The Gilmore Guide to Books

Connecting Books and Readers One Review at a Time

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Reviews
    • Reviews by Author
    • Reviews by Title
    • Reviews by Genre
  • More Books
  • Policies
    • Review Policy
    • Privacy Policy

The Miniaturist: A Novel

August 25, 2014

miniaturist

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
Published by Ecco
Publication date: August 26th 2014
Genres: Book Clubs, Debut, Fiction, Historical, Magical Realism
five-stars
Your Local Book Store, Amazon

Set in 1686 The Miniaturist by debut author Jessie Burton is the spellbinding story of an eighteen-year-old girl married off to an older merchant who lives in Amsterdam. She arrives on his doorstep with no idea of what marriage entails or the fact that she has been procured to enhance his reputation, for her family is poor but with a pedigree. Little does she know that her husband is not what he seems and will never be a real husband to her. He is not even there to greet her, leaving her on her own to meet his sister, Marin, and their household servants, Cornelia and Otto. So begins, Petronella’s introduction to her new life. When Johannes does finally appear he is pleased but distant and his only acknowledgement of her as his wife is the gift of a marvelous miniature of their house, complete down to the identical wallpaper and drapes. It lacks only furniture and, in finding a craftsman to carve replicas for her, Nella embarks on a strange and complicated journey that changes her life.

The Miniaturist follows Nella’s lonely days in trying to adapt to a household devoid of light and her husband’s presence. She manages to find a carver in the trade paper and engages his services sight unseen. When she receives the items she ordered not only are they exact and exquisite renderings of the belongings in the house, they also include the people and cryptic notes. Given that this person has never been in the house or met any of them Nella’s interest is piqued. When she goes to the address listed no one answers the door but she learns it is a woman living there.  Nella has seen a woman following her but has never managed to speak to her. When the carvings start to prophecy what is happening in the house, Nella believes she must talk to this mysterious carver, must understand what is this person’s place in her life. How can she know what will happen to them before it does?

The story presented seems like Nella’s, but it isn’t Nella’s to tell. She spins my life, she thinks, and I cannot see the consequences. 

Much like the house that is the centerpiece of this story The Miniaturist is a magical, intricate marvel of perfection. Burton channels Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca with the depiction of a young, naïve girl thrust into a dark and isolated atmosphere populated with secrets, but goes far beyond Rebecca’s reach with luxurious prose that immerses the reader in the cold, damp of Amsterdam, the varied textures, colors and smells of Johannes’ warehouse, the superficial trappings of wealth and the darkness that fills her husband’s richly appointed house.  Nella tries to make friends with her new family but Marin’s disdain and secret life are impenetrable. Even when she does finally respond in kind with her own cutting words it doesn’t make her feel better.

Seeing her like this should make me feel powerful, Nella thinks as Marin’s sobs flood her ears—yet even now she eludes me. Like her idea of love, Marin is best witnessed in the chase—for caught like this, she is even more ungraspable. 

The secrets that multiply, the ever shifting shadows of change, are what make The Miniaturist a book that enchants from beginning to end. This is a story for a reader to love, the kind that brings on sadness when it ends because we can’t bear to leave the characters and want only to know what happens next. Burton heightens this feeling in the novel in that even after the last sentence there are still mysteries unsolved.

This book can be purchased online at:


The Elliott Bay Book Company

five-stars

Related Posts

  • Related Posts
  • Same Genre
  • 5 Star Books
  • By Jessie Burton
martian
The Martian: A Novel
underground
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
what the lady
What the Lady Wants
wealthy women
Wealthy Women: Mini-Reviews
alternate
Alternate Side by Anna Quindlen
song
The Song Rising
stargazer's sister
The Stargazer’s Sister
immortalists
The Immortalists
The Interestings
The Interestings
god
When God Was a Rabbit
uncommon
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
hundred foot journey
The Hundred-Foot Journey
suite francaise
Suite Française
dead letters
Dead Letters: A Novel
henna
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi
miniaturist
The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

16 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: 17th century, book clubs, ecco, historical fiction, Holland, magical realism

Comments

  1. Kate @ booksaremyfavouriteandbest says

    August 25, 2014 at 1:34 am

    Excellent! This one is in my TBR stack (bought knowing nothing about it).

    Reply
  2. Shannon @ River City Reading says

    August 25, 2014 at 4:12 am

    You and Leah have me super excited to get to this one now…especially your bit at the end about sadness over putting it down. Those are always the best/worst books!

    Reply
    • Catherine says

      August 25, 2014 at 6:22 pm

      The kind where you want to go to the author event and ask- have you finished the sequel yet, when they’re just trying to sell the first one!

      Reply
  3. Andi (@estellasrevenge) says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:32 am

    Angels sing every time I read a positive review of this one. It looks SO GOOD.

    Reply
  4. Emma says

    August 25, 2014 at 12:45 pm

    I have this book on my to read list. It sounds like something I should move up the “reading order”.

    Reply
    • Catherine says

      August 25, 2014 at 6:23 pm

      I’d say so. It just hit every note for me- gorgeous prose, mysteries, character depth…loved everything about it.

      Reply
  5. Katie @ Words for Worms says

    August 25, 2014 at 7:11 pm

    I’m so rarely affected by cover art, but this one! Woo! Gorgeous. You’ve got me just as excited about the inside of the book as the outside!

    Reply
    • Catherine says

      August 26, 2014 at 10:23 am

      Even better, Katie, is that inside are photos of the real miniature house the novel is based on. Fabulous!

      Reply
  6. Jennine G. says

    August 25, 2014 at 8:31 pm

    This book has not grabbed my attention until now. Putting it on my list to look out for. I’ve already started a 2015 list!

    Reply
  7. Leah @ Books Speak Volumes says

    August 27, 2014 at 4:29 pm

    I loooved this book, and I’m so glad you did too!

    Reply
  8. Lianne @ caffeinatedlife.net says

    August 29, 2014 at 8:18 am

    Great review! I really want to read this novel, I hope to get around to it at some point 🙂

    Reply
  9. Heather says

    September 3, 2014 at 7:55 am

    Adding this to my “to read” pile!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • Bloglovin
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Save time and subscribe via email

No time to keep checking for new reviews? Enter your email address to subscribe and receive notifications of new posts by email. No spam!

Currently Reading

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
by Emily Nagoski
The Dutch House
The Dutch House
by Ann Patchett
Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover, and Me
Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover, and Me
by Adrienne Brodeur

goodreads.com

Affiliate Disclosure

I’m an affiliate for Indiebound and Amazon. If you click on a link that takes you to any of these sites and make a purchase I’ll earn a small fee, which goes towards the costs of maintaining this site. Your support is appreciated. Thank you!

Archives

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License.

Theme Design By Studio Mommy · Copyright © 2021

Copyright © 2021 · Beyond Madison Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in