Daphne du Maurier

The classic Gothic suspense novel by Daphne du Maurier -- winner of the Anthony Award for Best Novel of the Century -- is now a Netflix film starring Lily James and Armie Hammer. Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again . . . The novel begins in Monte Carlo, where our heroine is swept off her feet by the dashing widower Maxim de Winter and his sudden proposal of marriage. Orphaned and working as a lady's maid, she can barely believe her luck. It is only when they arrive at his massive country estate that she realizes how large a shadow his late wife will cast over their lives--presenting her with a lingering evil that threatens to destroy their marriage from beyond the grave. "Daphne du Maurier created a scale by which modern women can measure their feelings." --Stephen King

Rebecca

Someone who was never anxious, never tortured by doubt and indecision, someone who never stood as I did, hopeful, eager, frightened, tearing at bitten nails, uncertain which way to go, what star to follow.

In a little while it would be different, there would come tomorrow, and the next day, and another year. And we would be changed perhaps, never sitting quite like this again. Some of us would go away, or suffer, or die; the future stretched away in front of us, unknown, unseen, not perhaps what we wanted, not what we planned. This moment was safe though, this could not be touched.

She ran on, through a tangled fringe of gossip

The drive was a ribbon now, a thread of its former self, with gravel surface gone, and choked with grass and moss. The trees had thrown out low branches, making an impediment to progress; the gnarled roots looked like skeleton claws.

Daphne Du Maurier

* 'The greatest psychological thriller of all time' ERIN KELLY * 'One of the most influential novels of the twentieth century' SARAH WATERS * 'It's the book every writer wishes they'd written' CLARE MACKINTOSH NOW A MAJOR NETFLIX MOVIE STARRING LILY JAMES, ARMIE HAMMER AND KRISTEN SCOTT THOMAS Working as a lady's companion, the orphaned heroine of Rebecca learns her place. Life begins to look very bleak until, on a trip to the South of France, she meets Maxim de Winter, a handsome widower whose sudden proposal of marriage takes her by surprise. Whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to his brooding estate, Manderley, on the Cornish Coast, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory of his dead wife Rebecca is forever kept alive by the forbidding Mrs Danvers . . . Not since Jane Eyre has a heroine faced such difficulty with the Other Woman. An international bestseller that has never gone out of print, Rebecca is the haunting story of a young girl consumed by love and the struggle to find her identity.

Amalie Elisabeth

The house was a sepulchre, our fear and suffering lay buried in the ruins. There would be no resurrection.

Time could not wreck the perfect symmetry of those walls, nor the site itself, a jewel in the hollow of a hand.

Emily McMeans

“I am glad it cannot happen twice, the fever of first love. For it is a fever, and a burden, too, whatever the poets may say. They are not brave, the days when we are twenty-one. They are full of little cowardices, little fears without foundation, and one is so easily bruised, so swiftly wounded, one falls to the first barbed word.”

Vier und halb Sterne, wenn nicht mehr als ein halb

Mariam Raji

Rebecca.

Abeer A.

Sofia Diaz

Rebecca (Cover to Cover Classics)

3.5 stars. Maybe I made a mistake by introducing myself to this classic novel as an audiobook, having never engaged with it before. I went in pretty much blind, so I had no idea what to expect. A Gothic ghost story with some twists and turns I'd never see coming? Not so much. 

The plot did not seem that suspenseful. It was not heart pounding or scary. After reading some other reviews, I wish I would have read this in an "English class" setting, meaning having the opportunity to engage with teachers and fellow students/readers, instead of reading this alone. I think I would have gotten more out of it that way, which is the case with most classics. 

It's a story that needs dissecting and others' thoughts and ideas to fully appreciate; this is one of those books that requires a deep dive with more analysis, but that's difficult to do with an audiobook. I'm still not convinced I would have enjoyed it anymore if I'd read it alone, though. 

Again, the plot is subpar, slow and dragging in many parts, infused with too much plain conversation that doesn't reveal anything about characters' motives, intentions and thoughts or actions. I wouldn't even classify it as a slow burn. 

Maybe this is a perfect book for a character analysis, but for pure entertainment, I would look elsewhere. It's not spooky and it's hardly Gothic. Not sure I'd recommend as an audiobook if you've never read it before. I can see how having read this previously would heighten the audio experience, however. 

Amanda

3.5 stars. Maybe I made a mistake by introducing myself to this classic novel as an audiobook, having never engaged with it before. I went in pretty much blind, so I had no idea what to expect. A Gothic ghost story with some twists and turns I'd never see coming? Not so much. 

The plot did not seem that suspenseful. It was not heart pounding or scary. After reading some other reviews, I wish I would have read this in an "English class" setting, meaning having the opportunity to engage with teachers and fellow students/readers, instead of reading this alone. I think I would have gotten more out of it that way, which is the case with most classics. 

It's a story that needs dissecting and others' thoughts and ideas to fully appreciate; this is one of those books that requires a deep dive with more analysis, but that's difficult to do with an audiobook. I'm still not convinced I would have enjoyed it anymore if I'd read it alone, though. 

Again, the plot is subpar, slow and dragging in many parts, infused with too much plain conversation that doesn't reveal anything about characters' motives, intentions and thoughts or actions. I wouldn't even classify it as a slow burn. 

Maybe this is a perfect book for a character analysis, but for pure entertainment, I would look elsewhere. It's not spooky and it's hardly Gothic. Not sure I'd recommend as an audiobook if you've never read it before. I can see how having read this previously would heighten the audio experience, however. 

This did not go the way I was expecting it to go at all, but I was not disappointed by it. Still makes quite a statement, even if it's not the statement I thought it would be making! 

Ashton Zillhardt

such a magical book....how could something like this have existed without me knowing?? i can't believe it took me so long to find it; it was exactly what i needed at the time. i loved it so much that i prolonged finishing it.

chloe

Dan Dugan

We all have been the current Mrs. De Winter at one point, dealing the ghosts of the past. Lovely written, deeply relatable. 

Karla

Dieses Buch hat mich mitgerissen, mich in seine schaurige, geheimnisvolle Atmosphäre eintauchen lassen und mich nicht mehr losgelassen.

Die Geschichte handelt von einer jungen Frau, deren Namen wir nicht erfahren. Sie arbeitet als bezahlte Begleiterin einer reichen alten Dame und lernt während ihres Aufenthalts in Monte Carlo den verschlossenen, traurigen, aber sympathischen Mr. de Winter kennen. Man sagt über ihn, er sei immer noch nicht über den Tod seiner Frau Rebecca hinweggekommen…

Die Protagonistin heiratet Mr. de Winter und zieht mit ihm nach Manderley – ein Anwesen, das noch immer vom Geist Rebeccas erfüllt ist, sodass sie fast greifbar erscheint, als wäre sie noch am Leben.

Die Geschichte hat mich von der ersten Seite an gefesselt. Besonders liebe ich die Dynamik zwischen der Protagonistin und Mr. de Winter am Ende, die schönen Naturbeschreibungen, und die Protagonistin selbst, die als Charakter unglaublich nahbar ist. Außerdem hat das Buch einen gelungenen Plot!

Zainab 

Dieses Buch hat mich mitgerissen, mich in seine schaurige, geheimnisvolle Atmosphäre eintauchen lassen und mich nicht mehr losgelassen.

Die Geschichte handelt von einer jungen Frau, deren Namen wir nicht erfahren. Sie arbeitet als bezahlte Begleiterin einer reichen alten Dame und lernt während ihres Aufenthalts in Monte Carlo den verschlossenen, traurigen, aber sympathischen Mr. de Winter kennen. Man sagt über ihn, er sei immer noch nicht über den Tod seiner Frau Rebecca hinweggekommen…

Die Protagonistin heiratet Mr. de Winter und zieht mit ihm nach Manderley – ein Anwesen, das noch immer vom Geist Rebeccas erfüllt ist, sodass sie fast greifbar erscheint, als wäre sie noch am Leben.

Die Geschichte hat mich von der ersten Seite an gefesselt. Besonders liebe ich die Dynamik zwischen der Protagonistin und Mr. de Winter am Ende, die schönen Naturbeschreibungen, und die Protagonistin selbst, die als Charakter unglaublich nahbar ist. Außerdem hat das Buch einen gelungenen Plot!

Ein neues Lieblingsbuch!

enjoyed this way more than i thought i would!!

felicity hu

baku

'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again . . .' Working as a lady's companion, our heroine's outlook is bleak until, on a trip to the south of France, she meets a handsome widower whose proposal takes her by surprise. She accepts but, whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to brooding Manderley, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory of his dead wife Rebecca is for ever kept alive by the forbidding housekeeper Mrs Danvers . . . An international bestseller that has never gone out of print, Rebecca is the haunting story of a young woman consumed by love and the struggle to find her identity.

Louisa

You won't enjoy the first 2/3 of this book as much if you know the plot, so just AVOID SPOILERS AT ALL COSTS

Atmospheric with strong writing; a bit wordy regarding a rather brief plot. 

Joe Herrington

« last night i dreamt i went to manderley again... »

what do i say? i finished this less than five minutes ago and my brain feels like scrambled egg. i am so glad i reread this book after SO long (more than a decade) because i had forgotten everything towards the end, which i'm very thankful for because it felt like i was reading this for the first time again.

now, the first 60% of the book took me a while to get through, i don't know why, it felt a bit dragged out however the last 40% of the book? i devoured it all in one evening. i couldn't put it down. even the beginning, that felt slightly more slow to me, was beautifully written but good god, when it picks up? it definitely Picks Up. the chain of events all happening one right after the other after the big confrontation after the party kept me on the edge of my seat up until the end. i will probably keep thinking about the end for a while now.

florine

« last night i dreamt i went to manderley again... »

what do i say? i finished this less than five minutes ago and my brain feels like scrambled egg. i am so glad i reread this book after SO long (more than a decade) because i had forgotten everything towards the end, which i'm very thankful for because it felt like i was reading this for the first time again.

now, the first 60% of the book took me a while to get through, i don't know why, it felt a bit dragged out however the last 40% of the book? i devoured it all in one evening. i couldn't put it down. even the beginning, that felt slightly more slow to me, was beautifully written but good god, when it picks up? it definitely Picks Up. the chain of events all happening one right after the other after the big confrontation after the party kept me on the edge of my seat up until the end. i will probably keep thinking about the end for a while now.

** spoiler alert **
           GOD. WHAT A BOOK. 

As soon as I opened this book a few months back, I knew I'd love it. I related to the protagonist a bit too much. Reading it now, I was a little frustrated with her, but she was still very similar to me. She's my age as well. 

The fact this lovely novel about a self-conscious woman loving and yet feeling insecure with her husband turned into a murder mystery so interesting I couldn't stop turning the pages caught me off guard. The style kept me expecting something like Effi Briest or Madame Bovary (which also kept me on my toes throughout the novel!) but I'm glad it turned into this. I'll definitely come back to this book many many times.

Chloé

Creepy. Dark. I really liked it personally. Mrs. Danvers is an amazingly creepy character. verity wishes she was her cause Rebecca is that bitch. I gave it three stars cause of all the classics this one took me the longest to get into it. I've tried to start reading this so much but never could so its not a 4, but I did enjoy if i got straight into it, it would've been a 4 but i think thats more a me thing.

Sarah Sammis

Daphne du Maurier's prose carries so many important details woven together that every paragraph must be savored. Her books are not ones to speed read. As with My Cousin Rachel, the title character is created out of the other characters recollections of her, her possessions and her history. Unlike Rachel, Rebecca's appearance doesn't allow for her to make any explanations or tell her version of the story. Both books end abbruptly but with Rebecca there's a chance for happiness for the protagonist.

Rebecca is a disappointingly dull and predictable novel that fails to live up to its acclaimed reputation. The nameless main character is insufferably naive, insecure, and devoid of any personality or intelligence. Her incessant obsession with the deceased Rebecca becomes extremely repetitive and grating. 

The plot relies heavily on cliched premises like insta-love and an unoriginal, unsurprising twist ending that blatantly rips off Jane Eyre. None of the characters are compelling, and the story plods along aimlessly with very little suspense or Gothic atmosphere despite being labeled as a romantic mystery.

Overall, Rebecca is a bore-fest with an annoying protagonist. It's mind-boggling that this book has garnered such high praise when there are far better examples of classic romantic literature that don't insult the reader's intelligence. Save yourself the disappointment and skip this overrated novel.

Liana

Rebecca is a disappointingly dull and predictable novel that fails to live up to its acclaimed reputation. The nameless main character is insufferably naive, insecure, and devoid of any personality or intelligence. Her incessant obsession with the deceased Rebecca becomes extremely repetitive and grating. 

The plot relies heavily on cliched premises like insta-love and an unoriginal, unsurprising twist ending that blatantly rips off Jane Eyre. None of the characters are compelling, and the story plods along aimlessly with very little suspense or Gothic atmosphere despite being labeled as a romantic mystery.

Overall, Rebecca is a bore-fest with an annoying protagonist. It's mind-boggling that this book has garnered such high praise when there are far better examples of classic romantic literature that don't insult the reader's intelligence. Save yourself the disappointment and skip this overrated novel.

amy 

Kendall McClain

Amazing writing, mundane plot & characters!

arguably my favorite classic of all time 

Noor 

Mariana

** spoiler alert **
           Rebecca es la Amy Dunne original

Laura Mauler

The first chapter was a toss-away, a dream whose purpose was simply to describe the house and grounds of Manderley. I always dislike dreams in books because they feel like lazy writing; the author is trying to wedge information into the story without actually figuring out how to work that info in naturally. So the first (brief) chapter was read in supreme irritation, and the second (brief) chapter hurried through since our story doesn't start there, either. The third chapter - that is when things get rolling. And holy cow do they roll, taking us on a journey between low-level dread and white-hot tension. A true thriller in the highest sense of the word, creating the exact right mood for the end of October.

Highly recommend.

The pure rage I felt at Mrs Danvers when Mrs de Winter walked out in her beautiful white gown is UNMATCHED.

Jillian Roberts

The pure rage I felt at Mrs Danvers when Mrs de Winter walked out in her beautiful white gown is UNMATCHED.

Great book though!!!

Jaden Nelson

Yeah I liked it. That’s about all to be honest... I didn’t get super emotionally invested and didn’t absolutely love it, except for when i realized that I was 3/4 of the way through the book and I hadn’t realized that the main character is never actually named; that was cool, but otherwise it was just good. Probably wouldn’t read again but it was a nice thing to listen to on the bus and while to did random things(audiobook). Maybe if I liked mystery and love affair type things more I would have liked this better.....

Melissa Palmer

Book #114 Read in 2014
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

This classic novel has been on my shelf for years. In the mood for a meaty read, I decided it was time to read it and I enjoyed the gothic novel. Rebecca was the first wife of Maxim de Winter and she died. Max seems to be moving on when he meets a young lady and marries her shortly after. He brings her home to Manderley and she realizes that not everyone is happy about there being a new Mrs. de Winter. As layers are pulled back, revelations that are not necessarily cheerful occur. This book reminded me of another favorite of mine, Wuthering Heights. I found both books to have lush writing.

http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com

Rebecca

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