Around the World in 80 Books discussion

Start discussion here for Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.

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I finished this book yesterday, and I LOVED it! It's the newest addition to my "favorites" shelf. The descriptions of Manderley were just mesmerizing, and I thought the author did an amazing job of creating a mysterious atmosphere around the place and situation. I also loved the ending.

This book is one of my favorite books. A third reading gives me a chance to slow down and absorb the language of the book, meaning to experience the book from a deeper read, looking at phrases and the way DuMaurier uses words to heighten our senses. Having just finished a biography the author, helps me see her perspective and life in Cornwall during the period. I am enjoying this book and look forward to rereading again in the future.

One of my favorites.

"Rebecca" is one of my favorite books. I loved the Gothic atmosphere. I'll never forget Mrs Danvers in her black dress with her psychological games.

I read it last year and couldn't quite decide what I thought about it. It was good, very involving, yet definitely very thought-provoking and disturbing, dark. Makes you wonder about the darkness inside everyone.

This has always been one of my favorite books; it is incredibly well crafted. In most stories the author cannot keep perfectly to a mood, but du Maurier manages this in Rebecca.

Some of the things I like:

1. The second Mrs. de Winter's anonymity, and the overpowering name of the first Mrs. de Winter
2. The insecure naivite of the second Mrs. de Winter. The novel would never have worked with an older, more self-confident heroine (if I had been in that position I would have fired Mrs. Danvers within a month)
3. The plot: how everything builds, and then there is one twist after another
4. The themes, especially memory. They can never get away from their memories.

I just finished it, again. Rebecca remains one of my favorite books of all time. I agree with the previous post that the plot builds and there are many twists to the story. I think I am a little like the second Mrs. De Winter in character but Mrs Danvers would have been kicked to the curb within a week for her sheer nastiness.

I read Rebecca during a gothic-novel reading binge, and while I thoroughly enjoyed it, it sent me over the edge with gothic writing and I needed to take a break. This novel wore me out!

My favorite scenes of Rebecca were the ones in the hotel when the couple met.

After a break from gothic, I did return to it recently.