An Unwanted Inheritance

Product Information

It was quite a short read and I think would’ve been a good Christmas read as it was to do with families, coming together in tough times… but they also had a very tough decision to make. Which would either tear them apart or make them stronger. There's an often misquoted saying about money being the root of all evil...in fact, found in the New Testament (1 Timothy 6:10) it is the love of money that is the root of all evil. Love is the word that gets left out yet love is the key to the problem.

And, I felt that the way the dreadful characters forced the reader to examine their own values and beliefs was also quite clever. I often found myself contemplating what I’d have done in the situations the characters were faced with. For Readers – my books are very popular with book groups so here you’ll find some questions on each book to get your discussions going. When Cara stumbles upon a stash of old postcards up in the attic, their contents make her question everything that she believed she knew.As a follower of this author I agreed to read a pre-publication copy in exchange for an honest review. The premise is an immediate attention grabber. Siblings Max, Ellie and Nathan are mourning the sudden death of their father, when Max’s wife Caroline discovers over a quarter of a million pounds in cash hidden in a suitcase at his home. It should be a happy windfall, but as doubts as to the money’s provenance come to light, the family’s loyalties are stretched to breaking point. The tale that she pieces together is unsettling and confusing, and seems to have been patched over with lies. However who can possibly tell her the truth? With her dad sinking deeper into Alzheimer’s and her brother hesitant to help, it appears she will never get her questions answered. One thing is certain, however: somebody knows more than they let on. For a story about an apparently ordinary suburban family, this is every bit as exhilarating as the recent James Patterson I’ve just finished, but with better characterisation and a twist worthy of a thriller.

Should they be honest and pass it over to the police for investigation? Declare it as part of his estate, risking losing a huge chunk to inheritance tax, or divvy it up between the three? When their father dies unexpectedly, siblings Max, Ellie and Nathan can’t even contemplate emptying his house—not least because he spent his last decade curating what feels like a museum to his polished public image. So it is Max’s wife, Caroline, who finds the suitcase under a bed…A suitcase stuffed full of an awful lot of cash. A disclaimer must apply to the whole gift, so you can’t refuse part of the estate while accepting some of it and the heir must not have received any of the gift before the person died. If you disclaim your inheritance, this means you can’t ever become the legal owner so it is a step that should be taken after due consideration. Neither can the person who disclaims the inheritance then decide who receives his or her share among the remaining beneficiaries. Ellie, the middle sibling starts off thinking the same, but her husband Jamie discloses information that makes them want the money more.An Unwanted Inheritance by Imogen Clark is the story of a family and a suitcase full of money. It examines values of honesty, integrity and honour through - what I felt were - unlikeable characters. An Unwanted Inheritance is a book to enjoy and its premise forces the reader to examine their own values and beliefs. I like the premise of this book and was quite excited to read it. Unfortunately it fell short of my expectations. You’d have thought the discovery of a suitcase stuffed with money would bring joy to this tight-knit family. Not a bit of it. It tears them apart. Not only is there doubt about the legality of the stash, and what their father had done to obtain it, but they all have conflicting views of how it should be split, if at all.