In 1890's Kyoto, Japan, The Necklace, a historical romance, in which Book I introduces the journey of a fourteen-year old geisha who does not give up her hopes of marrying a young American who adores her. After a night of love, the American proposes and gives the geisha a family, heirloom necklace as a promise and intention to marry. The American dispatches a message to the geisha telling her of his need to return to the States to tend his dying father. The deflowered geisha is banished by her vindictive mother to live with her uncle of questionable character. The uncle intercepts the messenger who was to inform the geisha that the American promises to return for their wedding. The geisha refuses to believe she has been abandoned. The geisha disdains the uncle's sexual overtures and stabs the uncle as a statement of final rejection. The uncle sells her to a bordello owned by one of his youthful indulgences. The geisha's love for the American struggles to survive in Book II. Will the necklace bind them or betray them?