Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
After having waited what felt like forever to watch Rebecca, and having fallen completely in love with the story all over again, I knew it was finally time to take my last Daphne du Maurier book down from my shelf and re-immerse myself in her works of mystery and suspense. In a matter of pages, I’d found myself as entirely obsessed with the dark and dreadful world of Jamaica Inn as I had been with the chilling mystery of Manderley Estate and the exhilarating romance of Lady St Columb. The adventures of Mary Yellan (who is actually a pretty badass protagonist compared to du Maurier’s usual female characters) as she navigates the desolate Gothic landscapes of Bodmin Moor to discover the horrifying truth about her Uncle Joss and his band of criminals (spiced up, of course, with a wee bit of a romance) was both terrifying and utterly unputdownable. Honestly, Jamaica Inn might just have been my favourite du Maurier yet.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Me and "Jamaica Inn" didn't really like each other, as one can see from my rating. Actually the beginning of this book was very promising and interesting, with a bit of horrorish elements scattered here and there and an air of mystery hanging around everything. But as the story started to progress more, it became mostly dull and all the mysterious air had vanished somewhere. Instead all we got to hear was how Mary just loathed his uncle and his evil deeds and how she would make things right if she just had the courage to do so and plaah plaah. Also I didn't care for the ending that much, I just thought it was boring and not that interesting at all, given what the beginning promised, though I give it a point of being a bit surprising at parts.
The characters were at first interesting, but they just got miserable and their motives uninteresting as the story progressed further. I actually started to hate Mary as well, because of her attitude and how she was so helpless at times even if she pretented to be strong and full of courage. So overall, the beginning promised this story to be something else that what it turned out to be (from a horrorish mystery to a lame romance/mystery combo). That's why this book gets 2½ stars rounded down to 2 stars and I slightly hope that I woudn't have put so much time reading it to the end.
The characters were at first interesting, but they just got miserable and their motives uninteresting as the story progressed further. I actually started to hate Mary as well, because of her attitude and how she was so helpless at times even if she pretented to be strong and full of courage. So overall, the beginning promised this story to be something else that what it turned out to be (from a horrorish mystery to a lame romance/mystery combo). That's why this book gets 2½ stars rounded down to 2 stars and I slightly hope that I woudn't have put so much time reading it to the end.
adventurous
sad
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Murder
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking
Weird how I loved Rebecca and couldn't bear this, but there it is.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I adored this book; nearly as much as Rebecca to be honest. I'm not quite sure what it is about Daphne du Maurier's writing that captivates me so but she never fails to draw me in. Don't let the cover of this book fool you. It is not romance novel fluff by any means. The imagery is powerful and in many ways reminds me of Wuthering Heights with its gothic elements. This is a nice, quick read. My only complaint lies in that the prime suspect of the novel was easy to weed out and fairly predictable. Nonetheless, I remain highly pleased with this work.