Rachel 🤗❤️
Yet again you have my interest piqued. You do a great job introducing this story with the perfect amount of detail that doesn't give away any spoilers.