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The Inheritance
Notorious party-loving “It Girl” Lyric Charlton has it all—the lineage, the looks and the lifestyle. A moneyed upbringing at the heart of one of the upper classes’ most well-connected families, a finishing school education and an address book bursting with the world’s most powerful and high-profile people has crowned her the glamorous poster girl for the aristocratic glitterati. But when her doomed relationship with suave boy-about-town Ralph Conway means she takes the good times too far, she is packed off to rehab by her worried parents—and the public shame and private humiliation that follow means Lyric’s only option seems to be to retreat into sober obscurity. But what no one can predict is the dramatic chain of events her Texan exile sets in motion. For Lyric’s treatment is the start of much more than a life as an ex-coke addict. It’s the catalyst that exposes a complex web of deceit and betrayal—and leads Lyric on an increasingly dangerous quest to find the final missing piece of the jigsaw of her life.
400 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2010
4 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
Tara Palmer-Tomkinson
4 booksTara Palmer-Tomkinson was an English socialite, television personality, model, and charity patron.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 4, 2018
A decent read. A little bit action spy movie in parts not in a good way. But overall enjoyed it.
August 8, 2020
A perfect fiction tale!
April 12, 2011
Notorious party-loving ‘It Girl’ Lyric Charlton has it all – the lineage, the looks and the lifestyle. A moneyed upbringing at the heart of one of the upper class’s most well-connected families, a finishing school education and an address book bursting with the world’s most powerful and high-profile people has crowned her the glamorous poster girl for the aristocratic glitterati.
But when her doomed relationship with suave boy-about-town Ralph Conway means she takes the good times too far, she is packed off to rehab by her worried parents, and the public shame and private humiliation that follow means Lyric’s only option seems to be to retreat into sober obscurity. But what no one can predict is the dramatic chain of events her exile sets in motion. For Lyric’s treatment is the start of much more than a life as an ex-addict. It’s the catalyst that exposes a complex web of deceit and betrayal – and leads Lyric on an increasingly dangerous quest to find the final missing piece of the jigsaw of her life…
I admit, when I heard notorious IT-girl Tara Palmer-Tomkinson was writing a novel, I wasn’t entirely impressed. Celebrity novels rarely impress me, and most of the time they don’t even bother to write the books themselves (and what makes it even more galling is that they say they did write it themselves and/or don’t thank their ghostwriter which irritates me). However, when I saw the book in the book swap one day, I picked it up, not expecting a good read at all. The best thing about picking up the book with no expectations meant that the fact I enjoyed it was a real plus point.
Inheritance starts very well, throwing us into a situation we know nothing about where Lyric finds herself in danger, before heading back three years before, two years before, one year before, before telling us the story as to how Lyric ended up with her life in mortal danger. It was a clever way to introduce us into the story, and I was instantly intrigued as to what had happened to Lyric. Tara Palmer-Tomkinson states in her Acknowledgements that the book is entirely fictional, but there is little doubt that Lyric is based on the woman herself but that didn’t really bother me and I found myself getting very involved in the story. There are many twists and turns throughout the book, some were a bit obvious, but the plot was very intriguing and kept me reading!
There’s quite a large cast in Inheritance, as with most novels like it, and although Lyric is the main character there are plenty of other characters for us to get our teeth into. I wasn’t a huge fan of Lyric’s name (and I would assume it’s meant to be ironic as we also have a Truly Stunning in the novel) but I liked Lyric. Yes, she has her faults what with her drug addiction but we don’t see much of it, we see the aftermath of her rehab stint and she seemed likeable enough. We also have Lyric’s parents, her best friends as well as some evil characters, and it is quite the well-rounded cast. Not many of them made as much as an impression as Lyric bar one of the villains who is unforgettable, but the rest of the cast added to the general story well.
The only problems I had with the novel was the time-jumping. We know Lyric had a drug addiction, but her entire rehabilitation wasn’t included in the novel, just the mention of her release from rehab. I thought that was a shame, as it would have been a nice inclusion in the book because, with the greatest of respect to Tara, if anyone can write about a stint in rehab, surely it’s her? There were a few more time jumps like that, that broke up the story a bit, but apart from that I thoroughly enjoyed Inheritance. It wasn’t what I expected at all, and I mean that in a good way. I also hugely admire the fact Tara admits to have help with the novel, thanking someone called Claire in her Acknowledgements saying that although it’s her story, feelings and things, she can’t type, and not a lot of celebs admit to having help with writing a novel and happily pass it off as their own. All in all, I will definitely be picking up a second of Tara’s novels should one come out.
But when her doomed relationship with suave boy-about-town Ralph Conway means she takes the good times too far, she is packed off to rehab by her worried parents, and the public shame and private humiliation that follow means Lyric’s only option seems to be to retreat into sober obscurity. But what no one can predict is the dramatic chain of events her exile sets in motion. For Lyric’s treatment is the start of much more than a life as an ex-addict. It’s the catalyst that exposes a complex web of deceit and betrayal – and leads Lyric on an increasingly dangerous quest to find the final missing piece of the jigsaw of her life…
I admit, when I heard notorious IT-girl Tara Palmer-Tomkinson was writing a novel, I wasn’t entirely impressed. Celebrity novels rarely impress me, and most of the time they don’t even bother to write the books themselves (and what makes it even more galling is that they say they did write it themselves and/or don’t thank their ghostwriter which irritates me). However, when I saw the book in the book swap one day, I picked it up, not expecting a good read at all. The best thing about picking up the book with no expectations meant that the fact I enjoyed it was a real plus point.
Inheritance starts very well, throwing us into a situation we know nothing about where Lyric finds herself in danger, before heading back three years before, two years before, one year before, before telling us the story as to how Lyric ended up with her life in mortal danger. It was a clever way to introduce us into the story, and I was instantly intrigued as to what had happened to Lyric. Tara Palmer-Tomkinson states in her Acknowledgements that the book is entirely fictional, but there is little doubt that Lyric is based on the woman herself but that didn’t really bother me and I found myself getting very involved in the story. There are many twists and turns throughout the book, some were a bit obvious, but the plot was very intriguing and kept me reading!
There’s quite a large cast in Inheritance, as with most novels like it, and although Lyric is the main character there are plenty of other characters for us to get our teeth into. I wasn’t a huge fan of Lyric’s name (and I would assume it’s meant to be ironic as we also have a Truly Stunning in the novel) but I liked Lyric. Yes, she has her faults what with her drug addiction but we don’t see much of it, we see the aftermath of her rehab stint and she seemed likeable enough. We also have Lyric’s parents, her best friends as well as some evil characters, and it is quite the well-rounded cast. Not many of them made as much as an impression as Lyric bar one of the villains who is unforgettable, but the rest of the cast added to the general story well.
The only problems I had with the novel was the time-jumping. We know Lyric had a drug addiction, but her entire rehabilitation wasn’t included in the novel, just the mention of her release from rehab. I thought that was a shame, as it would have been a nice inclusion in the book because, with the greatest of respect to Tara, if anyone can write about a stint in rehab, surely it’s her? There were a few more time jumps like that, that broke up the story a bit, but apart from that I thoroughly enjoyed Inheritance. It wasn’t what I expected at all, and I mean that in a good way. I also hugely admire the fact Tara admits to have help with the novel, thanking someone called Claire in her Acknowledgements saying that although it’s her story, feelings and things, she can’t type, and not a lot of celebs admit to having help with writing a novel and happily pass it off as their own. All in all, I will definitely be picking up a second of Tara’s novels should one come out.
December 25, 2010
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I first saw Inheritance by Tara Palmer-Tomkinson. I am not much into celebrities and far too often find that their book sales have very little to do with content. I was lucky enough to read the press release and blurb and became curious to know more. After reading the Prologue I knew I’d read it all, and glad that I had not chosen to judge this book by its cover. Here is the blurb for you:
Notorious party-loving ‘It Girl’ Lyric Charlton has it all – the lineage, the looks and the lifestyle. A moneyed upbringing at the heart of one of the upper class’s most well-connected families, a finishing school education and an address book bursting with the world’s most powerful and high-profile people has crowned her the glamorous poster girl for the aristocratic glitterati.
But when her doomed relationship with suave boy-about-town Ralph Conway means she takes the good times too far, she is packed off to rehab by her worried parents, and the public shame and private humiliation that follow means Lyric’s only option seems to be to retreat into sober obscurity.
But what no one can predict is the dramatic chain of events her exile sets in motion. For Lyric’s treatment is the start of much more than a life as an ex-addict. It’s the catalyst that exposes a complex web of deceit and betrayal – and leads Lyric on an increasingly dangerous quest to find the final missing piece of the jigsaw of her life…
I like the way that this novel is structured, starting in the present, and then going back into the past to explain the origins of present events.
For a full review please check this link: http://evenbutterfliesthink.blogspot....
Notorious party-loving ‘It Girl’ Lyric Charlton has it all – the lineage, the looks and the lifestyle. A moneyed upbringing at the heart of one of the upper class’s most well-connected families, a finishing school education and an address book bursting with the world’s most powerful and high-profile people has crowned her the glamorous poster girl for the aristocratic glitterati.
But when her doomed relationship with suave boy-about-town Ralph Conway means she takes the good times too far, she is packed off to rehab by her worried parents, and the public shame and private humiliation that follow means Lyric’s only option seems to be to retreat into sober obscurity.
But what no one can predict is the dramatic chain of events her exile sets in motion. For Lyric’s treatment is the start of much more than a life as an ex-addict. It’s the catalyst that exposes a complex web of deceit and betrayal – and leads Lyric on an increasingly dangerous quest to find the final missing piece of the jigsaw of her life…
I like the way that this novel is structured, starting in the present, and then going back into the past to explain the origins of present events.
For a full review please check this link: http://evenbutterfliesthink.blogspot....
October 14, 2010
Inheritance is a fun, easy read with a hint of mystery to it. Lyric Charlton is an IT girl, a socialite from a upper class British family who is famous for her partying. Her cocaine habit lands her in rehab and when she leaves, Lyric is determined not to fall back into her old ways - even if this means cutting off her boyfriend Ralph (pronounced Rafe, obviously). Throw in Uncle Quentin, who’s got his eyes set on the family inheritance - no matter what the costs; best friends Treeva (with her own coke habit) and Laura (who’s trying to be a ‘real’ mother ie without a nanny) and it’s guaranteed that Lyric’s new life isn’t going to be as simple as she’d hoped.
There’s some wonderful characters in this book, with some awesomely ‘posh’ names such as Crispin Nielson-Jones and Mindy Braithwaite. In fact Crispin is just awesomely fierce, full stop. Lyric is really believable as a character and also really likable. She might seem like a typical rich girl on the outside but inside she’s ‘normal’. Treeva really bugged me to the point of slapping her to start with but further into the book, her actions were warranted as her insecurities became apparent and I even felt a little sorry for her.
Inheritance isn’t my usual kind of book but I really enjoyed reading it. The writing style was good and although in some places the plot was a little predictable, there was still plenty going on to keep me reading. A definite recommendation to fans of chick-lit.
There’s some wonderful characters in this book, with some awesomely ‘posh’ names such as Crispin Nielson-Jones and Mindy Braithwaite. In fact Crispin is just awesomely fierce, full stop. Lyric is really believable as a character and also really likable. She might seem like a typical rich girl on the outside but inside she’s ‘normal’. Treeva really bugged me to the point of slapping her to start with but further into the book, her actions were warranted as her insecurities became apparent and I even felt a little sorry for her.
Inheritance isn’t my usual kind of book but I really enjoyed reading it. The writing style was good and although in some places the plot was a little predictable, there was still plenty going on to keep me reading. A definite recommendation to fans of chick-lit.
September 28, 2016
'Inheritance' by British 'personality' Tara Palmer-Tomlinson takes you on a whirlwind romp through the lives of the rich and richer, not dissimilar to Tara's own life - in fact, this could almost be described as her own life story (not all, just a lot). It's not meant to be great literature (and indeed it isn't with lines such as ' Ali Hassan walked out of his private spinning class, platinum water bottle in hand, wiping a stray bead of sweat away from his forehead with the Egyptian cotton sports towel hung around his tanned neck'), but at least it has a sympathetic main character in Lyric (yes, that's her name), though she does get annoying at times. The plot encompasses wild parties, drugs, alcoholism, rehab, art fraud, hit men, family secrets, exotic locations and romance. A James-Bond-style ending before the happy-ever-after concludes this suspend-disbelief-at-all-times story.
Note: In an article for the Daily Telegraph in England (23 October 2010) Tara admitted that the book was ghostwritten with her help. Mmmm, perhaps that's why Lyric was such a sympathetic character...
Note: In an article for the Daily Telegraph in England (23 October 2010) Tara admitted that the book was ghostwritten with her help. Mmmm, perhaps that's why Lyric was such a sympathetic character...
March 18, 2012
Lyric Charlton the IT girl of the moment is in a relationship with boy about town Ralph Conway, who leaves her with a drug habit. Her parents send her to a re-hab. After she,s clean & sober she is thrust into a web of deceit & betrayal. This is an easy read & very enjoyable.
April 11, 2011
I was not 100% sure about this book. I thought the characters and story were ok but I think the actual writing could of been better.
July 2, 2012
Hideous, hideous, hideous. Oh, and extremely dull. Don't give up the day job, Tara. Oh, wait...you don't have one!
August 17, 2013
Story just about OK..............writing simply awful
Want to read
December 19, 2016Written by a #socialite from England
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews