Journal Entry 1 by JennyC1230 from Woodstock, Georgia USA on Thursday, November 27, 2008

Review on Amazon.com:

This riveting tale of fear, suspicion, and love opens as the unnamed narrator reminisces about her former home, the grand English estate, Manderley. She had been young and shy, a lady's companion, when she met the wealthy recent widow, Maxim de Winter, fell in love with him, and married him in a matter of weeks. They returned to his home, where she was immediately overwhelmed with the responsibilities of running the house and dealing with her forbidding housekeeper as well as the memory of Maxim's first wife, Rebecca. She had been beautiful, sophisticated, and supremely confident, and the narrator felt lost and helpless in comparison. Her new husband was strangely distant to her, until a horrible secret was revealed that would change their lives and the very existence of Manderley.

Daphne Du Maurier has crafted a wonderfully spooky story with remarkably little action, but a great deal of atmosphere and a steadily mounting feeling of impending doom. The ravishing Rebecca is never seen, and yet she is the main character, dominating the story with her passions and cruelty. Another main "character" is the great house itself, which is described in such fascinating detail that I felt as if I had walked its long hallways, descended its grand stairs, and had tea in the library. The narrator is purposely kept anonymous to contrast her with the larger-than-life Rebecca, and Maxim is a seriously flawed but lovable man.


I love this book! I have probably read it 5 times in my life (for me that is saying something because I generally don't re-read books unless they are absolutely wonderful). Just the sheer creepiness of this book, it very carefully draws you in until you suddenly feel claustrophobic.  

Journal Entry 2 by JennyC1230 from Woodstock, Georgia USA on Thursday, June 11, 2009

I bought this book to use as a replacement for my Rebecca - Bookray, luckily my Bookray made it to the end so now this book will be in my Permanent Collection.