Rebecca

A writing style that grabs you right away and draws you in. Incredible. Gothic and thrilling in a most idyllic setting.

Reading such kind of high literature dialogues is making me less feral I guess.

I don’t think anyone dead or alive writes tension better than Du Maurier. Her writing and prose was a finely honed craft I can’t help but respect.

3.5 stars. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier is beautifully written, with vivid, atmospheric descriptions that make Manderley and its haunting mood come alive. The prose is immersive, and du Maurier’s talent for building tension is undeniable. However, what held me back from a higher rating was the narrator herself. I found her frustratingly one-dimensional for much of the book. She was so passive and insecure that it was hard to root for her. While she does evolve toward the end, her transformation felt too little, too late. I wanted a stronger heroine, someone with more agency and presence throughout the story. Overall, a well-crafted novel that fell a bit short in character development.

This is my favourite book of all time. I first read this at school when I was about 14 and have since read a very much loved well worn copy countless times.

I really enjoyed this book. Despite its age, I found it incredibly readable and to my shock, I found myself laughing out loud often at some of the internal dialogue of the unnamed main character.

The book is so well written, it pulled me in from the first couple of pages. The main character is a fascinating and often pathetic figure, who seems to loathe herself completely. She is plagued by the spectre of Rebecca, the diseased wife who looms over the home and life of her new and much older husband.

The home is Manderley, and it’s as much a character in the book as any other. I loved the strong sense of place that Du Maurier brought to this book with her loving but also haunting depiction of the Manderley estate.

This book is difficult to categorize. It’s not a thriller, not a mystery really, and certainly not a romance. It’s dark and sometimes disturbing while also funny and sharp. I’d recommend it to any reader.

I really loved the writing as parts were just so beautifully described but the actual story frustrated me and I found a lot of it unbelievably ridiculous. It was worth reading those for the prose alone.

4.5*

Historic fiction.

Mysterious Manderley.

Rebecca is the name of the personality in this book, which constantly assaults our heroin (whose name we dont know). Our heroin is a young girl who meets a widower Max de Winter on a holiday and marries him. Max de Winter who was married to Rebecca also is haunted by the memories of his late wife which in turn effects our heroin who is young and new to a world like Manderley.

I think this book is so clever! The tension and suspense throughout the book is incredible, when it is all psychological mind games, and nothing actually threatening happening! Basically, this book is a tale of how women have no power and no identity in this society! It took me awhile to realize that we never even know the NAME of our narrator. She is of so little importance or worth in this British society, that she is not even worthy of a name! She becomes simply the second Mrs. Maxim de Winters. She lucked out, because she literally had no prospects or ability to move ahead in life other than waiting on other rich people. The title character Rebecca, also has little prospects in this society, but she doesn't care, and she takes her power back anyway! Her only power is her beauty (i.e. sex appeal) and she uses that as a weapon to do exactly how she pleases and get whatever she can out of this world before she leaves it. She is criticized, but I found her to be great. Unfortunately, as all "bad" women go (i.e. women who are flouting society's rules and ignoring their supposed role and place), she must be severely punished. Even in her death though, she continues to haunt everyone. The narrator with no identity remains a child, weak and subservient to her husband, the larger society, and the house throughout. The mind games that the head maid (again a supposedly powerless person in this world due to her economic role) plays is cruel and downright diabolical. I honestly do not understand the power that these lords of the manor held, nor why everyone just waits on them head and foot, and what they are so "busy" doing or why they are so important, but I honestly enjoyed how the powerless schemed and manipulated to try to get a slight bit of autonomy back in this book. Social commentary mixed up with a very entertaining Gothic mystery equals the rare 5-star book for me! I want to read more by Daphne du Maurier!