Its hard to explain why without giving spoilers, but suffice to say that she embodies the desires of every woman who has ever felt oppressed. But I think as the book unfolds, we get to see another side of her and she became one of my favourite characters. At the start of the book she was a chilly figure who was so tightly controlled that its no wonder she’s unmarried. The rest of the household – Johannes’ sister Marin, Cordelia the maid and Otto an African slave – are just as mysterious.Īt first I thought this book would be like Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca certainly Marin Brandt bore a chilling resemblance to Mrs Danvers. Johannes Brandt, her husband, is an enigma a wealthy merchant who is wrapped in secrets, a mystery that she is desperate to unravel. Nella Oortman is a childbride who has arrived at her new husband’s home and is finding it a little overwhelming to adjust. The Miniaturist is set in 17th century Amsterdam, a time when women are seen as property of their husbands and gender equality was a totally alien concept. This was 3 years ago when I was still starting to expand my horizons as a reader.įast forward to the present day and I’ve not only finished but I actually liked it enough to give it a review.

So I eventually gave up and went back to my local bookstore to exchange it for a romance novel. Overrated may have been my opinion at the time. I’ve bought (and returned) The Miniaturist before and my first opinion was that it did not deserve all the hype that it had when it was released. I often feel like there are some books that you might hate and not finish when you’re at one stage in your life but then you come across it when you’re in a totally different headspace, and you’ll end up liking it.

Summary of the miniaturist