Book Review: Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

 Hello,

I hope this post finds you well and having a slow, wintery start to the new year. 

This review is my first for a while, mainly because I started a, just for fun, podcast and that took up every part of my creative brain since October. I loved creating it, but now that that has finished, I feel more able to turn my attention to writing and photographing, so I'm back reviewing. 

I have just read Rebecca for (I'm sure?) the third time. I read it once I think from a library copy, in, 2022. I then brought my own copy after loving it (I rarely buy books new, but I did with this one, as an after work treat whilst in Liverpool in the same year). I then picked up this copy again in November, as I felt the lead up to Christmas, with its dark and cosy nights would be the perfect time to snuggle up with gothic fiction. 

So 'Rebecca'... How can I do it justice in this post? It has been reviewed probably hundreds of times, and turned into multiple film adaptations. I think I read somewhere that it hasn't been out of print since it's first publication in 1938 and it is now firmly considered a classic. 

I will summarise it similarly to many hobbiest writers, no doubt, but here goes:

To me 'Rebecca' is the ultimate ghost story. When a young naive helper (or perhaps better described in a modern role, as an au pair) is listless and bored of her societal role, a trip to Monte Carlo changes her entire path. She meets there, illusive and opaque Maxim De Winter, enshrined in whispers following his wife's untimely death only ten months prior. Much to the protagonist's surprise, she catches Mr De Winter's interest and their love story seems whirlwindish and fast. They marry and arrive at his home, titled Manderley. An elaborate country house, complete with rolling land, gardens and shrubbery, all leading to the sea. Though Manderley, however beautiful, holds secrets and as events unfold, we learn of the hold Maxim's first wife has, even after her death. 

My description, as you can tell, does not do this book justice, but I thought I would give it a shot. It has wonderful suspense, intrigue and has just the right amount of chill, to make it gripping. The whole story is told from the viewpoint of an unnamed protagonist who, throughout the whole book is finding herself and her new position, that feels ever-changing. We see the world, and events, as she sees them and this is what makes the book so alive, so interesting. 

I can honestly say Rebecca is my all time favourite novel, after many years as my second favourite. The more I read it, the better it gets. 

If you have read it too, please let me know your thoughts. If you are about to read it, I envy you. I could read it over and over. 

To mirror the book and to mirror the return to blog posts, she (really does) return. 

Happy reading 💫 📚