Reviews

I read The Miniaturist a few years ago and really enjoyed it (it was a great page turner), even if I ultimately found the ending a bit underwhelming. This follow up, set 18 years later, was by contrast, underwhelming throughout. I can’t really summarise the plot without spoiling the first book, which I don’t want to do, as it is worth your time if you enjoy historical fiction.

Where The Miniaturist excelled in executing a ‘house of secrets’ trope that generated intrigue, The House of Fortune takes the same premise but it’s just a load of infuriating mis/poor communication. This wasn’t helped by all of the characters being unlikeable for far too long at the start. The utter pointlessness of semi resurrecting the titular miniaturist also grated. As did the repetitive narrative (where was the editor?).

It wasn’t all bad; the portrayal of a naive, headstrong, superior teenager making mistakes was well done, as was the subtle way race was handled in a society where only money mattered… on the surface.

Overall, meh. Best thing is the sprayed pineapple edges on this second hand find 🍍

beanbeakandbug's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

seberg95's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

daja123's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

whatfern_reads's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

louise_seaside's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A beautifuly written sequel to The Miniaturist. The characters and surroundings are well imagined in The Miniaturist and it was good to follow on from the story, already knowing the setting. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

books_and_cream_cheese's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I didn‘t know that this was the sequel to another book so I might have missed some clever links to the previous story (it was quite understandable on its own though).

All in all, this book was… very much okay. It started out very strong, but I found myself less and less captivated as the story unfolded. For my personal taste, the plot progressed too slowly at times, so I started skimming the pages until something exciting happend. The world building and the character descriptions were very well done though. I’d definitely give this author another chance, there were some brilliantly crafted scenes in here.

Overall, it’s a slower paced book for readers who love to read about women trying to find their place in the world and who don’t mind a more open ending with some uncovered secrets.

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