Jamaica Inn

I had only ever read Rebecca and My Cousin Rachel and they are very different novels from Jamaica Inn. Both of the former novels are what we expect from du Maurier, gothic type romance/pseudo ghost stories. Jamaica Inn is more rough and ready and the heroine is more self reliant. It also feels like quite a wild ride. I had guessed at the villain, and was surprised by the, I guess, first ending, but not by the final ending.

The Jamaican Inn is a dark atmospheric book that explores extreme evilness and Cruelty of The wreckers. These men introduced fear to sea traveler’s and the locals they surrounded. The book highlighted this historical group. Written in 1936 it still hold the tension and fascination that it gave readers 90 years ago. The lack of escape from these men was highlighted by the fear of Mary’s Aunt The Cornwall Coast in 1815 was a fearsome place. I felt the book was about desperation between good and bad. In this life there were no choices. It was how these evil acts trickled down to affect everyone. At the end of the book we believe Mary and Jem may escape to a different life, but can they. I loved the bleak atmosphere that DM created, and for me it was one of the main characters.

I couldn't decide between 3 and 4 stars, so went with 3 because I read another review with the same quandary who went with 4, so now we even out.

I enjoyed the book. I bought it several years ago, tried to start it a few times, and finally picked it up two days ago and finished it fast, even making dinner (teriyaki chicken, although that's not relevant except that it's easy to stir-fry and hold a book at the same time) while reading the book. So, if you are in a mood for a moody, gothic romance, it's just the ticket.

It is, however, over the top, although enjoyingly so. It's even got an albino in it! (It reminded me of Foul Play like that - "our suspects are albinos and chain smokers.") The heroine is plucky and determined, the hero is... well, I won't say, because I write reviews either for myself or for someone who hasn't read it and doesn't want to know everything.

The descriptions of places were lovely, whether a sinister inn or a moody bog. The one thing that completely bothered me was the constant "you're a woman and women are different." Yes, I figured out that we're different from men a long time ago, so you don't have to say it frequently.

Anyway, it's a fun read when you're in the right mood.

There is a lot of unpleasantness in this story. Most of the characters are terrible people, the atmosphere is bleak, and there's a sense of isolation for the main character as she deals with a lot of difficulties alone. I did like her, she's smart and she fights back as hard as she can when faced with any kind of attack, mental or physical. If it weren't for her strength of spirit, the book would have been rough to get through. I didn't care for the romance, though. Overall, not as appealing as Rebecca but it does build a strong sense of atmosphere and the prose is well done.

Bit of unfortunate implication for the albino person to be evil, even with the main character trying to remind herself not to be creeped out by his appearance before he's revealed as the villain

DNF a little over half way through. Not one likeable character. I honestly have no words for how stupid they all were.