The house of fortune by Jessie Burton

In many ways, this is a puzzling narrative.  The world of one young woman in Holland is slowly revealed as her father and aunt prepare her for marriage, a marriage arranged by them with a man who demands a significant amount of money, that in fact this family do not have.  Yet the marriage is deemed to be vital, and they must borrow funds to contribute to her marriage. 

 

The world of 1705 is one that is rich with travel, music, drama and social expectations.  As the family work towards a suitable marriage for Rebecca Bosman, she discovers that all is not what she would have expected in the social world into which she is plunged.  In her discovery of her family secrets, and indeed their poverty, Thea is shocked, yet begins to understand the complexity of their lives and the challenges that they face.  Her aunt, Nella, and her father have planned a way to address a marriage with a ‘good’ husband, and all seems to be going according to plan, until there is a discovery that shocks them. 

 

Thea has to adjust to a situation that does not make sense, the trauma that she endures when the secret is revealed, having been kept hidden by her suitor, is one that leaves no room for recovery.  Set in the distant past, we are drawn into the world where people’s actions, lives, and behaviour were so defined, with an expectation by the church that all would be done correctly and morally.  Her final decision comes as a shock, when we witness her strength of character and determination to live a good life.

 

It is a companion to an earlier novel The miniaturist, written by Jessie Burton, and would clearly be historically fascinating for readers, as indeed it was for me.  This would be suitable for adolescent readers, particularly those who would be intrigued by the social norms and expectations, particularly those imposed on women of that era.