But as she uncovers its unusual secrets, she begins to understand - and fear - the escalating dangers that await them all.

Johannes’ gift helps Nella to pierce the closed world of the Brandt household. 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 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.īut Nella’s world changes when Johannes presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. But her new home, while splendorous, is not welcoming. On a brisk autumn day in 1686, 18-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt. 'There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed.' We also wanted some kind of short story about the miniaturist to explain where she came from and where she went.Set in 17th-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. We kind of want to know what happened next, but understand that we'll just never know. We felt that the ending of the book means that there is hope, even though such tragic things happened during the rest of the book. Some people felt that she was somewhat pointless and just confusing, while others felt she was an interesting gothic element along the lines of Daphne Du Maurier. We also discussed the whole aspect of the miniaturist and why she was in the book at all.

We all decided we enjoyed watching Petronella becoming such a strong woman who really tried her best given the circumstances to protect her family. This was an interesting discussion point within the group. We were essentially watching the unravelling of this family group as the various rules outside the house were gradually seen to be being broken within the house. We all enjoyed the fact that we were reading about women becoming stronger through the book, while the men in story became weaker and weaker. Almost everyone finished the book apart from one who felt she really could not finish it as she did not enjoy it at all.Įveryone had a real problem with the end of the book, we felt that it was very hurried but at the same time it had too many lose ends and not enough clarity to it.

The miniaturist novel