Reviews

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

amarettto's review against another edition

5.0

I think I just found my favorite book of all time. I almost read it slower than other books because I couldn’t bear for it to end. It also had me realize that this particular genre of gothic romance isn’t super mainstream today which is maybe why it took me a while to locate it, but how amazing the narratives and vividness of emotion and persona are! The idea that something can simultaneously be at both extremes of beautiful and terrible hits the reader time and time again and I absolutely loved that.
Gripping till the very last paragraph.

martinatan's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This story was somehow so straightforward in its thriller like narrative and yet so heavy on its symbolism and psychoanalytical intrigue. The afterword really helped me tie in historical context and made me appreciate du Maurier for her ingenuity in genre. I really felt for her reading about how her personal demons living as a wife, mother, and queer woman bled into the work. I am so glad I read this because the Hitchcock adaptation by contrast feels so sanitized and removed from the original authorship and catalyst for the work!

best_lemon's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

hollyway's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Deliciously dramatic and works so well as a work of suspense, but the gothic elements are so much more than set dressing. The characters and dynamics in this book are incredibly complex, and though the core mystery was solved in the end, I was left with more questions than answers about the psyches of our central characters (in a good way). Good stuff!!

pcarillo's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

stevie1212's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

mitskacir's review against another edition

4.0

I had heard this book was quite a bit like Jane Eyre, and that is true - but in such a way that I think the two create a great dialogue, rather than in a way that is copying or repetitive. Rebecca reads like a commentary on the potentially problematic aspects of Jane Eyre, or perhaps an alternate reality. It does this through mirroring - not quite the same circumstances, but similar enough for the reader to draw a distinct connection: for example, the chronology of the narrative is mirrored (Jane Eyre ends in marriage, Rebecca begins with marriage), and Rebecca reflects on the unhappiness and power differential of a young woman marrying an older, previously married man; and the first wife of the male love interest is punished in both books for living outside the conventional gender norms of their day (and Rebecca makes a pointed commentary on this, as apposed to Jane Eyre, where the punishment is accepted as tragic but not wrong). The largest point of difference was in the protagonists themselves: while Jane Eyre has the strength and the space to understand herself separate from her relationship with Mr. Rochester, and we are given an ample page count of her life before even meeting him, the unnamed narrator of Rebecca encounters and marries Mr. de Winter almost immediately and subsequently shapes her whole identity around him. I don't think I would have loved this book without first having read Jane Eyre, because I think the dialogue between the two is really what makes Rebecca excellent (although you certainly can enjoy Rebecca alone).

elizabeth_09's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

justinkhchen's review against another edition

4.0

4.5 stars

Hauntingly atmospheric, Rebecca fully captures the lingering presence of the deceased, and the suffocating dread experienced by the living.

For a novel written in the 1930s, it remains surprisingly genre-bending and unpredictable, mixing Gothic mystery with a dose of police procedural drama. As someone who had studied architecture in the past, I greatly appreciate the extensive, vivid passages on Manderley, which are paramount in setting up mood, as well as manifesting the invisible threat—Rebecca is as much about Manderley the place, as the actual going-ons within it.

Told rather uniquely as a lengthy flashback with an intentionally ambiguous protagonist, Rebecca comes across like a drug-induced dream in slow motion—which could be a turn-off for plot-craving readers—as proven by my reading buddy, who was bored to tears and DNF'd 40 pages in; but I was happily savoring the lyrical writing, and the slow decent into madness triggered by seemingly inoffensive object: handkerchief has never being so menacing. I can nitpick on a couple character developlemt choices (the protagonist being so timid and naive for so long), but as a whole I really enjoyed its unrelenting tone and the morally ambiguous characters.

Additionally, I am now even more impressed by Hitchcock's 19040 film adaptation, which in my opinion perfectly captured the claustrophobic beauty of Daphne du Maurier's text, as well as improved upon a couple narrative splinters.

Overall, Rebecca is a deserved classic that remains completely enjoyable outside of academic analysis (at least for me). I probably wouldn't recommend go into this thinking it's a romance novel, but more of a psychological suspense with romance element—and one with potent lingering power.

lilays43's review against another edition

tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0