rEBECCA bY DAPHNE DU MAURIER
The novel starts off with a nameless narrator that is dreaming about a mansion named Manderley. The story goes on to tell how the narrator and her husband are traveling hotel to hotel in Europe. The narrator then begins to tell us a story how her and her husband Maxim met. Maxim and the heroine meet in Monte Carlo when the narrator is traveling as a companion to a friend. Her and Maxim fall in love and marry. Maxim and the heroine then move to the mansion named Manderley. Everything about the Manderley is Rebecca, Maxim’s wife that died the year before in a drowning accident. The house staff seemed guarded towards the new Mrs. Maxim de Winter. Especially the housekeeper named Mrs. Danvers. Mrs. Danvers even goes as far as telling the heroine to wear a certain costume to a ball at Manderley. The same costume Rebecca had worn the year before. The heroine fells over whelmed by the comparison to Rebecca. The heroine feels like to can never live up to the memories of Rebecca. She also feels like Maxim is not in love with her and is still mourning the death of his wife. At the climax of the novel Maxim reveals that he killed Rebecca and that he never loved her. He claims that he killed her because she was pregnant from another man and wanted to Manderley left to her child. In the end Maxim is not arrested for the murder of Rebecca because her death is considered a suicide. Maxim and the heroine finally escape the memories of Rebecca when the Manderley is destroyed in a fire.
REVIEWS
5 out of 5 stars A murder mystery like no other. April 17, 2001
By Joanna Daneman HALL OFFAMETOP 10 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE
A young, naive woman who is the paid companion of an obnoxious rich woman is taken along to Monte Carlo. While she smarts under the rudeness and gauche behavior of her employer, she meets the dark, handsome widower Max de Winter. What follows is a love story and a ghost story of a woman haunted by the powerful presence of the former mistress of Manderley. We never learn the name of the heroine as she marries Max, moves into the rigid but elegant life at Manderley and tangles with Mrs. Danvers, Manderley's fearsome housekeeper. What unfolds is not only a mystery but a story of obsessions and evil. The end is a shock. Du Maurier created an unforgettable atmosphere of decaying beauty, frightening spirits and horror mixed with love and death. If you haven't read this, I am envious. You get to experience it for the first time.
5 out of 5 stars Unforgettable, July 26, 2012
By Laura Lanik "BookSnob" (St. Paul, MN USA)
This review is from: Rebecca (Paperback) The new Mrs. Max De Winter (who shall remain nameless) can't wait to begin her life as a young bride and newcomer to the renowned Manderley mansion on the Cornish coast. When she arrives she is put off by the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers, who is still devoted to Max's deceased first wife, Rebecca. If you visit the mansion of Manderley you will not find Rebecca there. You will find her spirit as she roams the hall and haunts the walls. The second Mrs. De Winter walks in Rebecca's shadow as she gets to know her husband and her surroundings. Rebecca and Mrs. De Winter are opposites, one shy and quiet, the other talkative and
vivacious. Of course, the current wife feels she pales in comparison to the first. Evil is lurking in unexpected places as the house tries to keep its secrets and Mrs. De Winter is being pushed to her limit.Reading Rebecca for the first time is a unique and satisfying experience. The reader reaches a point in the book of shocked contentment and the book becomes an unstoppable page turner where you just aren't sure what will happen next. De Maurier does an excellent job of setting up the mystery, the suspense and the romance and when combined with a house that is a formidable character and with the nervousness of the nameless narrator, you have a winning combination. Rebecca
will make the reader want to stay up all night reading under a blanket, holding a flashlight.
Rebecca is a timeless Gothic masterpiece. From the first famous sentence, "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.", to its last, Rebecca is unforgettable. A book to read again and again.
Reviews found on Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Daphne-Du-Maurier/product-reviews/0380778556/ref=cm_cr_pr_btm_link_3?ie=UTF8&pageNumber=3&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending
By Joanna Daneman HALL OFFAMETOP 10 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE
A young, naive woman who is the paid companion of an obnoxious rich woman is taken along to Monte Carlo. While she smarts under the rudeness and gauche behavior of her employer, she meets the dark, handsome widower Max de Winter. What follows is a love story and a ghost story of a woman haunted by the powerful presence of the former mistress of Manderley. We never learn the name of the heroine as she marries Max, moves into the rigid but elegant life at Manderley and tangles with Mrs. Danvers, Manderley's fearsome housekeeper. What unfolds is not only a mystery but a story of obsessions and evil. The end is a shock. Du Maurier created an unforgettable atmosphere of decaying beauty, frightening spirits and horror mixed with love and death. If you haven't read this, I am envious. You get to experience it for the first time.
5 out of 5 stars Unforgettable, July 26, 2012
By Laura Lanik "BookSnob" (St. Paul, MN USA)
This review is from: Rebecca (Paperback) The new Mrs. Max De Winter (who shall remain nameless) can't wait to begin her life as a young bride and newcomer to the renowned Manderley mansion on the Cornish coast. When she arrives she is put off by the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers, who is still devoted to Max's deceased first wife, Rebecca. If you visit the mansion of Manderley you will not find Rebecca there. You will find her spirit as she roams the hall and haunts the walls. The second Mrs. De Winter walks in Rebecca's shadow as she gets to know her husband and her surroundings. Rebecca and Mrs. De Winter are opposites, one shy and quiet, the other talkative and
vivacious. Of course, the current wife feels she pales in comparison to the first. Evil is lurking in unexpected places as the house tries to keep its secrets and Mrs. De Winter is being pushed to her limit.Reading Rebecca for the first time is a unique and satisfying experience. The reader reaches a point in the book of shocked contentment and the book becomes an unstoppable page turner where you just aren't sure what will happen next. De Maurier does an excellent job of setting up the mystery, the suspense and the romance and when combined with a house that is a formidable character and with the nervousness of the nameless narrator, you have a winning combination. Rebecca
will make the reader want to stay up all night reading under a blanket, holding a flashlight.
Rebecca is a timeless Gothic masterpiece. From the first famous sentence, "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.", to its last, Rebecca is unforgettable. A book to read again and again.
Reviews found on Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Daphne-Du-Maurier/product-reviews/0380778556/ref=cm_cr_pr_btm_link_3?ie=UTF8&pageNumber=3&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending