Making my way through my library

Randy, one of my online buddies, recommended I read  this classic of Gothic Romance written by Dame Daphne Du Maurier.  Since I have been so faithful to not keeping up with the reading list I set up for myself I decided to give it a try.  Rebecca is a lovely, old fashioned book with a solid plot and some very interesting characters.  We have the narrator of the story, a young, naive girl that works as a companion for a rich American woman, and Maxim De Winter, a forty something widower, owner of Manderley — a great old estate in Cornwall.  He is haunted by the dead of his lovely, sylph like wife Rebecca and goes to  the South of France on a holiday.  He meets the narrator there  and marries her in a whim.  He takes her to his great estate Manderley to be the new Mrs. De Winter, but the shadow of Rebecca haunts her every turn.  What exactly happens… well, you have to read it to find out!

This story is a mixture of suspense and romance and has a very Gothic sort of feel to it. Du Maurier uses very flowery, very long winded prose and her descriptions of Cornwall are very accurate.  I have been to Cornwall before and this novel reminded me of those sunny days of summer I spent there.  The contrast of soft green slopes, dark, choppy blue waters, blooming flowers and old stone manors make a very strong visual statement; I was very pleased to find a novel that catches the mystic, dreamy Cornwall so well.  The pacing — although slow for modern standard — is very well suited for the time period and the character’s sensibilities.  This is not a sappy old romance novel, this is dark, stormy and it keeps you on the edge of your seat.  I could not put the book down and stayed up all night to read it, and boy I am glad I did!

You never know what’s coming next with this book and that’s what kept me turning the pages.  Some people will find it hard to sympathize with the characters,  and the style is definitely not what modern readers are used to getting from authors.  Regardless, Rebecca is definitely worth the time and the eye rolls for the slightly over the top language.  This book is the perfect choice for those stormy, rainy days when one wants to do nothing but curl up on the couch with a good book to read and a cup of nice strong tea in hand.  Just make sure the tea is a nice, posh Earl’s Grey, and no, you do not put any cream in Earl Grey — it ruins the taste!