The Miniaturist, Jessie Burton
This book was one that had caught my eye many a time from its place of pride, on the bestseller bookshelf at my favourite bookstore. I had read the blurb a half a dozen times but for some reason never purchased it. The description was so intriguing and it made its’ way onto my reading list but there were always other books that distracted me until it was gifted to me at Christmas (is there a reoccurring pattern here? -I think so). It wasn’t until our summer ‘uproot’ that I finally cracked the spine and got sucked into the world of what happens behind the doors of a 17th-century merchant trader family home in Amsterdam.
The story revolves around Nella Oortman who becomes Nella Brandt, the young wife of Johannes Brandt. With her husband off at sea and trading in distant lands, he gives her a miniature cabinet house to fill her time and distract herself with. After sourcing a miniaturist the cabinet quickly comes to a life in a way that unnerves Nella and so the story twists and turns in the most unexpected of ways.
Both the story and the way Burton has produced this story was both beautiful and intensely gripping. I wish I could mention more about this novel but I do not want to give away any spoilers, especially as there are so many plot twists within. As soon as you think you have figured out why and what is happening, you are blindsided by another piece of the puzzle. Overall, I loved this book. It made for a great read, no doubt one I will return to and reread over and over.
Have you ever read The Miniaturist? What did you think?
Cheerio for now!
withsomejam 