牙买加客栈--（英）杜穆里埃

牙买加客栈--（英）杜穆里埃 Reading Report of Jamaica Inn To be honest, when I first picked up this book, Jamaica Inn, I really thought that it was just about some introduction of an inn and nothing else. However, after reading the whole book, I realized that I was totally wrong. In fact, Jamaica Inn is a romantic story of adventure, violence and love. It shows a strong longing for the past, but also a sense of how our present lives are affected by past events. The events in Jamaica Inn take place at the beginning of the nineteenth century. The setting is Bodmin Moor in Cornwall, a cold and lonely place in the south-west corner of Britain. The setting is very important as the dark events in the story could only take place in an area where there are few human beings to witness what is happening. Those who live there are as cold and hard as their surroundings. The history of Cornwall is full of sea stories involving smugglers and wreckers. Smugglers often became romantic figures , more respected than the representatives of the law who were trying to catch them. Wreckers , on the other hand, were frightening figures who, as their name suggests, caused ships to be destroyed on the rocking coast. When the ships broke up, the wreckers stole the goods that floated to shore. But they didn't just steal; the wreckers always made sure that no one stayed alive to report what had happened. The central character of this story, Mary Yellan, gains my sympathy by her courage in the face of evil. When I first meet her, she is an inexperienced girl who has lived in the same place for 23 years. She is alone after her mother's death, and appears a weak figure. As the story develops, though, she fights back against the difficult situation and is not afraid to do what she believes to be right, even this means putting her own life in danger. She is attracted by a certain amount of risk and danger, and falls in love with a man who seems to represent the possibility of both. Mary Yellan is invited by her Aunt Patience to go and live with her and her husband, Joss Merlyn, after the death of Mary's mother. Joss is the landlord of Jamaica Inn, a mysterious place standing alone in the wild countryside of Bodmin Moor. Mary soon discovers that few guests come to stay at the inn, and respectable people avoid the place completely. Its landlord is an evil character who tries from the start to rule Mary's life as he does her aunt's. But Mary refuses to be frightened quite easily, and is determined to uncover the secrets of the place. She badly needs friends, but whom can she trust? Jem Merlyn, the landlord's attractive but horse-thieving brother? Or Francis Davey, the soft-spoken Vicar of Altarnun? As the situation becomes more and more dangerous for Mary, she has to decide where she can turn for help. After a series of twist of fate, both Joss and aunt Patience were killed by a person. I really wonder who is the murderer??When the end of the story finally comes, it turns out that it is Francis Davey who has murdered the landlord and aunt Patience. I still cannot imagine it by now. Why he was the chief instigator and how could he control all the wreckers and smugglers? But the story doesn't tell the details. I think it just aims to make us imagine the situation. But it's a pity that I'm not able to do so. In fact, Jamaica Inn is a horrible and mysterious story, but it has a clear and happy ending, which makes me too absorbed in it. Luckily, the central character ,Mary leaves Jamaica Inn with his lover, Jem Merlyn. From now on, the two can lead a new life in which there is no violence and cruelty but only happiness exists. In a word , I love this story , respect Mary's courage and admire the author's imagination and wisdom.