There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed . . .
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 realizes 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?
Beautiful, intoxicating and filled with heart-pounding suspense, Jessie Burton's magnificent debut novel The Miniaturist is a story of love and obsession, betrayal and retribution, appearance and truth.
Initial thoughts: I AM FINALLY DONE READING THIS BOOK! I cannot describe the relief I feel about being done with it because I reckon it put a damper on my will to read over the past three weeks. Most of the books I did finish during that time were audiobooks because the narrator dictates the pace. But for The Miniaturist, it was up to me to set my reading pace and let me tell you, it was difficult to keep reading.
There are two reasons I didn't give up on this book: (1) I spent money buying the book, and (2) I read it for a read-a-long, so not finishing it would've meant no contribution from me in our discussion. There were so many promising elements but the prose, the characterisation, the plot — everything fell short of the mark. What saved The Miniaturist from being a zero-star read for me is that there were surprising elements that I hadn't expected. Beyond that, the book only left negative impressions on me.
