Rebecca

I am so torn about this book. It is exceptionally well-written, which is I'm sure what makes it a classic and keeps people reading it. But the narrator was such a frustrating character to me. As I read the book, I kept telling people, I'm really enjoying reading this book, but I don't like it! I don't know if I've ever read another book that I would say that about. There is no book without the main character's obsession with Rebecca and Rebecca's influence over her husband and all the people in their lives. And yet that obsession, self-doubt, and misinterpretation of everything going on was so frustrating to read. Ugh! I don't know what to think of this.

Actual rating: 3.5
This book really surprised me. I did not expect the plot to go in this direction. But overall it wasn't super original. I know, my thoughts on this book are confusing (like my thoughts on every book tbh), but i liked it and at the same time sometimes thought that this story had no point.

What a beautiful and riveting book.

This book starts off almost like an homage to the classic “ex-partner” emotional baggage that many of us have experienced before in our lives. The feeling when you've just gone serious with someone special, but everyone around them seems to only look at you just to compare you with their previous long-term partner. The feeling of never being able to live up to expectations and that you're not welcome in your new partner's life. It ambles along slowly and I took about 5 days to get up to the halfway mark.

Today, when I finally got up to about halfway and a major event happens (Mrs. Danver's bitchiness at the fancy dress ball), I had an inkling that things were coming to a head. And, boy, was I right. The second half of the book simply flew by and I refused to do anything else but sit and finish it. If the first half of the book read like a slow and abstract stroll through a patch of woods that you can't decide was more sorrowful, beautiful, or sinister, the second half of the book is when you realise you're not in Kansas anymore.

This review can also be found on my blog.

I've been intending to read Rebecca for quite some time now and after some insistence by, well, pretty much everyone around me, I finally did it! I found it to be quite intriguing and thought it would make for a really interesting study had I read it in school. And I almost wish I had, since there was so much I'm sure I didn't pick up on. At its core, it's the story of a woman who falls in love with a widower, only to find herself in the shadow of the late Rebecca.

No, I'm asking you to marry me, you little fool.

It's clear from the start that our narrator can't hold a candle to Rebecca herself – she speaks explicitly of it, but also implies it by leaving herself nameless. She obsesses over every difference between them, both real and perceived, down to the fact that the narrator must call Mr. de Winter “Maxim” while Rebecca called him “Max.” As she settles into her new life as Mrs. de Winter, she must adjust to others' expectations of her as well. Instead of making her time her own, she adheres to the schedules and habits previously exhibited by Rebecca. Yet she still can tell that she is always being held to a standard she cannot meet.

Rebecca, always Rebecca. I should never be rid of Rebecca.

The dichotomy between the two women is the main focus of the book. Where Rebecca was boisterous and well-loved, the young bride is cautious and shy. Where Rebecca was tall, dark, and beautiful, our narrator is small, plain, and compliant. It's easy to hate the main character as much as she hates herself; as a reader, I wanted her to buck up and make an effort instead of tiptoeing around everything. It's difficult not to agree with her that Rebecca was better in every way.

I knew now the reason for my sense of foreboding. It was not the stranded ship that was sinister, nor the crying gulls, nor the thin black funnel pointing to the shore. It was the stillness of the black water, and the unknown things that lay beneath.

I can't get much deeper into the plot without spoiling the mystery, but there is truly mystery abound here. There are slow bits, but once things creep up on you, you'll find yourself flying through the pages to get to the end. And the end itself is quite shocking. Honestly, my only complaints really are those slower pieces (honestly, just cutting a bit out would have cured this) as well as the lack of spine in the main character. She's quite boring at times, but it also serves a purpose for her to be the way she is.

It doesn't make for sanity, does it, living with the devil.

Overall, I'm quite glad I ended up reading this. It was an interesting book and great for those who love gothic reads.

Loved this book. This was my first Daphne Du Maurier, and though it was a bit slow to start for me, I ended up loving this so much in end. The second half of the novel I read in one day because I couldn't put it down. Can't wait to read more.

This book was incredible. Dreamy and dark, but also shrewdly observant about gender constraints and the ways it can affect your relationships and your inner self. Definitely an exercise in misery; but I liked it?


The Afterword by Sally Beauman in the Kindle edition was also FANTASTIC and very helpful for providing context.

I buddy read this book with Merphy from YouTube. I have been following her for a while now and she has definitely become one of my favorite Booktubers to watch. This year she has been buddy reading classics with her followers. I've been wanting to read more classics so I finally decided to join her for this months buddy read of Rebecca.

Y'all know classics tend to be mostly misses for me with a couple hits here and there. At first I thought this was going to be another miss for me but luckily I ended up enjoying it in the end. While doing some research for another book I saw that this had been classified as a horror which made me even more excited to read it. Unfortunately that was a big disappointment because to me this is not horror at all. That is at no fault to the book or author I just wanted to let y'all know what I was expecting going into it.

So to begin with I was disappointed I wasn't getting the horror aspect that I was expecting and excited for and I was pretty bored for the first half of the novel. Like I said this was a buddy read so that's a big reason why I continued reading it but I was also intrigued enough to keep reading because of the mystery and suspense.

The last half was what really got me. I didn't want to put the book down. There were so many reveals that I never saw coming. The last half of the book was what made this a 4 star book for me.

Most of the characters aren't likable and honestly I was annoyed with the behavior of pretty much all of them especially the main characters. But even though I didn't like the characters I still feel like it made for a great story and I can honestly say that at this point this is on of my favorite classics that I have read granted I haven't read that many.

I definitely think this book is worth reading. If you can get past the first half of the book which is a little slow and boring the last half picks up and you wont want to put it down. There are so many twists you wont see coming.

My feelings in summary:

GIRL. Run awayyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!

What a phenomenal story! I adore all the themes and characters within. I loved the intrigue, suspense, passion, romance, gothic horror and mystery that is saturated within the text. The book is brimming with complex characters and a beautifully executed suspenseful thriller plot line. Characters such as Frank, Mrs Danvers, the unnamed heroine, Maxim and of course Rebecca are deeply layered and possess such conflicting humanity that makes the story so intoxicating and striking. I loved the nod to bronte literature within the pages of Rebecca and Du Mauriers writing style was so compelling and enjoyable that I hungrily devoured the story from the first page to the last. I loved the ambiguity of the ending and the ambiguity of maxim and his second wives future. I just adored this book and it is a brand new favourite classic of mine. I cannot wait to re-read this book alongside the Bronte classics and I also cannot wait to devour all of Du Mauriers other works very soon. A must read for fans of classic gothic horror and those in search of a suspenseful treat of a book!

I've had this on my TBR for a little while and had always been hesitant to pick it up. As others have said, I expected a stuffy, pompous romance and that's just not me. Wow I was wrong!! I LOVED IT!!

I wouldn't say it's my favourite book ever or the best book in the world but I loved it for what it was - a dark, gothic, suspenseful mystery. It certainly doesn't feel like it was written in 1938, du Maurier writes with excellent pacing and such atmosphere that it's so easy to sit and get lost in Manderley for hours on end. It's the perfect book to curl up with on a gloomy wintry day and feel like you're there.

I can see how it's become so beloved and is rightly seen as a modern classic, I would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes a gothic mystery or has never tried Daphne du Maurier before. It was the first of her novels I've read and I'll certainly be reading more.

The writing is lovely and vivid and creepy, but I did not enjoy the story. I don't understand the hype.

The main character is annoying, childish, and daydreams all the time. She doesn't have a name. She doesn't really show much growth outside of really leaning in to her puppy love idolization of Maxim. The book is written from her perspective, so I think that's why I couldn't love it like so many others do.

4.5 stars.

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.

Brilliant, loved it. Totally fits the descriptions I'd read that this was a gothic thriller in the vein of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights - except it's not half as melodramatic as either of those two. No gnashing of teeth or inexplicable maladies. Superb.

Five stars for crafting intense interest and presence with a character who never appears. Also, I think if I hadn't seen the movie this would have been a compelling page-turner.

But the narrator wears on one after a while, and I felt like this would have been better if shorter.

Actually, I would have been more interested if I'd read the background information on the author before reading the novel. More analysis and reflection on my part about her polar depiction of What a Woman Should Be would have lent a lot of texture to the read.

Rebecca: a classic which calls to me and demands to be read time and again. After suffering a series of painful headaches preventing me from reading, my friend surprised me with the audio version – I was a little hesitant listening to it, but am so glad I did. Anna Massey does an outstanding job narrating this classic – Her soft, clear voice makes for the perfect Mrs. de Winter, and she does a beautiful job of changing her voice's tone and accent to fit the other characters as well. I highly recommend to Rebecca lovers.

Obvious Jane Eyre rip off but I can never get enough of Jane so I enjoyed the undiluted gothic ness of this novel.

This was a gripping book about identity as the nameless new wife tries to make sense of her place at Manderley, believing that she could never replace the memory of Rebecca. I enjoyed reading this book and seeing the 1940 Hitchcock film version starring Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine and Judith Anderson.

While I enjoyed the story and the murky figure of Rebecca hovering ghost like around Manderley, I found the two main characters rather appalling. The narrator is a spineless snivelling child most of the time and Maxim is patronising and aloof in his treatment of her. Of course they redeem themselves in the end (thank goodness). The plot was addictive though, even though, lets be honest, somebody got away with murder. CSI would have solved that in 1 hour. 3.5 stars.

A great read. What impressed me most about Daphne du Maurier's story about a young woman marrying a wealthy widower with a secret, were how well she wrote descriptive passages. She illustrated the environment as well as she did the players. It was a suspenseful read, one I did not want to put down, even though I had some memory of the story, which I saw portrayed in Hitchcock's film of the same name.

I liked the book but there were details that prevent me from enjoying it more.
I liked the fact that we don't really know the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter's first name. It enhances the fact that she is so overshadowed by Rebecca.
At the same time, I was annoyed by it. I kept on rolling my eyes everytime the second Mrs. de Winter met a new character in Maxim's life. Her lack of confidence irrated me to no end. Her character never seemed to develop and she was constantly complaining about how she would never be the same as Rebecca but still, she didn't do anything to try to convince people that she was a REAL person.

The plot twist was pretty obvious and I saw it coming a mile away but I still enjoyed how the events unfold. Which brings me to my next “criticism”. I don't understand this woman's reason for marry Maxim. Yeah, he's rich but they have nothing in common and they practically ignore each other, except when Maxim bullies her. And still she claims to love him after he confesses having killed Rebecca. I really don't see it possible.

I guess I liked the concept of the book but I didn't enjoy the way it was executed.

Short review: I am a huge fan of the Hitchcock movie. But the book is considered one of the best of the 20th century on its own. It was very good. For the most part the movie and the book have the same story line. But there is a very different ending.

Full review: http://www.mrshields.com/rebecca-by-daphne-du-maurier/

This book was an absolute delight. I initially hadn't heard of the book and thought it would be a hard, long winded novel. On the contrary, I found it warming and descriptive. I absolutely got dragged away with this novel and found the ending very shocking, what a great twist. It is a book I would definitely recommend to others.

“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. Here we sat together, Maxim and I, hand-in-hand, and the past and the future mattered not at all. This was secure, this funny fragment of time he would never remember, never think about again.”