Evangeline-Noir

I haven't been on this website in a long while, woa. 

That being said, I want to try picking it up again as I do enjoy it. My shelves are not up to date anymore and I haven't written a review for all the books I've read since the last time I posted. But I figured I'll just write a review sort of thing for the last book I've read. 

Which would be The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton 

I was very excited when I first heard about the book, since the story is set in Amsterdam during the Golden Age. I myself just moved from my hometown in the Netherlands to Amsterdam so I figured it would be fun to read. Which it was, since there were alot of places in the book I've actually been to and go to on a regular basis. 

Anyhow, the 18 year old Nella Oortman moves from Assendelft to Amsterdam, to marry the rich Johannes Brandt and live with him. I've felt that the book starts up quite slow. It took me a long time to get through about the first quarter of the book. This because to me it felt like everyone was being secretive, Nella was trying to stuff out, but she was kept in the dark. 

However when she found out the secret of Johannes the pace of the book quickened and it was very exciting. I was able to get really into it at this point and read it faster. The writing style is very pleasant and it reads pretty easy.

What I still don't fully understand is the role of the Miniaturist in the story. The Miniaturist mysteriously sends Nella dolls for the dollhouse Johannes gave her. Nella believes that the dolls and the Miniaturist somehow control their fate. She tries numerous times to confront the Miniaturist but to no avail. 

It kind of bothered me that this part was never fully explained. The is no explanation of who The Miniaturist really is, why she did the things she did, or if the Miniaturist really had some kind of power to control fate. Re-reading the first chapter after I finished the book only raised more questions for me. However, I did liked how well-rounded it was. 

Though I still gave the book 4 out of 4 stars. This because I enjoyed the suspense and the drama. However if you are hoping for magic and mystery in a historical setting you might come out a bit deceived. Since to me it didn't feel like it was all about The Miniaturist in the story, but more about the struggles and secrets of the Brandt family and Nella. The ordeal with the Miniaturist felt more like something on the side to me.