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srogan88's review against another edition
3.0
The thing I both love and hate about short story collections is the unevenness of the stories contained within them.
This is only the second book I've read from Daphne du Maurier, the first being her amazing full-length novel, "Rebecca," which is one of my favorite books ever. I was so excited to discover du Maurier had written short stories!
The collection started strong. "The Alibi" is the first entry and perhaps my favorite. It set the bar high with its creepy demeanor, complex characters, and twisted ending. "The Blue Lenses" came next and while it wasn't quite my thing, it was quite other-worldly and "off" enough that I appreciated it. "Ganymede" was more my style and the plot took turns I didn't expect, which some people find frustrating but I often find satisfying. I enjoyed "The Pool" up until the end, when it sort of lost me a bit. "The Archduchess" was both very interesting and yet torturous to read at the same time, a real feat. I enjoyed "The Menace" - exploring the adaptation of a big Hollywood star to new technology while his entourage manages him so poorly brought about a rewarding ending. I didn't feel much about "The Chamois," and the final story, "The Lucky Ones," felt like it was either rushed and underdeveloped or a bit of a throwaway.
So once again, how do you rate a collection of short stories? Do you rate each individual story and take an average? Rate the feeling you have as you look back on the book, realizing you'll likely be influenced most heavily by the last story in it? Rate it based on how it held up to expectations? I'm going with 3 stars - there are two stories I would definitely read again and a third I would consider. There are a couple I would never read again. And a couple that I felt in-between about.
This is only the second book I've read from Daphne du Maurier, the first being her amazing full-length novel, "Rebecca," which is one of my favorite books ever. I was so excited to discover du Maurier had written short stories!
The collection started strong. "The Alibi" is the first entry and perhaps my favorite. It set the bar high with its creepy demeanor, complex characters, and twisted ending. "The Blue Lenses" came next and while it wasn't quite my thing, it was quite other-worldly and "off" enough that I appreciated it. "Ganymede" was more my style and the plot took turns I didn't expect, which some people find frustrating but I often find satisfying. I enjoyed "The Pool" up until the end, when it sort of lost me a bit. "The Archduchess" was both very interesting and yet torturous to read at the same time, a real feat. I enjoyed "The Menace" - exploring the adaptation of a big Hollywood star to new technology while his entourage manages him so poorly brought about a rewarding ending. I didn't feel much about "The Chamois," and the final story, "The Lucky Ones," felt like it was either rushed and underdeveloped or a bit of a throwaway.
So once again, how do you rate a collection of short stories? Do you rate each individual story and take an average? Rate the feeling you have as you look back on the book, realizing you'll likely be influenced most heavily by the last story in it? Rate it based on how it held up to expectations? I'm going with 3 stars - there are two stories I would definitely read again and a third I would consider. There are a couple I would never read again. And a couple that I felt in-between about.
tinywriter_'s review against another edition
4.0
This is a really bizarre collection of short stories, exploring and blurring the lines between health and sickness, sanity and madness. 'The Alibi' and 'The Pool' each deserve five stars. The Pool in particular, is phenomenally beautiful if nothing else. Two out of eight of the stories collected here though - The Archduchess and The Menace - I couldn't find anything particularly good about. Perhaps I'm missing something in them, but for me they somwehat ruined what was otherwise a really gorgeously written collection.
linda_edwards's review against another edition
4.0
This book contains eight short stories which I can only describe as being strange, weird, quirky, dark but also great. My favourites ones were Alibi, The Blue Lenses and The Menace.
daniela_m11's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
danisg's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
crankylibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Some spine tinglingly creepy stories in this one!
maccymacd's review against another edition
4.0
Du Maurier is just an absolute master of the short story. Each story transported me to a different world and I lingered there only long enough to soak up the magic of the writing, before I was plunged headfirst into yet another tale.
kazgriki's review against another edition
4.0
This collection of quirky, timeless stories showcases Daphne du Maurier's marvellous imagination and exceptional story-telling ability. I particularly liked the surreal tale 'The Blue Lenses'.
elliejean28's review against another edition
5.0
I think perhaps my favourite collection of short stories I’ve ever read. The range is astonishing, the stories are complicated, haunting and relevant several decades later. Beautiful.
thesubmariner's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Another solid collection from Daphne du Maurier. The standout story from me was The Alibi. Sadly, I think I’ve now read all the Daphne du Maurier short fiction collections and that makes me kind of sad, but I’ve yet to read all of her novels which I’m looking forward to.
The Alibi - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4-5*
Mr. Fenton is trying to escape his dull life with his wife. He gets ideas of the delusion of grandeur of him being a puppet master with the ability to have other people fate in his hands. After going alone for a walk one Sunday he goes to a house where he sees a woman (Madame Kaufman) with her son and wishes to strangle them both. He rents a room from Madame Kaufman and pretends to be a painter, but doesn’t kill them as he thought he would. Madame Kaufman is very kind and Fenton starts to live a double life under a fake name Mr. Sims spending a few hours a day using the apartment as a studio. He lives like this for six months and paints her infant boy. For six months everything he paints he throws in the Thames river, but one night a copper sees him and finds drawings of a small boy. Cops show up at his address and his wife Edna is in shock when he comes clean. Previously that night Fenton told Madame Kaufman that soon he will be done with his painting which she took very ill. The ending is very dark and kind of bizarre.
The Blue Lenses - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4-5*
Mrs. Marda West goes to eye surgery where she is put with blue lenses that post surgery makes her see zoomorphic heads on the hospital staff. I loved the ending.
Ganymede - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
A classical scholar is on holiday in October in Venice and loves to go to a restaurant called Mario located in St. Mark's Square. In that restaurant works a lad who is training to be a waiter and has striking resemblances to Ganymede from Greek mythology. Another dark ending and the entire story is extra creepy because the boy is fifteen.
The Pool - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
Deborah is staying at her grandparents’ house with her brother Roger when one day after playing cricket she stumbles upon a pool in the forest. This setup had a lot of promise, but it went in a different direction that I thought it was going to go. I still liked what happened, but I didn’t love it.
The Archduchess - short fiction by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 3-4*
Ronda was the last principality in Europe. That small southern European country was ruled by the Archduke whose family was reigning for 700 years. Now Ronda is a republic and is ruled by Popular front or P.F. Ltd. Ronda is the smallest country with one mountain, one river and one city serving as a capital. The language is a mix of French and Greek. They have religion and their people can't marry outside Ronda. Also, intermarriage is a thing here, like cousin with cousin marriage. However, for all the natural beauty the country’s price possession is the springs located in the hill behind the capital. Those springs were the greatest asset of the reigning family throughout the centuries because its properties give you perpetual youth, but only the Archduke knows its formula. Two of the leading opposition are Markoi who was born lame with a twisted foot and has become the editor of news spreading anti-archduke propaganda (Joseph Goebbels style). The other one was Grandos born to greed and he exploited rare substances from their special fish and flowers selling them to outsiders making him the richest man in Ronda. Their plan involves the Archduchess Paula who is talented in every form of art and is beloved by all. I wanted to love this story, but it dragged so much after the first two chapters.
The Menace - short fiction by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
Barry Jeans aka The Menace is a heart-throb, movie star, big guy with the huge shoulders and no hips. Cold emotionally and at times racist. He barely says a word and everybody loves. He has his wife May and his Boys who do all the taking to the media and producers. After being number one at the box office for decades and world famous he may be out of a job because "feelies" are the new thing in Hollywood. Now they're not just sending pictures in color, but with feeling from the actors. Studio measures his power of feeling into the "barker" and his result is Force G with the best result being Force A. They try dubbing and mixing other waves or Force A, but nothing is working. Now he must get a Force A result or his career is over. Talking of bizarre. I’m not sure that the whole Force A and “feelies” things were necessary, but I respect the extra attention to detail and bringing some new to the table.
The Chamois - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4-5*
An interesting story about a hunter named Stephens who is obsessed about hunting the rare chamois. He and his wife go on a trip to Greece high on the mountain searching for chamois in the snowy weather with some help from the Zus.
The Lordly Ones - short story by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
Ben is mute boy and he doesn’t have the best parents out there. When he opens his mouth and tries to talk, a weird sound comes out that makes him nervous. His mother then locks him in a cupboard under the stairs (Harry Potter style). One day his parents are taking him to the "moors" and Daphne du Maurier is up to her old tricks. Okay, I saw it coming this time which made the reading more enjoyable.
The Alibi - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4-5*
Mr. Fenton is trying to escape his dull life with his wife. He gets ideas of the delusion of grandeur of him being a puppet master with the ability to have other people fate in his hands. After going alone for a walk one Sunday he goes to a house where he sees a woman (Madame Kaufman) with her son and wishes to strangle them both. He rents a room from Madame Kaufman and pretends to be a painter, but doesn’t kill them as he thought he would. Madame Kaufman is very kind and Fenton starts to live a double life under a fake name Mr. Sims spending a few hours a day using the apartment as a studio. He lives like this for six months and paints her infant boy. For six months everything he paints he throws in the Thames river, but one night a copper sees him and finds drawings of a small boy. Cops show up at his address and his wife Edna is in shock when he comes clean. Previously that night Fenton told Madame Kaufman that soon he will be done with his painting which she took very ill. The ending is very dark and kind of bizarre.
The Blue Lenses - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4-5*
Mrs. Marda West goes to eye surgery where she is put with blue lenses that post surgery makes her see zoomorphic heads on the hospital staff. I loved the ending.
Ganymede - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
A classical scholar is on holiday in October in Venice and loves to go to a restaurant called Mario located in St. Mark's Square. In that restaurant works a lad who is training to be a waiter and has striking resemblances to Ganymede from Greek mythology. Another dark ending and the entire story is extra creepy because the boy is fifteen.
The Pool - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
Deborah is staying at her grandparents’ house with her brother Roger when one day after playing cricket she stumbles upon a pool in the forest. This setup had a lot of promise, but it went in a different direction that I thought it was going to go. I still liked what happened, but I didn’t love it.
The Archduchess - short fiction by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 3-4*
Ronda was the last principality in Europe. That small southern European country was ruled by the Archduke whose family was reigning for 700 years. Now Ronda is a republic and is ruled by Popular front or P.F. Ltd. Ronda is the smallest country with one mountain, one river and one city serving as a capital. The language is a mix of French and Greek. They have religion and their people can't marry outside Ronda. Also, intermarriage is a thing here, like cousin with cousin marriage. However, for all the natural beauty the country’s price possession is the springs located in the hill behind the capital. Those springs were the greatest asset of the reigning family throughout the centuries because its properties give you perpetual youth, but only the Archduke knows its formula. Two of the leading opposition are Markoi who was born lame with a twisted foot and has become the editor of news spreading anti-archduke propaganda (Joseph Goebbels style). The other one was Grandos born to greed and he exploited rare substances from their special fish and flowers selling them to outsiders making him the richest man in Ronda. Their plan involves the Archduchess Paula who is talented in every form of art and is beloved by all. I wanted to love this story, but it dragged so much after the first two chapters.
The Menace - short fiction by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
Barry Jeans aka The Menace is a heart-throb, movie star, big guy with the huge shoulders and no hips. Cold emotionally and at times racist. He barely says a word and everybody loves. He has his wife May and his Boys who do all the taking to the media and producers. After being number one at the box office for decades and world famous he may be out of a job because "feelies" are the new thing in Hollywood. Now they're not just sending pictures in color, but with feeling from the actors. Studio measures his power of feeling into the "barker" and his result is Force G with the best result being Force A. They try dubbing and mixing other waves or Force A, but nothing is working. Now he must get a Force A result or his career is over. Talking of bizarre. I’m not sure that the whole Force A and “feelies” things were necessary, but I respect the extra attention to detail and bringing some new to the table.
The Chamois - novelette by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4-5*
An interesting story about a hunter named Stephens who is obsessed about hunting the rare chamois. He and his wife go on a trip to Greece high on the mountain searching for chamois in the snowy weather with some help from the Zus.
The Lordly Ones - short story by Daphne du Maurier (1959) 4*
Ben is mute boy and he doesn’t have the best parents out there. When he opens his mouth and tries to talk, a weird sound comes out that makes him nervous. His mother then locks him in a cupboard under the stairs (Harry Potter style). One day his parents are taking him to the "moors" and Daphne du Maurier is up to her old tricks. Okay, I saw it coming this time which made the reading more enjoyable.