THE HOUSE OF FORTUNE
Alive with the magic of 18th-century Amsterdam, an enchanting, fantastical stand-alone companion novel to the sensational New York Times bestseller The Miniaturist.
Amsterdam in the year 1705. It is Thea Brandt’s eighteenth birthday. She is ready to welcome adulthood with open arms, but life at home is increasingly difficult. Her father Otto and her Aunt Nella argue endlessly over their financial fate, selling off furniture in a desperate attempt to hold on to the family home.
As catastrophe threatens to engulf the household, Thea seeks refuge in Amsterdam’s playhouses. She loves the performances,
Alive with the magic of 18th-century Amsterdam, an enchanting, fantastical stand-alone companion novel to the sensational New York Times bestseller The Miniaturist.
Amsterdam in the year 1705. It is Thea Brandt’s eighteenth birthday. She is ready to welcome adulthood with open arms, but life at home is increasingly difficult. Her father Otto and her Aunt Nella argue endlessly over their financial fate, selling off furniture in a desperate attempt to hold on to the family home.
As catastrophe threatens to engulf the household, Thea seeks refuge in Amsterdam’s playhouses. She loves the performances, and the stolen moments afterwards are even better. In the backrooms of her favorite theater, Thea can spend a few precious minutes with her secret lover, Walter, the chief set-painter, a man adept at creating the perfect environments for comedies and tragedies to flourish. The thrill of their hidden romance offers Thea an exciting distraction from home. But it also puts her in mind of another secret that threatens to overwhelm the present: Thea knows her birthday marks the day her mother, Marin, died in labor. Thea’s family refuses to share the details of this story, just as they seem terrified to speak of “the miniaturist” — a shadowy figure from their past who is possessed of uncanny abilities to capture that which is hidden.
Aunt Nella believes the solution to all Thea’s problems is to find her a husband who will guarantee her future. An unexpected invitation to Amsterdam’s most exclusive ball seems like a golden opportunity. But when Thea finds, on her doorstep, a parcel containing a miniature figure of Walter, it becomes clear that someone out there has another fate in mind for the family . . .
A feat of sweeping, magical storytelling, The House of Fortune is an unputdownable novel about love and obsession, family and loyalty, and the fantastic power of secrets.
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Hardcover
- August 2022
- 304 Pages
- 9781635579741
Buy the Book
$28.00
About Jessie Burton
Jessie Burton‘s first novel, The Miniaturist, was a New York Times bestseller and was adapted into a PBS series, starring Anya Taylor-Joy. Jessie’s second novel, The Muse, was also a #1 international bestseller. Jessie has written essays and reviews for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. She lives in London.
Praise
“The captivating coming-of-age drama of Thea Brandt, a spirited Dutch-African girl longing for romance and impatient to launch her adult life while remaining shackled to her family’s scandalous past. Burton’s dark and opulent third novel explores the conflicting loyalties that influence Thea and threaten to undermine her ravenous desire for independence . . . Burton’s narrative talents shine at full brilliance in The House of Fortune, offering a heady, hypnotic immersion into Thea’s world that readers will be reluctant to leave.” —Shelf Awareness
“A beautifully written and wholly engrossing tale. New readers will be delighted that they can enjoy this book without having read the first one, but they’ll probably seek it out to spend a bit more time in Burton’s magical Amsterdam.” —Library Journal
“Jessie Burton is a master storyteller who brings 18th century Amsterdam to life. I felt I was in the city with Thea and Nella, and I felt for them as the chasm between the two widened. The cost of keeping secrets and the danger of not being able to communicate with those closest to us thrums through this exquisite page-turner.” —Janet Skeslien Charles, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Library
“A more than worthy sequel to The Miniaturist. Elegant, atmospheric, compelling. I absolutely loved it.” —Marian Keyes, New York Times bestselling author of The Brightest Star in the Sky and Again, Rachel
“The most beautiful book you’ll read this year. A spectacular achievement, this glittering glass bauble of brilliance, the story of Thea, will break your heart and put it back together again. Capturing how it was to be eighteen with such acuity and grace, I believed I was there again. Thought The Miniaturistwas the end of the story? Think again. Shining, sinuous, truly a marvel.” —Kate Williams, New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Queen Victoria
“Captivating . . . the vibrant period detail, the characters’ vibrant inner lives, and Thea’s fulfilling journey to maturity make for a winning combination. Readers will relish the return of Nella and her world.” —Publishers Weekly
“The House of Fortune is a book of beauty and insight: Burton’s ability to meld a deep understanding of human nature with pitch-perfect historical detail is awe-inspiring. I turned the final page feeling moved, satisfied and sad to leave the characters (and Lucas the cat) behind. Burton is a master storyteller, with an uncanny knack for scene-setting and atmosphere. I felt I could see, smell, live and breathe every page. The House of Fortune is a delight for anyone who is about to read it.” —Elizabeth Day, author of How to Fail and The Party
“I was absolutely swept away by this exquisite and propulsive novel. I found the world so meticulously crafted and the vibrant cast of characters so alluring that I entered a divine fictional dream, bewitched by Burton’s deft narrative hand. A thrilling book of depth that examines the weight of family secrets and what it means to break free of the past and step into one’s light. Magical and suspenseful, this epic tale felt written in the stars long ago. The kind of book that makes you feel lucky to hold it in your hands.” —Chelsea Bieker, author of Godshot and Heartbroken
Discussion Questions
1. The novel is written in close third person. How does this point of view affect your reading experience? How are Thea and Nella’s worldviews expressed, compared, and contrasted through this choice of POV? How would the novel have been different in the first person or third-person omniscient?
2. Thea routinely eavesdrops and overhears conversations. What is the result of this plot device? How effective is this device in conveying information or furthering character? How does it clarify or confuse?
3. Values such as “cleanliness” and “patience” are used to personify Amsterdam. To what extent do these values accurately capture the novel’s setting? Discuss the ways in which the Brandt’s exemplify or reject these values.
4. Although flashbacks are not used often, the dead are very much alive in the novel. What devices does the author use to portray Marin and Johannes? How do these “ghosts” influence the present?
5. The novel consistently returns to the image of Thea’s “stained gold dress.” What is the symbolism of this image? Identify and discuss other examples of repeated or prominent images. What is the significance or purpose of this repetition?
6. The Brandt’s are described as the “masquerade of a wealthy family.” Consider the theme of appearance versus reality in the novel. Discuss the “necessary deceptions” the novel chronicles. What is the significance?
7. One female character, the miniaturist, is described as “meddler” and “witch” and “guide” and “protector.” Discuss how the author uses gendered language to expand or limit nuance. How are women represented in the novel?
8. Thea sells a map of Africa to pay off her blackmailer. What is the significance of maps in the novel? Discuss the theme of travel and how it is explored and perceived by different characters.
9. Shakespearean allusions are featured prominently in the novel. Titus Adronicus, Romeo and Juliet, and The Taming of the Shrew are mentioned by name. What is the result of these allusions? How are the themes and characters of these plays used to reflect or contrast the characters and themes in the novel?
10. The novel portrays a world in which everything is turned into a commodity and, in turn, for sale: real estate, art, housekeepers, even silence. How are economic matters rendered in the novel?
11. Discuss the role of botany and the natural world in the novel. How do plants function against the urban setting? How does Nella’s ancestral home, Assendelft, function as a setting, memory, or character?
12. Contrasting philosophies of love are in conversation throughout the novel. Discuss the different philosophies and the ways in which they are practiced by different characters. How do characters change or maintain their philosophies or love?