The House of Fortune

Alive with the magic of 18th-century Amsterdam,an enchantingfantastical stand-alone companion novel to the sensational New York Times bestseller The Miniaturistwhich has sold over two million copies worldwide. Amsterdam in the year 1705. It is Thea Brandt’s eighteenth birthday. She is ready to welcome adulthood with open armsbut life at home is increasingly difficult. Her father Otto and her Aunt Nella argue endlessly over their financial fateselling off furniture in a desperate attempt to hold on to the family home. As catastrophe threatens to engulf the householdThea seeks refuge in Amsterdam’s playhouses. She loves the performancesand the stolen moments afterwards are even better. In the backrooms of her favorite theaterThea can spend a few precious minutes with her secret loverWalterthe chief set-paintera man adept at creating the perfect environments for comedies and tragedies to flourish. The thrill of their hidden romance offers Thea an exciting distraction from home. But it also puts her in mind of another secret that threatens to overwhelm the present: Thea knows her birthday marks the day her motherMarindied in labor. Thea’s family refuses to share the details of this storyjust as they seem terrified to speak of \