Jamaica Inn - Daphne du Maurier

 

This was my second time reading du Maurier's Jamaica Inn, having also read it a few years ago whilst I was at university. Although I remembered loving the novel the first time around, and the moody and atmospheric landscape it created, I couldn't remember how it ended - which made for an exciting reading journey all over again. Jamaica Inn follows the protagonist Mary Yellan, who is a gutsy and brave female lead you cannot help but love. Unlike Rebecca, which features an unnamed protagonist who is very much victimised and submissive throughout the novel, 20-year-old Mary Yellan is a strong female voice who is not dependent on a male and is much more autonomous in her decisions. 

The novel begins with the recently-orphaned Mary, whose mother has recently passed away - left with no immediate family and remembering the past kindness of her fun-loving Aunt Patience, she travels to Bodmin to Jamaica Inn, an establishment owned by her aunt and uncle, Joss Merlyn, which has fallen into disrepair and does not welcome regular guests. The inn has a foreboding and haunting chill in the air, and when mentioned to local villagers is a subject of much taboo and fear. She arrives to find her aunt a shell of the woman she once knew - timid, anxious and frightened, and completely under the thumb of her aggressive and alcohol-dependent husband. Mary vows not to leave the inn, despite her fear, as she believes Aunt Patience to be at risk in the company of Joss Merlyn's violent and unpredictable temper. 

Before long, Mary realises that there are horrifying and criminal activities which take place at the seemingly unfrequented inn under the shadow of darkness - activities she can choose to hide away from and ignore, as her aunt does; or that she can attempt to uncover and bring to light. Meanwhile, she forms an unlikely friendship with her uncle's brother, who himself is not entirely golden in the eyes of the law. Against her better instincts, she finds an unlikely ally in the sibling of her abusive uncle and soon finds herself in way out of her depth with the hidden crimes which take place right under her nose.

This is a thrilling, spooky and gripping novel which you will devour and be left wanting more - I can't recommend it highly enough and it has everything I want in a piece of writing. Du Maurier's ability to depict eerie and unforgiving landscapes and complex yet realistic characters is unparalleled, and this novel is a hugely enjoyable read.