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Well. That was quite an adventure.
This is one dark and spooky classic. I've never heard people talk conspicuously about it, but I've heard about it in whispers.
Rebecca is so present in this book that I literally thought that she was alive and that Maxim was keeping her in hiding (yes, I thought I was reading JANE EYRE). I wasn't expecting the spooky, chilling atmosphere of Manderley, but I loved it. I wanted more! ...more
This is one dark and spooky classic. I've never heard people talk conspicuously about it, but I've heard about it in whispers.
Rebecca is so present in this book that I literally thought that she was alive and that Maxim was keeping her in hiding (yes, I thought I was reading JANE EYRE). I wasn't expecting the spooky, chilling atmosphere of Manderley, but I loved it. I wanted more! ...more
WTF kind of ending is that??
Other than the abrupt ending, this book was excellent. Some of the scenes have definitely stuck (that costume ball entrance) with me and I find myself comparing other books to this one. It had a great slow burn of suspense. I kept thinking it was the same time period as the Bronte sisters though, so things like cars and phones confused me at first.
Other than the abrupt ending, this book was excellent. Some of the scenes have definitely stuck (that costume ball entrance) with me and I find myself comparing other books to this one. It had a great slow burn of suspense. I kept thinking it was the same time period as the Bronte sisters though, so things like cars and phones confused me at first.
I first read "Rebecca" in the fall of 1998. It was my first week on campus and one of my first stops was the old Merrill Library. The building was from just after the turn of the century (the previous century) and had effectively been encased in an architectural box in the 1960's. The floors bowed in places. I remember making my way to each floor searching for the fiction. I found it in a dark corner (unsurprising considering the library was made up of dark corners) on the 3rd or 4th floor. I do
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Great writing and characterization. And I think that du Maurier masterfully evokes the gothic mood and sustains tension throughout. However, I grew impatient with the slow pace of the story, and I couldn't really like the narrator: she is much too passive and without agency for my taste.
But the more research I did about the book afterwards, the more my own understanding was enhanced. I like and admire it much more now that I'm done than I actually enjoyed the experience of reading it. Which is ...more
But the more research I did about the book afterwards, the more my own understanding was enhanced. I like and admire it much more now that I'm done than I actually enjoyed the experience of reading it. Which is ...more
I read this when I was a high school freshman, and felt very sophisticated doing so. But I also probably had trouble with the writing style because I retained very little. Upon re-reading, I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I can see how it was tailor-made for a Hitchcock movie. Interesting and a little creepy and I didn’t know how it was going to end. And you finish the book wondering if any of the characters where morally good. No, right?
Really lovely writing with an overall gothic creepy vibe that is right in my wheelhouse. The ending was really good. Hints of Jane Eyre, whispers of Wuthering Heights so if you’re into that then it’s definitely a worthy addition to that list. I loved the descriptions of Manderley and the grounds.
Pacing is my main gripe with this. It’s needlessly long in a few parts. Instead of building tension, it made me lose interest. I didn’t quite go far enough with the creepy darkness.
A definite romantic ...more
Pacing is my main gripe with this. It’s needlessly long in a few parts. Instead of building tension, it made me lose interest. I didn’t quite go far enough with the creepy darkness.
A definite romantic ...more
I read this book for Halloween, and it met all expectations: creepily elegant, tragic love story, a chilling antagonist all set against the Gothic backdrop of Manderley. Mrs. de Winter's imagined scenes, her watered-down personality, and her constant comparisons to Rebecca made me love and hate her. The novel is separated into distinct parts, and I distinctly felt the build-up to the ultimate climax and denouement.
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A. I was pleasantly surprised by how excellent this book was! It starts as a tale of a dull woman suddenly entering into a complicated marriage and gradually becomes more and more intriguing. Incredible for a female author in 1938!
Oct 26, 2018
Erica
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
authors-british,
authors-women
Oct 27, 2018
AJ
marked it as to-read
