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    Jamaica Inn
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    Jamaica Inn
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    Jamaica Inn
    Ebook123 pages1 hour

    Jamaica Inn

    By Daphne Du Maurier and Lisa Evans

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Shrubs of broom grow black and twisted
    As if by Devil's fingers
    And the wind that never ceases,
    Like a chorus from the dead.
    Those who lived here it's for certain,
    would grow dark and tortured too'
    In Jamaica Inn, at the heart of the bleak Bodmin Moor, young Mary Yellen soon discovers mysterious goings-on in the dead of night. But worse is yet to come as Mary finds herself helplessly ensnared in the deadly activities taking place around her.


    Evocative, atmospheric and chilling, this new adaptation of Jamaica Inn has all the hallmarks of a great adventure classic — murder, mystery and malevolence.
    Jamaica Inn was produced at the Salisbury Playhouse in May 2004 and was followed by a UK tour.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOberon Books
    Release dateMay 5, 2004
    ISBN9781783193851
    Unavailable
    Jamaica Inn
    Author

    Daphne Du Maurier

    Daphne du Maurier (1907–1989) has been called one of the great shapers of popular culture and the modern imagination. Among her more famous works are The Scapegoat, Jamaica Inn, Rebecca, and the short story "The Birds," all of which were subsequently made into films—the latter three directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

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    Reviews for Jamaica Inn

    4/5

    890 ratings55 reviews

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    • 4/5
      First off, I am really thankful to have won this beautiful new edition from a Goodreads Giveaway!

      I love Daphne du Maurier and this is a truly great example. Every word is evocative as she paints a vivid picture of each barren landscape and soulless individual. The "love" story is more passion than love and I feel more nervous than happy for our heroine by the end of the novel. But it is refreshing to hear the very mature, knowing rationalization she makes of her situation and to see that she chooses to follow her heart, however misguided it may be. Lots of dark and dangerous plotting here, with atmosphere to spare. Maybe I'll be brave enough to watch Hitchcock's version...
    • 3/5
      Jamaica Inn does not read as quickly as I anticipated, perhaps the result of deliberate pacing by Du Maurier. I see now the appeal for Hitchcock: tension arising from a conflict clearly developed for the reader but not quite so clear to the characters involved. The plot twist is almost telegraphed, despite a red herring or two and eventual happy ending.Mary Yellan's struggles with Joss Merlyn and Jem Merlyn are reflected in her view of herself and her perception of the Cornish landscape. "Men and women were like the animals on the farm," Mary ponders to herself [126]: she has no illusions about romance, and yet finds herself helpless before her attraction, and hates herself for it. Explicitly she portrays her struggle as one of instinct against reason, and is certain her self-discipline will fail. Worst, she finds women weaker than men on this account: "She wished women were not the frail things of straw she believed them to be." [144] Interesting that despite the happy ending, this flinty outlook isn't amended: her romance is either lucky, or perhaps short-lived (the tale ends without comment). The moors also reflect Mary's struggle, their inhospitable bogs and tors and marshy grasses literal and figurative obstacles to her escape, though Du Maurier describes them poetically and appreciatively.Of chief interest are an undercurrent of malevolence tied to Druids, old gods opposed to modernity, and the landscape; and the character of Francis Davey, the vicar of Altarnun. It will be interesting to see how (even whether) Hitchcock incorporates each into his film.
    • 2/5
      I saw a lot of this book coming. The romance between Jem and Mary, such as it was; the evil albino stereotype; Jem's actions... The atmosphere itself is quite good: the damp chill of it came across well, and the oppressive feeling, and the horror of it... in fact, it rarely shed that atmosphere, even in the brighter moments. And the character of the landlord and his wife are, though still stereotypical, still reasonably well done. I could believe in Patience's cringing servility, and in the landlord's rages.

      Still, beyond that, I didn't get very deeply involved in it. I wouldn't pick it up again, riveted by the story. The love story between Jem and Mary isn't very believable, partially because of the oppressive atmosphere and because of Jem and Mary's personalities. Mary doesn't seem like the kind of girl to fall in love with a rough and untender man like Jem, or to go running after him if she did. And she doesn't fight it, either.

      Despite the atmosphere, which worked, I didn't really believe in Mary's feelings at all, actually. I didn't really feel her fear or loathing or desperation or love.
    • 4/5
      3.5 starsIt is the 19th century in England. Mary is 23. Her father died when she was little, so her mother has been taking care of her, solo, for 17 years. When her mother dies, Mary promises her that she'll go live with her Aunt Patience, her mother's sister, who neither of them has seen since before Aunt Patience got married 10 years earlier. When Mary arrives at Jamaica Inn, she learns that her uncle is not very nice (that's putting it mildly!). No one comes to Jamaica Inn because they are scared to. And there seems to be something going on there...I liked it. I liked Mary (for the most part) and her independence. The book especially picked up in the last third or quarter of the book. It is suspenseful, especially in that last bit of the book. Have to admit that I didn't like the very end, though.
    • 4/5
      Plenty of Gothic goodness here - this is my second duMaurier (the other being Rebecca) and this page-turner deserves its classic status. I began reading this while on holiday in Cornwall, in homage to the author herself - and it certainly added a whole new dimension to my enjoyment of the book, knowing that the real Jamaica Inn was just a few miles up the road from where I was staying. Unfortunately, I can report that the real Inn has sadly been stripped of all vestigial romance - though the bar has a suitably traditional, historic interior, the adjoining museum (filled with cheesy wax tableaux) and tacky gift shop are pretty dreadful. Good thing I have my imagination - fired by this gripping novel - to rely on.
    • 5/5
      Sometimes I find myself so deeply engrossed in a book, so deeply in love with it, yet I can't even begin to explain why to someone else. Jamaica Inn is one of those books. It combines mystery and romance with deep characters and interesting plot twists, but there's something else about it that just grabs me, time after time. A classic.
    • 5/5
      What a fabulous book! So dark, so powerful, so thrilling . . . Mary Yellan is one of the best heroines I've come across, definitely my kind of person. Unfortunately, as I mostly read this one on public transport to and from work, it was often a bit stop-start for me, and it would probably be best served by longer, more sustained chunks of reading as the mystery and atmosphere is quiet well executed but details can get lost when you have to keep interrupting your reading as you've reached your station. But I loved the characters, loved the dark, brooding mood, and I loved how brutal it was - not shying away from the darker, crueller side of organised crime at all.But I'm so glad I've discovered Daphne Du Maurier . . . if Jamaica Inn is anything to go by, she sounds very much like my type of writer.
    • 5/5
      I ordered this book off Amazon by mistake and I'm so glad I did. Wild and creepy, this book highlights a crime that is so dastardly, I was shocked to learn of it. Skip the TCM movie. It is just terrible and they do a spoiler in the very first scene. I think they should do a remake.
    • 3/5
      Harder to get into than some of her other's, but still a great read, very atmospheric and haunting. She really knows how to build a scene so that you can really picture yourself there.
    • 4/5
      My favorite of all Daphne du Maurier's books. Set in a wild Cornish landscape, this book is a true gothic masterpiece. The heroine is not the least big soppy, and the bad guy is pretty bad.
    • 4/5
      An interesting adventure about a 23 year-old woman at the turn of the 18th century whose evil uncle and aunt own "Jamaica Inn." They possess a terrible secret which leads our young heroine to fight valiently against the elements, "wreckers" and ultimately, herself.
    • 4/5
      Recently orphaned when her mother dies, Mary Yellan moves in with her Aunt Patience and Uncle Joss Merlyn. The former, one a happy-go-lucky young woman is now a haggard and anxious woman cowered by her abusive, drunkard husband. Her uncle is the landlord of Jamaica Inn, an isolated business on the Cornwall moors. What puzzles Mary is that there are no customers. Her uncle tells her that occasionally a number of men will come by at night and she is expected to assist her aunt in serving them drinks in the pub. Then Mary and the aunt are to retire to their bedrooms, lock their doors, and close their blinds. Mary has made herself a vow to protect her aunt but to do so she must learn about her uncle's secrecy.As I was reading this novel set in 1820 English Cornwall, I was reminded of novels by Robert Louis Stevenson. Both authors use their respective settings as surrogate characters. Du Maurier's description of the oft fog-shrouded moors and surrounding hills came alive in my mind's eye. An enjoyable alternative suspense from this author of Rebecca.
    • 4/5
      Mary Yellan leaves her home after her mother dies to live with her aunt Patience who lives with her husband at Jamaica Inn. Her aunt has gone from being a strong character to being a downtrodden victim of her domineering husband Joss Merlyn who is a smuggler. Mary has to cope with all this and live.It's interesting and Mary is a great character, I found myself somewhat spoiled by the introduction and it would probably be better read after the book. I found the ending to be a bit rushed and the romance wasn't well developed for me. I'm pretty sure I read this before but I don't recall much of it.
    • 5/5
      I adored this book; nearly as much as Rebecca to be honest. I'm not quite sure what it is about Daphne du Maurier's writing that captivates me so but she never fails to draw me in. Don't let the cover of this book fool you. It is not romance novel fluff by any means. The imagery is powerful and in many ways reminds me of Wuthering Heights with its gothic elements. This is a nice, quick read. My only complaint lies in that the prime suspect of the novel was easy to weed out and fairly predictable. Nonetheless, I remain highly pleased with this work.
    • 4/5
      Another awesome book by du Maurier! Stunning imagery of the moors in England, suspense, and dark moods fill this harrowing story of a young woman who finds herself alone in a dangerous world of crime and greed. Following her mother's deathbed wish, Mary goes to live with her aunt and uncle in the isolated, spooky and horrifying Jamaica Inn. She finds her aunt deranged and her uncle fearsome -obviously involved in something far more frightening than mere smuggling.DuMaurier's characters are bold. Her depiction of schemes, emotional turmoil, inner moral struggles, and alarming events are rich and plentiful. Recommended for exercising and toning, because you will be tensing and relaxing those muscles!
    • 3/5
      Good turn evil. Evil turn good.
    • 3/5
      I believe du Marier used every possible adjective to describe the moors of Cornwall - twice. This book is loaded down with repetitive, mood setting description, and it bogs down the narrative. Even so, you'd be better off reading this than watching Hitchcock's terrible, terrible adaptation.
    • 3/5
      I always expect classics to be hard work and a bit ponderous to read. But this is a page turning romance / mystery novel rather than a Great Insight into the Human Condition. Mary Yellan wanders around Bodmin Moor as a bit of a wide eyed Mary Sue, making mistakes that contribute to the death of her Uncle (but he was evil, so that's OK) and her Aunt (who was basically broken, and would have stopped her riding off into the sunset, so that's convenient). It has great atmosphere, both the brooding brown moor with the high tors, and the wild seas and grim murderous cruelty of the bad guys. Although I was a little worried at the 'anyone who draws slightly cruel cartoons about people at church is probably an evil pagan murderer'. And the happy ending, as she wanders off into the sunset with her sexy sexy horse thief, is just a bit too similar to how her Aunt got into the whole mess in the first place to be truly happy. (It's an interesting book for its slant on female sexuality - she is very aware that she fancies him at some hormonal level which not necessarily liking him or thinking it's a great idea, with an air of 'well, you know, that's Nature for you'. And she nearly spends the night with him, and then he vanishes off, possibly arrested, and she's very 'darn, maybe I should have done that while I had the chance.')
    • 5/5
      A remarkably suspenseful gothic tale, "Jamaica Inn" had me hooked from the opening lines. Du Maurier has a special gift for painting mood, atmosphere, and landscape in stunning and tangible detail. Nineteenth century Cornwall comes alive, and the plot propels forward apace!
    • 3/5
      I finished Jamaica Inn in the early hours of this morning and spent most of today thinking about whether I should give it 3 or 4 stars and whether to add a review – there have been so many already, and so much of what can be said about JI has been said:

      There’s a lot of scope for discussion whether the characters are too simple, whether the plot is predictable, whether Du Maurier had found her voice as a writer, yet (even though JI is not her debut and Rebecca was published only two years later), and whether JI merits the praise it seems to get.

      It’s a story set in the early 19th century, it’s gothic, it’s formulaic, atmospheric, and it’s possibly also well represented by other adjectives ending in “–ic”....

      What I would like to add, though, is that despite its short-comings it is a good read (- well it kept me awake anyway).

      I was drawn into the story and the setting right from the start of the book and I had to double check the publication date as it was strange to read a story that written around the same time as In Dubious Battle, The ABC Murders, or Mephisto but had the feel of a Bronte novel. I guess this is where Du Maurier’s ability to create a time warp that will absorb a reader really shines.

      Of course there are the occasional lapse in good judgement of her protagonists and the unbelievable – literally unbelievable – good luck of the would-be-detective Jem, but the quite extraordinary addition of the nihilist attitude in both extremes of the local society - the wreckers and the local clergy (two sides of the same coin)- is entertaining enough to forgive for such obvious flaws.

      The part of the book I found irritating was the ending. I wish it had ended before the rescue party arrives.
    • 4/5
      I listened to the audio of this book. I loved it. Very dark and suspenseful story. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I was sure our heroine would blaze her own trail to her future.I could feel the dampness of the night air and the mist of the moors,very good "listen".
    • 3/5
      Die junge Mary Yellan zieht nach dem Tod ihrer Mutter zu ihrer Tante nach Jamaica Inn, einem unheimlichen Gasthaus im Norden Cornwalls. Ihr Onkel ist ein brutaler, mürrischer Mann, dessen dunklem Geheimnis sie nach und nach auf die Spur kommt. Das Buch ist ein typischer Schauerroman mit überraschenden Wendungen. Die Figur der Mary Yellan ist interessant, da sie trotz aller Beschränkungen recht unerschrocken ihren Weg geht. Dennoch ist das Buch fast etwas zu langatmig. Insgesamt gefiel es mir aber.
    • 4/5
      Six-word review: Atmospheric thriller, strong heroine, literate author.Extended review:Daphne du Maurier has an extraordinary knack for creating atmosphere. She gives us the moors of Cornwall, "a silent, desolate country...vast and untouched by human hand." Bleak expanses of hard, scrubby ground and soggy, treacherous marshes are broken by the high tors, massive slabs and towers of stone that are monstrous, moody presences:Wild sheep dwelt on the high tors, and there were ravens too, and buzzards; the hills were homing places for all solitary things.... When the wind blew on the hills it whistled mournfully in the crevices of granite, and sometimes it shuddered like a man in pain. Strange winds blew from nowhere; they crept along the surface of the grass, and the grass shivered; they breathed upon the little pools of rain in the hollowed stones, and the pools rippled. Sometimes the wind shouted and cried, and the cry echoed in the crevices, and moaned, and was lost again. There was a silence on the tors that belonged to another age; an age that is past and vanished as though it had never been, an age when man did not exist, but pagan footsteps trod upon the hills. And there was a stillness in the air, and a stranger, older peace, that was not the peace of God. (page 42)In this country there are men as savage as the land, men who are beyond knowing the horror of their own deeds.And this is the place to which young Mary Yellan comes, bound by a deathbed promise to her mother. Rogues and thieves and drunkards are not the worst of what she will meet as her drama plays out. Mystery and menace darken the wintry days she spends under the roof of her evil uncle, and there is little enough to give her hope of escape to a better life. But Mary is made of sturdy stuff, despite the repeated reminders, in several characters' voices, of the presumed weakness of her sex. It's not a matter of defying the clichés; they're treated as natural limitations, as they were for centuries before feminism raised awareness. But they don't define Mary. She has natural advantages, too, such as strength, determination, and loyalty. She's not a quitter, even against all the odds. The horrors she's forced to face and the challenges she must meet would be enough to bring down many a lesser character of either sex.One of the things I especially like about this tale is that the author doesn't try to justify everything her protagonist does. We don't have to be badgered or maneuvered into agreeing with Mary or necessarily thinking we'd have done the same in her place. We just have to believe that what she does is honestly within her character, and it is. This gives the author leeway to show us a pleasing complexity of character, with the kinds of flaws that make it ring true. Like Eustacia Vye, Mary shows a strong silhouette against a grim background, while still being both feminine and vulnerable.There are several places where I wondered why something happened as it did, but there's only one plot point that I found truly jarring. As the momentum accelerates, a scene occurs in which Mary must provide access to a second-floor bedroom:She...tied one end of her blanket to the foot of her bed, throwing the other out the window.... (page 234 in this 1936 edition)I'd like to see that done. Try tying a knot in a blanket, enough of a knot to support someone's weight when secured to--what, a bedpost? The thickness of a blanket, any blanket, even one as thin as a sheet, is going to make it very difficult to tie, with a knot so bulky that it will gather up a lot of material and leave little to hang down. This sort of thing works in movies and animated cartoons, but could it possibly work in a realistic environment? I doubted it enough to stall out temporarily at that point; but of course I came back to find out what happened to Mary. And I blamed the author for that absurdity, not the character.The deep interconnections of character and place, out of which events proceed with a seeming inevitability, create a satisfying unfolding of plot, even if you guess the key to the mystery a little too soon. The exciting finish is worth the wait.
    • 3/5
      A fun, suspense-romance adventure story and a worthy take on a particular historical romance novel cliche set, but nothing amazing and nowhere near as subtle as du Maurier can be. books like [Rebecca] and [My Cousin Rachel] are far more meaningful and original/surprising than this one, despite the entertainment value here!
    • 4/5
      Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier - Very Good

      I approached this with some trepidation. Despite being told by various friends that this was a good read, after my attempts at other classics, I was dubious. How wrong could I be!?

      This is very much the theme of A Smuggler's Song by Kipling (who influenced who?). A young girl, Mary Yellan, is sent to live with her Aunt following the death of her Mother and arrives at the windswept & isolated Jamaica Inn on the Cornish Moors. Her uncle is a wild and dangerous man and it becomes obvious that he's involved in something nefarious. Mary determines to rescue her aunt and get away from Jamaica Inn whatever it takes.

      The descriptions of the moors and their wild beauty are wonderfully evocative. As are all the descriptions of the Inn, the fair at Launceston and the various incidents and adventures along the way.

      I'm sure you can all imagine how it pans out and I wouldn't dream of spoiling it by confirming or otherwise. Suffice it to say, I raced through the book with all its twists and adventures. Great read.
    • 4/5
      Mary Yellan, an innocent 23-year-old farm girl is sent to live with her aunt when her mother’s death orphans her. Upon her arrival she learns that her dear aunt has become a terrified, shell of a person. She lives in constant fear of her husband, Joss Merlyn, the vicious landlord of the Jamaica Inn. Mary soon realizes her uncle is involved in some devious plot, which is putting them all in danger. She’s isolated at the inn, located far out in the lonely Cornwall moors, and she doesn’t know what to do. Joss’ brother Jem walks the thin line between charming scoundrel and devilish tempter. Friendless and alone, Mary wants to trust him, but she isn’t sure if she should. I didn’t love this one quite as much as Du Maurier’s Rebecca, but it’s still a good gothic mystery. She’s an expert in sustaining suspense and intrigue. I found this one much more predictable, but I don’t know if that’s because it was or if I’m just becoming used to her style. This is my third book from the author and even if it’s not my favorite, it didn’t disappoint.
    • 4/5
      “there’s things that happen at Jamaica, Mary, that I’ve never dared to breathe. Bad things. Evil things. I can’t ever tell you; I dare not even admit them to myself. Some of it in time you’ll come to know. You can’t avoid it, living here.”

      Jamaica Inn is a weird place. It is isolated and tormented and forbidding. And just ugly. Oh and creepy. But to honour her mother’s dying wish, Mary Yellan heads there and lives with her aunt Patience and uncle Joss, the rough ape-like landlord of the inn. Aunt Patience is no longer the beautiful, laughing woman Mary remembered. Instead she is frightened, broken, a tattered shadow of her former self. Mary Yellan is warned against the place, by the coachman who drops her off, by the fact that locals never stop by, by all the hints and signs that she herself notices – signs of smuggling, of murder, of things worse than murder. She wants to leave, to get help, but she can’t because she doesn’t want to leave her aunt, who is blindly devoted to her husband.

      She thought of Aunt Patience, trailing like a ghost in the shadow of her master, and she shuddered. That would be Mary Yellan too, but for the grace of God and her own strength of will.

      Jamaica Inn doesn’t stick in the mind like Rebecca does. It’s all kinds of creepy but the characters don’t seem all that fleshed out. I admired Mary Yellan for her courage, for her no-nonsense stick-to-her-guns attitude (It seems that she is not called just ‘Mary’ but always ‘Mary Yellan’, as in: She is a bold one that Mary Yellan.), didn’t quite understand her aunt Patience, wondered at her uncle Joss. But du Maurier is at her best when creeping out her readers with the setting:

      “No human being could live in this wasted country, thought Mary, and remain like other people; the very children could be born twisted, like the blackened shrubs of broom, bent by the force of a wind that never ceased, blow as it would from east and west, from north and south. Their minds would be twisted, too, their thoughts evil, dwelling as they must amidst marshland and granite, harsh heather and crumbling stone.

      They would be born of strange stock who slept with this earth as a pillow, beneath this black sky. They would have something of the devil left in them still.”
    • 4/5
      This book definitely draws you in, making you turn each page in your desire to find out what happens. My main criticism relates to the romance part of it. It feels far too rushed and the last chapter has a 'tacked on' feel to it and is very unsatisfactory.
    • 4/5
      Ignore the bad romance novel cover, and the romance novel-sounding pen name--Daphne du Maurier was her real name, and the cover most certainly does not fit the storyline. A young woman is sent to her aunt and uncle's inn, a dastardly place known throughout the neighboring townships to be a place where horrific, violent things happen. What she finds there is more horrific than she could have guessed... du Maurier is a master of suspense and horror. And finding that small amount of romance between two unlikely characters, but making it seem plausible and realistic. It's a beautifully twisted story, and the characters are angry and wicked, disillusioned with human beings, given up on the decency of mankind. I highly recommend this novel if you enjoyed du Maurier's masterpiece Rebecca.
    • 5/5
      This book is truly a gothic classic. It kept me on the edge of my seat from the first page. I was instantly drawn into Mary Yellan's world and I found myself bonded to her and horrified as to what happens. Mary Yellan's mother dies leaving her alone on her farm with no family left but a aunt whom she hasn't seen for ten years. Mary decides to fullfill the dying promise she made with her mother to go and live with her Aunt Patience and Uncle Joss Merlyn who own Jamaica Inn on the untamed and wild British moors. Soon, Mary finds herself trapped in the villianous and wild schemes that are going on within the inn's crumbling walls.I adore Daphne Du Maurier and I understand perfectly why some many people read her books. She has the most amazing ability to dance along the fine line of reality and over the edge. The way she expresses herself through her characters is always so haunting and depressing it becomes addicting.