The Engagements

2024 seems to be the year where I delve deep into my TBR pile. So far, it’s bringing some gems like The Engagements, which centres around diamond rings across nearly one hundred years. Those who had them, those that wanted them and those who discarded them. Tying these seemingly separate couples together is the real-life woman who wrote the tagline for De Beers – a diamond is forever. Or is it?

The story opens with Mary Frances Geraty leaving writing a tagline for the next De Beers ad until almost the last minute. In separate sections across the novel, we follow her career as one of the first female copywriters at an ad agency in Philadelphia through to her retirement, and finally recognition for her contribution to the industry (and show more a lot of sales for diamonds). This is interspersed with the stories of other couples from the 1920s to 2010s. Evelyn and Gerald, a retired couple, nervously await the arrival of their son for lunch. He’s planning on divorcing his wife, which just isn’t done in the 1970s. Along the way, we find out the unconventional route of their own relationship. In the 1980s, James and Sheila are trying to survive financially in Boston. We follow James through a 24 hour shift as a paramedic, which is surprisingly gritty and confronting. He reflects on his own failures as his house falls down around him and there isn’t enough money to give his family what they want. Jumping to the 2000s, Delphine leaves France, her job and her husband for a whirlwind engagement to a music prodigy. But it doesn’t last, and her plan for revenge is detailed. Finally, Kate’s cousin is marrying his male partner. Kate doesn’t believe in marriage but begrudgingly goes through the leadup. But then she loses one of the groom’s rings…

This novel was more detailed and literary than I’d been led to believe (it had been tagged as romance). Yes, there’s romance but it falls into the background as the characters confront what marriage means, as well as infidelity, divorce and what happens after the fairytale ends. Each time period’s story was fascinating and covered the nuances of that time period well in the writing. It’s also very detailed in every aspect from the cultural references to the backstories of the characters. The backstories make up a lot of the novel, and are just as detailed as the current story for the main characters. It is difficult to tell if the stories were going to link up, but it does come together at the very end.

Not all the characters are likeable. Kate has an opinion that puts a dampener on nearly everything. Others cheat or steal. But all act with the best intentions for themselves and their family, even if it appears misguided or just plain wrong. But it does make them memorable as the story jumps through different time periods. None of the parts of each time period’s story landed on a desperate cliffhanger, which was a nice change. For the most part, the story moves from oldest to newest time period so you do have some idea of when the next instalment is coming. It’s a bit different, but it worked for me.

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The diamond engagement ring – that traditional symbol of love and commitment. Commercials would have one believe that only a person’s two months’ salary can prove the depths of a person’s feelings for another. Others use the love of grandparents or parents to showcase their feelings. The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan revolves around this ubiquitous first step towards marriage as it follows the stories of five very different people, including the woman who established the phrase “Diamonds are Forever.” This beautiful, simple collection of stories connects in unexpected but appealing ways that emphasize just how truly lasting diamond engagement rings truly are, even if the love is fleeting.

The cast of characters in The show more Engagements is every bit as varied as diamond engagement rings themselves. Evelyn is the figurative matriarch of the group. Having been married the longest, she understands the importance of tradition and the work involved to make a happy and lasting marriage. Evelyn is the type of character all readers will love because she is so humble and gentle. James is the symbolic son, working to make a better life for his young family while trying to show his wife how much he appreciates and loves her. Readers will appreciate the depths of his affections and the sacrifices he makes for his family. Delphine is the embittered older daughter. Having forsaken her marriage for the allure of an affair with an adoring younger man, she now faces down her fury when all of her dreams go awry. She is the character that will make readers laugh and cheer as she enacts her revenge on her young lover. Kate is the younger daughter who has opted to follow her own path in life and frowns upon every convention regarding the institution of marriage. She is the most polarizing of all the characters. Her self-righteousness and intractability regarding her opinions about marriage and raising children, as well as the fate of the world are off-putting and will be a turnoff for most readers.

Meanwhile, Mary Frances is the unconscious glue that ties them all together through her fierce promotions of diamonds and her creation of an ad campaign that still exists today. The elements of history used throughout The Engagements, especially as they surround Mary Frances’ real-life advertising career for DeBeers, are fascinating. While it is no secret how much advertising drives consumerism and that companies have used ads to establish many a cherished tradition over the years, discovering just how the “sacred” tradition of giving a diamond engagement ring started is eye-opening as well as a bit disconcerting. While it does not lessen the sentimentality behind such baubles, it does make a person think twice about the tradition and all diamond ad campaigns.

Ms. Sullivan sets the individual characters across the decades. In doing so, she highlights the changes in attitudes towards engagement rings and marriage over the years. In addition, there is a subtle interweaving of the characters and their stories which is not apparent in the beginning but is delightful to watch unfold. In fact, these connections are so understated that speed readers or those who tend to skim may miss key details which will prevent them from connecting the dots later in the story. To miss them is to miss seeing the fascinating ties that bind these eclectic characters together and which provide the story with much of its heart.

The Engagements is simply a lovely story that uses historical contexts to both instruct readers and to establish the spine of the story about the dynamics of relationships. Ms. Sullivan’s writing is subtle but effective, creating strong, realistic characters and even stronger emotional reactions. The net result is a delightful story that educates, entertains, and proves that there is no such thing as a standard for relationships. show less

This book is an interconnected series of narratives in different times and featuring different people. Nothing earth shattering, but the way the people’s lives were linked was pretty cute. It doesn’t show up until the end though, so you do have to wait for it. The more astute reader might spot it along the way though.

One of the stories follows Francis Gerety, the copy exec who coined the phrase “Diamonds are Forever” to be the signature line for De Beers, one of the agency’s largest clients. Although not recognized at the time, decades later Gerety was praised for her work because the line is so enduring. Actually, now I think of it, Gerety’s story isn’t directly connected to the others except by way of influence, which show more was the whole point of De Beers's campaign. All of it was crafted very specifically to guilt people into giving diamond rings to satisfy the gaping maw of need created in the receiver. Prior to the 1940s diamonds were for the rich and elite. Regular people didn’t wear them. Since I’m wearing 3 items of diamond jewelry as I type, I can definitely say things have changed. Do I feel manipulated? A little. I know it’s all in my head, but dammit they’re gorgeous stones and if I have a few, so what?

I listened to this as an audio and the narrator was a bit aggressive in her Boston accent. Very few people actually speak so harshly in reality. show less

I thought this book was really good. I liked how she interconnected the stories and wove the history of the diamond phrasing into it. I thought it was really wonderful that she was able to use real people in telling her story. There were certain parts that were funny but there were also parts that were touching and warm.

I didn't read this cover to cover. I don't like being told several stories side by side. Some of the stories just didn't interest me. I read the one story that did see interesting, and at the end I got to see how she tied them all together, more or less.
Her writing definitely pulled me along. I read what I did read in one day.

Well, I actually learned quite a few things from this book on the subjects of diamonds, advertising and paramedics! I enjoyed all of the stories and I am a fan of the format of jumping through time from one story to the next. I didn't quite see how it was all going to connect together until the very end, in fact I felt a bit silly for not figuring it out (but that made it all the more enjoyable).

The text did have a tendency to jump from story to 'info dumping' at times, as well as slipping through time (via flashback) even within the same story. It wasn't jarring but did feel a bit heavy and like the author was getting sidetracked.

I didn't particularly like or agree with all of the main characters but that's what made them all the more show more human and believable, and the whole story seemed plausible except one thing that niggled with me:

Didn't Sheila eventually notice that the name "Evie" was inscribed inside her ring? Or would James just explain that away by saying he bought it second-hand, and that's how he could afford it? But what about the shiny new jeweller's box? Maybe I'm thinking too much about this one.

In all I definitely would recommend this book, unless you are a particular fan of diamonds/the concept of the diamond engagement ring. It definitely felt like there was a strong bias throughout the story, which I agreed with, but others might not. show less

The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan. This book was full of characters and their stories were all about engagements, engagement rings and marriage. Each character's story was separate but sometimes a character or a character's engagement ring would find its way into another characters story.

The novel begins with Frances who takes a lot of pride in her job at a powerful advertisement agency. Ironically, Frances designs slogans for diamond advertisements, but she herself has no desire to ever be a wife. She is a confident and successful woman who enjoys the freedom of being single. Her story is actually based on the life of a real person.

Next we meet Gerald and Evelyn. Gerald is a wealthy retiree that has an obsession with entering show more contests and sweepstakes. Evelyn is a retired schoolteacher who is having a very hard time dealing with her son’s latest bad decision to abandon his wife and children. She can’t figure out how “her sweet little boy grew into a man she didn’t recognize.” She blames herself and feels like “he is the only child she could never reach.”

When we meet Delphine, she is in the process of destroying her ex-finances apartment. Delphine “married a kind and stable man who will never treat me poorly or set my heart aflame.” She left her kind and stable husband and her life in Paris to move to New York to be with P.J. (someone who does set her heart aflame). Not long after the move she finds out that P.J. is cheating on her with the only friend she has in New York. “Amazing how quickly life could change, and with no warning.”

James is an ambulance driver who can’t forget about the musical career he left behind. He is weighed down with debt, sleep-deprived, exhausted, and feels like a failure to his family. His whole life has been “defined by his father’s absence.” He tries extra hard with his kids and wife because he doesn’t want to be anything like his father.

Lastly, we meet Kate. Kate has a house full of relatives that are in town for her gay cousin’s wedding. Chaos ensues. Kate is someone who is obsessed with all the problems of the world, including blood diamonds. Her parents divorced when she was in high school and that caused her to be distrustful of marriage. She is in a committed relationship and has a daughter, but refuses to marry. She doesn’t believe in marriage.

As the novel progresses we learn more about all of the character’s lives. I enjoyed this book a lot. It was written very well and J. Courtney Sullivan is becoming one of my favorite authors. show less