The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
Jun. 21st, 2014 11:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
”Nella considers her gift. Her heart sinks. I am too old for this, she thinks. Who will see this piece of work, who will be able to sit on those chairs, or eat the waxen food? She has no friends, no family in this city to come and exclaim at it – it is a monument to her powerlessness, her arrested womanhood. It’s your house, her husband had said – but who can live in tiny rooms, those nine dead ends? What sort of man buys a gift like this, however majestic its casing, however beautifully made?
On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman knocks at the door of a grand house in the wealthiest quarter of Amsterdam. She has come from the country to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt, but instead she is met by his sharp-tongued sister, Marin. Only later does Johannes appear and present her with an extraordinary wedding gift; a cabinet-sized replica of their home. It is to be furnished by an elusive miniaturist, whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in unexpected ways …
Nella is at first mystified by the closed world of the Brandt household, but as she uncovers its secrets she realises the escalating dangers that await them all. Does the miniaturist hold their fate in her hands? And will she be the key to their salvation or the architect of their downfall?
It’s October 1686. 18-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to join her new husband, Johannes Brandt. Johannes is a wealthy merchant 20 years older than Nella whose position on the VOC gives him power, while Nella’s from an established aristocratic family whose wealth was wiped out by her late father’s debts. Nella wants to be a good wife but that isn’t easy thanks to Johannes’ sister, Marin, who interferes in both their business – nagging Johannes to sell the warehouse of sugar cane he’s holding for Frans and Agnes Meerman before the market turns and constantly undermining Nella in front of their servants – the chatty and impudent Cornelia and Otto, a freed black slave. Nella feels further undermined by Johannes’ refusal to sleep with her.
When Johannes buys her a miniature house, Nella responds to an advert from a miniaturist able to furnish it for her. But the miniaturist is soon sending Nella things that she hasn’t asked for and she soon discovers that the pieces expose the household’s secrets – secrets that could bring about the family’s downfall …
Jessie Burton’s debut historical novel, is a carefully observed character story set among the social constraints of 17th century Amsterdam. It’s clearly written and Burton does well at setting up the relationships within the Brandt household and in looking at the power women had (and didn’t have) during this period and the relationships that develop between Nella, Marin, Cornelia and Hanna, the wife of a local baker as they each try to navigate their way around the social norms. However, the some of the secrets are easy to guess and the final pay-off doesn’t really do the build up justice. In addition, Nella’s a very passive character, forced into observing events around her with little control on their outcome (and constantly thwarted whenever she tries to assert it), which makes it difficult to root for her. I actually wished we’d seen more through the eyes of Marin, an intelligent politically astute woman caught within the confines of her time who can see the coming danger. The pace sags at times although there are some haunting scenes, notably towards the end where the town gathers for a trial and its aftermath. All in all, while this book didn’t quite do it for me it’s still a solid debut and I look forward to reading Burton’s next book.
The Verdict:
Jessie Burton’s debut historical novel, is a carefully observed character story set among the social constraints of 17th century Amsterdam. It’s clearly written and Burton does well at setting up the relationships within the Brandt household and in looking at the power women had (and didn’t have) during this period and the relationships that develop between Nella, Marin, Cornelia and Hanna, the wife of a local baker as they each try to navigate their way around the social norms. However, the some of the secrets are easy to guess and the final pay-off doesn’t really do the build up justice. In addition, Nella’s a very passive character, forced into observing events around her with little control on their outcome (and constantly thwarted whenever she tries to assert it), which makes it difficult to root for her. I actually wished we’d seen more through the eyes of Marin, an intelligent politically astute woman caught within the confines of her time who can see the coming danger. The pace sags at times although there are some haunting scenes, notably towards the end where the town gathers for a trial and its aftermath. All in all, while this book didn’t quite do it for me it’s still a solid debut and I look forward to reading Burton’s next book.
THE MINIATURIST will be released in the United Kingdom on 3rd July 2014. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.
On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman knocks at the door of a grand house in the wealthiest quarter of Amsterdam. She has come from the country to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt, but instead she is met by his sharp-tongued sister, Marin. Only later does Johannes appear and present her with an extraordinary wedding gift; a cabinet-sized replica of their home. It is to be furnished by an elusive miniaturist, whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in unexpected ways …
Nella is at first mystified by the closed world of the Brandt household, but as she uncovers its secrets she realises the escalating dangers that await them all. Does the miniaturist hold their fate in her hands? And will she be the key to their salvation or the architect of their downfall?
It’s October 1686. 18-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to join her new husband, Johannes Brandt. Johannes is a wealthy merchant 20 years older than Nella whose position on the VOC gives him power, while Nella’s from an established aristocratic family whose wealth was wiped out by her late father’s debts. Nella wants to be a good wife but that isn’t easy thanks to Johannes’ sister, Marin, who interferes in both their business – nagging Johannes to sell the warehouse of sugar cane he’s holding for Frans and Agnes Meerman before the market turns and constantly undermining Nella in front of their servants – the chatty and impudent Cornelia and Otto, a freed black slave. Nella feels further undermined by Johannes’ refusal to sleep with her.
When Johannes buys her a miniature house, Nella responds to an advert from a miniaturist able to furnish it for her. But the miniaturist is soon sending Nella things that she hasn’t asked for and she soon discovers that the pieces expose the household’s secrets – secrets that could bring about the family’s downfall …
Jessie Burton’s debut historical novel, is a carefully observed character story set among the social constraints of 17th century Amsterdam. It’s clearly written and Burton does well at setting up the relationships within the Brandt household and in looking at the power women had (and didn’t have) during this period and the relationships that develop between Nella, Marin, Cornelia and Hanna, the wife of a local baker as they each try to navigate their way around the social norms. However, the some of the secrets are easy to guess and the final pay-off doesn’t really do the build up justice. In addition, Nella’s a very passive character, forced into observing events around her with little control on their outcome (and constantly thwarted whenever she tries to assert it), which makes it difficult to root for her. I actually wished we’d seen more through the eyes of Marin, an intelligent politically astute woman caught within the confines of her time who can see the coming danger. The pace sags at times although there are some haunting scenes, notably towards the end where the town gathers for a trial and its aftermath. All in all, while this book didn’t quite do it for me it’s still a solid debut and I look forward to reading Burton’s next book.
The Verdict:
Jessie Burton’s debut historical novel, is a carefully observed character story set among the social constraints of 17th century Amsterdam. It’s clearly written and Burton does well at setting up the relationships within the Brandt household and in looking at the power women had (and didn’t have) during this period and the relationships that develop between Nella, Marin, Cornelia and Hanna, the wife of a local baker as they each try to navigate their way around the social norms. However, the some of the secrets are easy to guess and the final pay-off doesn’t really do the build up justice. In addition, Nella’s a very passive character, forced into observing events around her with little control on their outcome (and constantly thwarted whenever she tries to assert it), which makes it difficult to root for her. I actually wished we’d seen more through the eyes of Marin, an intelligent politically astute woman caught within the confines of her time who can see the coming danger. The pace sags at times although there are some haunting scenes, notably towards the end where the town gathers for a trial and its aftermath. All in all, while this book didn’t quite do it for me it’s still a solid debut and I look forward to reading Burton’s next book.
THE MINIATURIST will be released in the United Kingdom on 3rd July 2014. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.
