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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
This wasn't a book I would have normally picked up and it took me way too long to realize it was published in the 1930s. I always struggle when I don't relate/or like the main narrator - and she gets a little unhinged at the end. The sister-in-law was by far my favorite character and it took a hot min to get to where it was going. Overall, glad I read this one and wish I could give it a 3.5!
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Wow I can see why this is a classic. One of those books you want to start back over from the top once you finish just to read with the knowledge you acquire. It’s fascinating, it’s thrilling, it takes you places you don’t expect. Slow for the first 3/4 but really picks up those last 100 pages.
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Rebecca. Rebecca. the name, the title has been haunting me*. The niggling guilt that I should pick a novel up that could possibly enrich my mind or my thoughts instead of feeding into my overindulgence for fantasies.
In all honesty it has been on my to-read list for awhile. First off though I picked up the Large Print version at the Library. Since I do not wear glasses nor do I feel that my eyesight is failing entirely, I couldn't read the large print just on principle. It feels too much like some hard of hearing doddering grandmother speaking** or maybe that I AM a hard of hearing doddering spinster.+ urgh.
It's a simple premise actually. The story of the second wife.Within descriptions of the banal a creeping fear is concealed. An uncomfortable quiet permeates the novel and is echos in a the thought and utterance of Rebecca. Her presence taints every encounter. It shades the cove, the house even the sea.
Alfred Hitchcock actually based Birds off of another one of her novels. I'm pretty sure everybody acknowledges Alfred as a King of Creepy Cinema and he got his idea from Daphne du Maurier. If you looking for book to read in front of relatives unashamedly this summer then pick this one up. Be prepared to jump like someone pored ice water down your back when a spoon clatters. I did.++
_______________________________________________
*which is particularly fitting considering the novel.
**IT'S KIND OF THE SAME FEELING AS WRITING ENTIRELY IN CAPITALS.....see? :)
+but not with cats. Unless they are tigers. Because even if I was doddering and reading large print novels I would still have some element of awesome.
++okay actually it was when my half-eaten apple fell over. But I didn't think that was a very recognizable sound so I took slight artistic license. The startled ice water down the back feeling is entirely true.
http://eslifeandtimes.blogspot.com/2011/06/rebecca-by-daphne-du-maurier.html
In all honesty it has been on my to-read list for awhile. First off though I picked up the Large Print version at the Library. Since I do not wear glasses nor do I feel that my eyesight is failing entirely, I couldn't read the large print just on principle. It feels too much like some hard of hearing doddering grandmother speaking** or maybe that I AM a hard of hearing doddering spinster.+ urgh.
It's a simple premise actually. The story of the second wife.Within descriptions of the banal a creeping fear is concealed. An uncomfortable quiet permeates the novel and is echos in a the thought and utterance of Rebecca. Her presence taints every encounter. It shades the cove, the house even the sea.
Alfred Hitchcock actually based Birds off of another one of her novels. I'm pretty sure everybody acknowledges Alfred as a King of Creepy Cinema and he got his idea from Daphne du Maurier. If you looking for book to read in front of relatives unashamedly this summer then pick this one up. Be prepared to jump like someone pored ice water down your back when a spoon clatters. I did.++
_______________________________________________
*which is particularly fitting considering the novel.
**IT'S KIND OF THE SAME FEELING AS WRITING ENTIRELY IN CAPITALS.....see? :)
+but not with cats. Unless they are tigers. Because even if I was doddering and reading large print novels I would still have some element of awesome.
++okay actually it was when my half-eaten apple fell over. But I didn't think that was a very recognizable sound so I took slight artistic license. The startled ice water down the back feeling is entirely true.
http://eslifeandtimes.blogspot.com/2011/06/rebecca-by-daphne-du-maurier.html
mysterious
reflective
Diverse cast of characters:
No
So good. Interesting characters, vividly descriptive writing, and so much suspense. I love a gothic but even if I didn’t this would get 5 stars. Definitely recommend and will be keeping an eye out for a copy to own.
A few things haven’t aged well but luckily they’re a small part of the narrative.
A few things haven’t aged well but luckily they’re a small part of the narrative.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Toxic relationship
Minor: Infidelity, Racism, Cultural appropriation
beginning was so ungodly slow that I almost dnfed 5 different times. but i'm glad i stuck it out as the latter half really picked up and read like crack. can definitely see why this is a well-deserved fave. the writing is gorgeous. characterization is crazily well-drawn. it has the plot of a commercial thriller while also raising complex, open ended questions about relationships.
and i loved LOVED Sally Beauman's afterword, which analyzes how duMaurier's real life is reflected in the book—and how the two women each represent different alter egoes duMaurier battled with
and i loved LOVED Sally Beauman's afterword, which analyzes how duMaurier's real life is reflected in the book—and how the two women each represent different alter egoes duMaurier battled with
It’s a classic for a reason - it’s fab!
A romance, mystery, thriller, gothic novel, with complex, flawed and utterly dislike-able characters, all set in the classic glamour of an English country estate that burns to the ground… what’s not to enjoy?!
A romance, mystery, thriller, gothic novel, with complex, flawed and utterly dislike-able characters, all set in the classic glamour of an English country estate that burns to the ground… what’s not to enjoy?!