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A review by imogenlove
Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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? No
3.75
'I wonder,' he said, 'when it was that the world first went amiss, and men forgot how to live and to love and to be happy. For once, my Dona, there was a lake like this one in the life of every man.'
When reading the first third of this book, I was a bit worried that du Maurier had written a book that didn't feel like it was for me. First, I'm not a huge fan of romance in this style, so the narrative of Dona and the Frenchman falling in love didn't grip me. Plus, I'm used to du Maurier's disliking of stereotypically 'feminine' traits in her novels, and her reverance of masculinity, but, at times, this novel felt that it was leaning too far into this for comfort. Dona felt like du Maurier's ultimate fantasy, to an extent that almost irked me at first - both the cabin boy and the mistress, desirable and untouchable, daring but with 'feminine instincts'.
But I soon realised that this novel is much richer than this. Not only is it expertly plotted, but there is deft and scathing commentary against male dominance throughout the novel. Rockingham is the ultimate example of this - the powerlessness of Dona, both detested and desired by him, was brilliantly written. The Frenchman begins to work as a romantic lead, not only because of the surface level attraction that he's mysterious and forbidden, but because him and Dona both exert equal influence over each other. Once this was estabilished, and the romantic idyll of Dona and the Frenchman's escape was disturbed, I found the novel hard to put down. It felt exciting and bold, and most of all, interesting and richer than it appeared at first glance!
Another point that I love about du Maurier is how brillliantly she characterises her servant characters. I love many details about Rebecca, but when I think of Manderley, I think more about the looming presence of Danvers and the moon-face of Clarice than I do about Mr and Mrs de Winter. Likewise, William is Navron for me. His peculiarity, his gentle mocking and his earnestness, his "button mouth", his unwavering loyalty. He was a character that only du Maurier could have written, and I loved him for it.
When reading the first third of this book, I was a bit worried that du Maurier had written a book that didn't feel like it was for me. First, I'm not a huge fan of romance in this style, so the narrative of Dona and the Frenchman falling in love didn't grip me. Plus, I'm used to du Maurier's disliking of stereotypically 'feminine' traits in her novels, and her reverance of masculinity, but, at times, this novel felt that it was leaning too far into this for comfort. Dona felt like du Maurier's ultimate fantasy, to an extent that almost irked me at first - both the cabin boy and the mistress, desirable and untouchable, daring but with 'feminine instincts'.
But I soon realised that this novel is much richer than this. Not only is it expertly plotted, but there is deft and scathing commentary against male dominance throughout the novel. Rockingham is the ultimate example of this - the powerlessness of Dona, both detested and desired by him, was brilliantly written. The Frenchman begins to work as a romantic lead, not only because of the surface level attraction that he's mysterious and forbidden, but because him and Dona both exert equal influence over each other. Once this was estabilished, and the romantic idyll of Dona and the Frenchman's escape was disturbed, I found the novel hard to put down. It felt exciting and bold, and most of all, interesting and richer than it appeared at first glance!
Another point that I love about du Maurier is how brillliantly she characterises her servant characters. I love many details about Rebecca, but when I think of Manderley, I think more about the looming presence of Danvers and the moon-face of Clarice than I do about Mr and Mrs de Winter. Likewise, William is Navron for me. His peculiarity, his gentle mocking and his earnestness, his "button mouth", his unwavering loyalty. He was a character that only du Maurier could have written, and I loved him for it.