Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier

Set in the early 1800s, Jamaica Inn is the story of Mary Yellan. She arrives to Jamaica Inn after promising her dying mother that she would sell the family's farm and go live with her aunt Patience. After her mother's funeral she writes to her aunt, who tells her that her husband in the landlord of Jamaica Inn, and that she is to go to them there.

Even before she arrives, Mary realizes that something is not quite right with Jamaica Inn and with the man her aunt married, Joss Merlyn. And when she does arrive, she sees that her aunt is no longer the person she remembered, but a broken woman, a woman who is desperately afraid. And Joss Merlyn is, to put it kindly, a viscous brute who keeps questionable company and devotes his time to dubious activities. But what exactly Joss Merlyn and his band are up to is only slowly revealed.

Trapped in a desolate place, Mary befriends Jem Merlyn, her uncle's younger brother. Jem freely admits that he's a horse thief, and against her better judgements Mary becomes attracted to him. Is he just like his brother, or is there more to Jem than meets the eye?

Let me begin by saying that I very much enjoyed Jamaica Inn. But if you remember how much I loved Rebecca, you will understand just how high my expectations for this book were. And unfortunately, it fell short. I was particularly disappointed that I could see the twist coming a mile away, because I'd heard it was a good one. But you know, I think that one of the reasons for this was the fact that I was on the look out for a twist. And I fear I might be doing you all a disservice by even saying this much, but you sort of expect it in a Gothic suspense novel by Daphne du Maurier, right? And I just went back and rephrased what I'd originally written to make it a bit more vague.

But anyway. It wasn't just the fact that I guessed the ending, because I knew the ending of Rebecca too and that didn't make me love it any less. What it was I cannot say. Probably just personal preference. The lovely Stephanie, for example, enjoyed this book even more than Rebecca.

On to the good things. My favourite thing about Jamaica Inn was the sense of place. I just loved the descriptions of the Cornish tors and moors and bogs. They're haunting and full of atmosphere, and they made me want to visit Cornwall and go wandering through the wilderness.

As you might have guessed from my plot summary, there's a bit of romance in Jamaica Inn, but even though I'm not exactly a fan of romance I thought it was well done. It wasn't silly and it fit the main story well. And the story really is a good. The characters feel real, and if I hadn't read Rebecca first I wouldn't have been plagued by this mild sense of disappointment. But that's what unreasonable expectations can do to you. It's nobody's fault but my own.

I definitely still plan on reading more Daphne du Maurier. Just the other day I realised that my library has a few of her short story collections, and after Debi's recommendation, how can I resist?

Other Blog Reviews:
A Striped Armchair
Confessions of a Book-a-holic
It's All About Books
Bell Literary Reflections

(Let me know if I missed yours.)