ANZ LitLovers LitBlog

Not great literature, but intriguing enough to amuse me en route to work.

BEWARE: SPOILERS

Precious Rafferty is an antiques dealer who lives in Paris, where she meets the seductive Bennett James and imprudently falls in love. He jilts her at the altar in Venice – because unbeknownst to Preshi, rich old Aunt Griselda has let it slip that she’s leaving her money to her favourite charities and not to her favourite niece. 

Yes, Bennett is a nefarious cad and a bounder, and he stops at nothing to get his hands on a legendary necklace.   If that weren’t enough, Preshi’s cousin Lily, who makes a shady living flogging stolen antiques in Shanghai, has to contend with a greedy and amoral worker called MaryLou who’s after the necklace too.

There’s a lot of Transatlantic flying about but they all end up in Venice where evil does its worst – but the goodies triumph AND Preshi finds a nice new man.  Silly plot, yes, but the descriptions of Paris and Venice are enchanting, right down to the familiar cafes in St Mark’s Square and their competing orchestras.  Food descriptions were enticing too!