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    The Miniaturist: A Novel
    The Miniaturist: A Novel
    The Miniaturist: A Novel
    Audiobook13 hours

    The Miniaturist: A Novel

    Written by Jessie Burton

    Narrated by Davina Porter

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    Now a television miniseries, as seen on Masterpiece on PBS

    Set in seventeenth century Amsterdam—a city ruled by glittering wealth and oppressive religion—a masterful debut steeped in atmosphere and shimmering with mystery, in the tradition of Emma Donoghue, Sarah Waters, and Sarah Dunant.

    ”There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed . . .“

    On a brisk autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt. But her new home, while splendorous, is not welcoming. Johannes is kind yet distant, always locked in his study or at his warehouse office—leaving Nella alone with his sister, the sharp-tongued and forbidding Marin.

    But Nella’s world changes when Johannes presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. To furnish her gift, Nella engages the services of a miniaturist—an elusive and enigmatic artist whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in eerie and unexpected ways . . .

    Johannes’ gift helps Nella to pierce the closed world of the Brandt household. But as she uncovers its unusual secrets, she begins to understand—and fear—the escalating dangers that await them all. In this repressively pious society where gold is worshipped second only to God, to be different is a threat to the moral fabric of society, and not even a man as rich as Johannes is safe. Only one person seems to see the fate that awaits them. Is the miniaturist the key to their salvation . . . or the architect of their destruction?

    Enchanting, beautiful, and exquisitely suspenseful, The Miniaturist is a magnificent story of love and obsession, betrayal and retribution, appearance and truth.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateAug 26, 2014
    ISBN9780062331878
    Author

    Jessie Burton

    Jessie Burton was born in London in 1982. She studied at Oxford University and the Central School of Speech and Drama. The Miniaturist is her first novel.

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    Reviews for The Miniaturist

    3.5/5

    1,328 ratings119 reviews

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    • 4/5
      An extremely well written, and intriguing, multilayered book that twists and turns in places, although the plot twists are not necessarily difficult to predict. Intriguing and possibly disturbing. This is a book that quite readily evokes a time and place very different to our own. Despite this, the authors ability to create and manipulate. The reader is impressive. A great story with many layers. This is
    • 3/5
      This was just okay. I was ready for it to be over.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book. It was a little sad in the end but no loose ends.
    • 3/5
      A young Dutch bride is given a miniature replica of her new home as a wedding gift. She can't be sure if the person she hired to decorate it is trying to spy on her or tell her something about her new family
    • 5/5
      ASTONISHING historic tale with fabulous characters and great detail - superb listening
    • 1/5
      boring…. can’t finish the first 20 mins. the writer is so full of him/herself. the narrator’s voice sounds dryer and dryer. very disappointing choice.
    • 3/5
      2.5/5 stars

      Set in late 17th century Amsterdam, "The Miniaturist" is essentially a depiction of the ways of life at that time. It briefly explores the jealousy, greed, hypocrisy, and prejudice of the pious; the roles of women; and the generally conformist attitudes.

      18-year-old Nella Oortman has just married a perfect stranger, a successful merchant named Johannes Brandt. Upon arrival at her new home and finding that things are different from what she expected, Nella remains hopeful even as she senses that things are amiss. One day Johannes presents her with a miniature version of their house, a wedding gift to keep her occupied. Nella commissions a reclusive miniaturist to furnish the replica and ends up with much more than she bargained for. Before long she realizes just how little she knows about her new life.


      The Good:

      --The premise and setting are interesting. It's a really atmospheric, claustrophobic, suspenseful setting with a heavy sense of impending doom. The strongest point of the novel is the amount of research that clearly went into it. The foods, clothing, household items, religion, mannerisms, and the customs all give it a realistic feel.

      --Thoughtful additions in the back of the book: There's glossary of all of the old Dutch words used in the book, which are italicized throughout. I hate books that have so many unexplained foreign words that I end up on Google Translate every few pages, distracting me from the story. There's also a price list showing the average prices for different items at the time so you can kind of see how expensive things are within the story.

      The Not So Good:

      --This book wasn't as gripping as I thought it would be. What starts out suspenseful with a hint of supernatural is officially a soap opera by the end of the book. The miniaturist remains an enigmatic enigma, with Nella's thoughts obsessively and uselessly wandering back to them. In fact, a lot of this book consists of witnessing Nella's various forms of trepidation. Her character ends up being a bystander to everything and is slow to grasp some of the more obvious "secrets". I kept wondering what the point was of having her character conveniently show up just in time to witness this quick succession of extreme events.

      -- I didn't care for the style of prose. There are a lot of affected passages that interrupt the flow of the story. Dramatic events are dulled because of the overly wordy writing.

      --The ending is just plain unbelievable and leaves important questions unanswered.


      While reading I often wondered if it would have been better if the narration was omniscient at times instead of 3rd person from Nella's perspective. Maybe if the reader could have understood some of the secret thoughts and actions of the other characters then this would have been a stronger story. As it is, all I can see is that all of these other characters, whom Nella hardly knows, are inexplicably dumping their drama onto her as she tries to play catch-up. I didn't really believe any of them.

      "The Miniaturist" is like a heavy handed social commentary on 17th century Amsterdam, especially considering just how extraordinary it would have been to have all of these things happening under one roof in this period and this place. It's *almost* like a modern household has been taken and transplanted into the past to examine how things might have played out back then. Point taken: 1600s Amsterdam sounds like hell.
    • 3/5
      One of the strangest books over radon a long time. The premise was very promising but I feel so much was left unwritten
    • 4/5
      The narrator’s voice was so enthusiastic and rich! What a range of accents and emotion she was able to convey - it really made listening a joy and I could picture the characters in my mind even without physical descriptions of them.

      As for the plot, I feel it was somewhat predictable but the mystery of the miniaturist still makes me want to read again to see if there’s something I missed.
    • 3/5
      The story has an interesting premise, but fails to solve the mystery: there is all the tension built around the miniaturist - prophet - clairvoyant, but no interesting story twist in the end. With or without the miniaturist, the story would have gone the same... and the story is not that entertaining after all... The book gains through presenting some interesting aspects from the Dutch merchant society around 1680, things that one might not know: how it was OK for women to walk around the city by themselves, how the high-class merchants were living in their rich houses near the Amsterdam canals, how black people from Dutch colonies were seen by white Europeans, how the commerce with sugar, spices and other goods from colonies was making Amsterdam one of the most important cities in the world, how homosexuality was punishable by death, how religion was shaping the everyday reactions ...
      Other than that, the writing style is a bit flat for my taste, the descriptions were scarce and there was not a real feeling of being transported back in time in Amsterdam and the emotional aspects of the story are also shallow. I was amazed at how easily Nella- the protagonist- adapts to almost every change around her and how inexplicable her attachments and reactions are. As the story unfolds in only a few months, there is a storm of events and implausible reactions.
    • 4/5
      The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton takes places in the late 1600's in Amsterdam. The "heroine" of the story is Petronella, an 18 year old country girl who married Johannes Brandt, a wealthy trader. As a wedding gift, Johannes gives Nella a miniature house, a replica of the one they live in. For some reason, he thinks that Nella will devote her time to decorating this miniature instead of making demands on him. Nella makes her first order for pieces to add to the house. Following that, eerily, pieces keep arriving, unordered, that prophesy happenings within the home. That is the best part of this entire book: the mystery of who is making the pieces and how they know what is going to happen. The rest of the book just dabbles in too many things: racism, homosexuality, slavery, class division, religion run rampant. These topics are introduced but never fully developed nor are the issues put to rest, they just hang there and are never finalized. I'm glad I read the book, but it will not go on the re-read pile. 3 1/2 stars.
    • 3/5
      Good plot with a dissapointing open ending leaving too many questions unanswered
    • 5/5
      the audio book is superbly done. a pleasure to listen to.
    • 4/5
      Amsterdam 1686, eighteen year old Nella Oortman arrives at a grand house to start a married life as a wife to wealthy merchant Johannes Brandt. The household also includes Johannes sister Marin and servants Cornelia and Otto. As a wedding gift Johannes gives Nella a cabinet replica of their house for Nella to furnish.I saw that this book as been adapted for tv to be shown in December so I decided to read it. The story is very much in the same vain as Tracy Chevalier and would appeal to readers who enjoy her books.I thought this book was quite enjoyable. I enjoyed the descriptions of Amsterdam and did get a good sense of place. I also liked the characters in this tale and at times, especially early on in the book was reminded of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. Nella especially I enjoyed following around and watching how she stsrted as a quiet younng girl who through everything had to become a strong young woman.What lost me a bit was the miniaturist herself. She was a very elusive character in the story but as the title of the book suggests to me the main part of the story. I don't really know her part in the story, and as a reader I'm left feeling with a lot of questions which are not answered. The story for me was slightly let down because of this. This book sounded very promising and although I enjoyed it I am left feeling I needed to know more. The story for me became a family saga, secrets and predictable surprises. Overall an ok read.
    • 5/5
      One of the most original books I've ever read. Absolutely fascinating.
    • 3/5
      Very good descriptions, good insight into Amsterdam’s society in the 17th century, it has plenty of moments where you can’t put it down. But overall as a plot I was left with many question marks in regards to the mysterious miniaturist and her actual involvement, the rest of the side characters so involved in the plot until the end, but then they vanish, what happens to the main character. In a way it reminded me of Daphne du Maurier’s gothic atmosphere. So maybe a 3,5
    • 4/5
      Nella Oortman is only 18 years old when she is procured as a wife to a very established merchant in Amsterdam. Although her mother has warned her of the harsh realities of married life, she finds herself in the awkward position of barely being acknowledged by her husband. When even her boldest advances are rebuffed, she begins to wonder what is wrong with her and if her dreams of "real womanhood" will ever come to be.Meanwhile, she finds herself bored and mostly alone in an alien city. Her only hobby is finding furnishings for the large dollhouse her husband gifted her as wedding present. It is through this unlikely pursuit that she encounters the miniaturist, a mysterious craftswoman who never shows her face and won't answer her shop door. However, she begins delivering strange, tiny pieces that begin to take on a prophetic significance to Nella.When Nella gradually begins to unravel the secrets that this new home of hers has kept locked away she is emotionally disturbed to learn that her husband is a homosexual and has only married her to defray suspicion from his lifestyle. Now Nella must decide how she will proceed. She has been raised to believe that her husband is a sinner damned to hell, but he has been kind to her. Should she keep his secret? And what life can she possibly lead when her marriage is a sham?This is a complex book about societal morality, familial duty, and the pursuit of a life free from exterior constraints.
    • 4/5
      An intent perspective of life in Amsterdam in this era. A magical tale with equal parts of realism and mysticism. Full of drama and lyrical in prose, Most enjoyable,
    • 5/5
      Nella is a young bride to a rich merchant she has only briefly met. On arrival at his (their) house in Amsterdam her entire life changes, but not as she expected. Her husband's wedding gift to her is a stunningly beautiful cabinet, essentially a dolls house of their actual home, which she commissions the miniaturist to create peices for. But the miniaturist seems to know more than Nella, more than anyone, about the secrets kept within her household. As various devestating truths are revealed things seem to spiral out of control. Or are they all being set free? I loved this book because it is beautifully written and a captivating story. But also because of the questions it asks about the nature and necessity of honesty, the dangers of hypocrisy. Although there is a certain sexual element, the characters descriptions of these matters generally display a degree of modesty befitting a story set in the 17th Century.
    • 2/5
      I was pretty excited about The Miniaturist when I was approved for it. It's received a lot of good reviews, good press, and a lot of buzz around the publishing squabbles over it, and it's had comparisons to a lot of books I have enjoyed, including Sarah Waters' work. Unfortunately, I really didn't get into it. My only real interest was the story of the little miniature house: the bits of mystery and so on actually just... got on my nerves, really. That's why I took so long to review it -- that feeling that I wasn't 'getting' the hype.

      It's not egregiously bad in any way I could put my finger on. I can see why the comparisons to Sarah Waters, etc. The writing is fine, and flows reasonably well. It's not a bad idea for a story, though it perhaps doesn't fit together the way I'd like. All in all, I'm just... underwhelmed. Sorry!
    • 5/5
      I decided to read this novel on my beach vacation. The plot has lots of twist. I really enjoyed it. I finished it in 2 days.
    • 4/5
      Set in Amsterdam in the 1600's, this is the story of a young woman from the country who has been given in marriage to a man in Amsterdam. As she arrives at the home which is luxurious by her standards, Johannes is not there but Marin, his sister, is along with Cornelia, the maid and Otto, the black servant of Johannes. Although Johannes is pleasant to Nella, he makes no move toward any marital relations. Marian obviously runs the house and seems to run much of Johannes trading business (much of it in sugar). Johannes is also seen often with a young Englishman, Jack. When Nella finds the two men together in a very compromising way, she tries to understand her situation.Johannes gives Nella a miniature house much like the one they live in and soon miniature furniture and personages arrive seemingly showing signs of what happens in the house.The story reads as a mystery as to who exactly is the miniaturist. The role of women and the lack of freedom in a marriage seems to be much of the theme of the book. I just never quite got into the role of the miniaturist as it seemed too much of a stretch.
    • 2/5
      It was a nice idea to be inspired by the miniature house in the Rijksmuseum and to use it as a metaphor for domestic complications controlled by an unseen hand. However, the subplot of the miniaturist ends up being the weakest part of the book. Perhaps more time should have been spent developing the main characters.
    • 4/5
      Well written historical novel set in Amsterdam in 1687, involving the young (Petro)nella who marries the rich merchant Johannes, who is part of an exquisite home at the Heerengracht in the ‘golden bend’. The story starts with an innocuous burial in an obscure corner of the old Church of a young woman (unclear who, so it creates some suspense). Yet the whole story is related through the POV of Nella. Johannes is a polyglot. He is nice but just not interested in Nella it seems, besides taking her to important meetings flaunting her as his trophy wife. To fob her off he buys her a super expensive doll house, which looks like an exact replica of the family home. Nella manages to order some further utensils and figurines for it from the so-called Miniaturist, at the Kalverstraat. This elusive person seems to have prospective powers – she knows things no one else seems to know. Why else would she dot a red spot on the head of Johannes’ favourite dog, even before the dog is knifed by an English messenger boy called Jack? A maverick set of characters is linked to Johannes’ home. There is the demure sister, Marin, the sweets-baking housekeeper Cornelia and the dark Otto (Toot) from Surinam, who does all odd jobs, but is treated like a brother by Johannes. Then there is Mr Frans Meerman, former friend of Johannes, who embarked on a career with the vroedschap (city council) and married Agnes, who just happened to inherit a sugar estate in Surinam. Johannes has promised to sell their sugar which is rotting in his storehouse (it is not fully clear initially why he has taken on this task, but later it transpires that Frans had a love affair with Marin, which Johannes supposedly forbade). That’s the setting and then Jessie Burton giving us the eyes and thoughts of Nella who tumbles from one wonder into another, revealing that nothing quite is what it seems. An illicit pregnancy, homosexual and interracial relations, manipulative gossip, (un)fulfilled prophesies involving magic, and rape and violent deaths follow each other in the run of the story. A cleverly designed plot with a limited set of characters in a small but well known area (central Amsterdam) keeps the reader entertained right till the end.
    • 4/5
      Set in 1686, a young woman, Petronella arrives at her husband's house in Amsterdam to begin her new life as the wife of a wealthy merchant, Johannes Brandt. She is greeted by her sister in law Marin, servants Cornelia and Otto and dogs Rezeki and Dhana, but no husband. The life is not what she expected as she rarely sees her husband even when he is not travelling, and finds her role as mistress of the household already taken by Marin. With little to occupy her she becomes obsessed with meeting the miniaturist who she has contracted to make pieces for her cabinet house, an unwanted wedding gift from her husband. The exquisite pieces sent to her by the miniaturist are unsettling as they reveal secrets in her household and uncannily predict the future. It took me a little while to get into this book. I thought it was originally written in a childish way, but I guess that reflects the childishness of Nella when she first arrives in Amsterdam. The writing gets better as Nella herself matures in her rapidly changing and stressful environment. Many mysteries are revealed by the middle of the book, but it is riveting from there to the tragic end.
    • 2/5
      Well, it was OK. But a 'million copy best seller'? I wonder why. An interesting enough setting for a plot but the core mildy supernatural element spoilt it really. And lots of loose ends at the finish. Disappointing.
    • 3/5
      When, in 1686, 18-year old Nella Oortman weds Johannes Brandt, an Amsterdam merchant more than twenty years her senior, everybody considers it a marriage of convenience. On his part, Johannes seems determined to impress his young wife and gives her as a wedding gift a precious cabinet-sized model of their home. Nella is intent on building a meaningful relationship with Johannes. She soon discovers, however, that adapting to a new lifestyle is unexpectedly difficult, especially since every member of her new household seems to be harbouring old secrets. More unsettlingly, the mysterious miniaturist whom Nella has commissioned to populate the replica house keeps delivering tiny creations which suggest either insider knowledge of the Brandts or uncanny supernatural abilities.

      At one level, The Miniaturist is a well-crafted period piece, evoking in flowing prose the sights, sounds and scents of late 17th Century Amsterdam. The novel also reminds one of the Victorian "sensation" genre in its gradual revelations of the characters' secrets. Added to the mix is an element of magical realism, with the figure of the miniaturist hovering between reality and fantasy.

      Is the novel the modern classic some critics made it out to be? Perhaps not. But is certainly an entertaining, atmospheric read.
    • 4/5
      I've owned this book for awhile. It was on the shelf, next to the last book I read. The book was listed on my TBR list since 2014, and I'm glad I read it now. It is an intricate tale of life in 1686 Amsterdam. Eighteen years old, Nella Oortman's father died leaving the family penniless. Nella's mother arranges a marriage with a much older man, a successful merchant, trader who has traveled the world, returning with exotic items to sell.Life with Johannes Brandt and his beautiful home is very sad and mysterious. Longing for, the consummation of her marriage, she sleeps alone in a large room with beautiful paintings.Johannes gives Nella a beautiful wedding gift of a large piece of furniture which is a replica of nine rooms of the house she now lives in. Finding someone who can successfully create detailed objects to fill her cabinet/house, she finds a miniaturist in a busy part of town. Surprisingly, the miniaturist's tiny creations are mirror images of the life she is living and the house where she feels trapped.There are beautifully developed characters throughout the book, Otto is an exotic black man whom her husband has rescued from a foreign nation. Johannes' sister Marin is mysterious, aloof and cold. The servant Collette holds the secrets to the house and events therein.
    • 3/5
      I liked it and then, I didn't.
    • 3/5
      What started out as an intriguing story with detailed prose describing Amsterdam in the 17th century turned into an overblown, ridiculously dramatic book that just didnt work.