Diamond. Emerald. Amethyst. Diamond
= D. E. A. D.

A bracelet that mysteriously appeared on Celia Browning's nightstand was a bracelet she thought was from her fiancee, but once she saw what the individual jewels spelled out, she knew it wasn't good.

?Celia Browning was the daughter of a wealthy merchant and a descendant of a family member who died in their home about 20 years ago. The death was? said to be a suicide, but others believed it was a murder. Now just when she was finally going to be wed to her childhood sweetheart, nosy newspaper men began to question what happened and began causing trouble by printing articles in the paper, having people follow and frighten Celia, and leaving mysterious notes and gifts in the house.

Celia couldn't tell her father about any of these odd situations because he wasn't well. Her cousin, Ivy, was the only one who knew about the mysterious note but not the bracelet. Who should Celia tell, and when should Celia tell someone?

Could her uncle really have murdered his wife? What was this incident that happened so many years ago, and why does someone want to dredge it up again??

THE BRACELET gives the reader a glimpse into wealthy households? ?and appears to be about the Browning family and how they fit into society, but underneath all of that, ?it is a murder mystery that Celia needs to solve for her own peace of mind.

Are there family secrets and perhaps a murderer hidden within all that southern hospitality and charm? Does a red diary with clues truly exist and have the answers to the 20-year-old mystery?

?THE BRACELET was an enjoyable, clever read with just enough suspense to keep ?you guessing about who the culprit is that was sending gifts and leaving notes and who it is that wanted to ruin the Browning family but why now?

I enjoyed THE BRACELET because of the setting and the time period. Ms. Love definitely gave a perfect portrayal of wealthy, Southern life in the 1800's along with the added bonus of intrigue about the murder. The ending is definitely a surprise and quite a good one.

Don't miss reading THE BRACELET. 4/5

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the author and pubslisher in return for an honest review.

The story is set in 1858 in Savannah, Georgia. Savannah, being only a two-hour drive from where I live, is always a great setting. Savannah itself seems to be a major character in stories. “The Bracelet” has elements of history, romance, mystery, and intrigue. Celia has always been in love with Sutton, and he with her. He is in the shipping business and has just returned from several years in Jamaica. Trouble is brewing in the nation’s young capitol as North and South prepare to face off over the slavery issue. But also arriving in Savannah is a journalist, determined to find out the truth about two deaths in Celia’s family home. Celia begins receiving threatening notes and a bracelet that sends a chilling message – death. Her father’s health is rapidly failing.

The daughters of two sisters are at the heart of this story. The sisters died early and the cousins were raised by Celia’s father and his housekeeper Mrs. Maguire. I really enjoyed the story but had to give it only four stars as one plotline was much too easily solved. However there were plenty of other twists and turns that kept me involved in the story.

The cover is a rip off of the much better book \\\"Girl with a Pearl Earring\\\". The dialogue is a caricature of both southern speech of the era (fiddlesticks) and the Irish brogue of the housekeeper. There are so many anachronisms that I wonder about the author\\\'s claims of extensive research. For example, the term \\\" field trip\\\" when referring to an educational outing was not even used until 1926. And the dialogue about slavery just doesn\\\'t ring true. The bracelet in the title plays only a minor role in the weak plot. Most disappointing, although the story is set in Savannah, this unique and beautiful southern city is not really a key element of the story. Not my cup of bergamot tea.