Product Description
"Highly personalized adventure, ultra-romantic mood, and skillful storytelling." —New York Times

DAPHNE DU MAURIER'S LOST CLASSIC; AN ELECTRIFYING TALE OF LOVE AND SCANDAL ON THE HIGH SEAS.

Customer Reviews (29)

Good, but not up to Du Maurier's others
I consider Daphne Du Maurier to be my favorite author. She is engaging, clever, and an inspiration to us all. I was disappointed, however, with this book. I mean, it is a good read, but it just doesn't live up to Du Maurier's other books. The plot is very predictable and not very original as there is the star-crossed lovers aspect involving the "bad" pirate and the good English noblewoman. But that clever way of writing that can be only attributed to Du Maurier is present, and Du Maurier's magical way of taking one out of his world and setting him on a tree to watch a noble woman come cautiously through the woods to meet her pirate lover is still there. Read this book. It surpasses many, but does not represent the best that Du Maurier can do.

A Wife and Mother's Escape
At first glance this appears to be little more than a cheesy, yet chaste, romance novel.However with Dame Daphne Du Maurier what you see is never all there is to get.

I strongly disliked this book for at least the first hundred and fifty pages (and it's only two hundred and fifty pages long).I loved 'Rebecca', 'My Cousin Rachel', 'The King's General' and 'Mary Anne'.'Frenchman's Creek' however seemed to be a completely different animal when compared to the other Du Maurier novels I'd read.

Then I realized that the description of the heroine, Dona St. Columb's, husband might bear some resemblance to Du Maurier's real life husband and at that point the whole novel took on a different shape in my mind.

I think that Du Maurier was writing about her own feelings of being a wife and mother and the sacrifice that comes with those identities and how she sometimes wished she could escape her life and her responsibilities.

When examined in that context it seemed like Du Maurier was writing herself out of the doldrums of her own life, in essence giving herself a fantasy of escape and adventure that could never ever be real.

So, while I disliked much of this pure fantasy-romance, and don't think that it's her best work, upon closer examination I can understand what may have inspired Daphne Du Maurier to write this story and for that I appreciate it.

The best of du Maurier
Despite some very lame attempts at movie versions of Frenchman's Creek over the years - this really is du Maurier's finest writing.With a quiet dignity lacking in her more melodramatic novels (such as Rebecca) du Maurier builds a love story in the 17th century that resonates with anyone today who finds their life unfulfilled or caged.Part of the reason that any film adaption of this novel has failed is because the plot on its own can feel silly and dated.What makes this novel such a work of depth is du Maurier's writing style itself.In du Maurier's expert hands Dona, rather than being merely a pretty, bored, silly aristocrat is believably a complex and sympathetic heroine.If many of the top "romance" writers of today were to attempt to tell the same story it would be just another swashbuckler happy-ending piece of literature debris.Du Maurier instead takes a pirate historical romance and bends it into a quiet, heartbreaking masterpiece.

Great Pirate Story
I wasn't sure what to expect from FRENCHMAN'S CREEK by Daphne du Maurier, but I knew I wanted to read it. I am embarrassed to say that I have never read one of Ms. du Maurier's books (however, I do own two copies of REBECCA) and I am woefully ignorant of most classics. So when I found out that Sourcebooks was going to re-release a few of her novels, I definitely knew I had to read at least one of them.

I was so pleasantly surprised by this novel -- I really, really liked it. When I picked up the book and read the first chapter, I was afraid that it was going to be a bit difficult to read. I got a little nervous that it was going to be kind of "stuffy;" however, as soon as I read the second chapter, I was hooked. I was immediately caught up in Dona's life and her desire to flee London, her life as a Lady, and even her husband. And, I just loved all of the action and adventure packed into these pages.

I think most people will relate (at least a little) to Dona's desire to just get away from it all. The difference is that most of us would never do it in the fashion that Dona did. (I, for one, just think about it for a few minutes when the kids are driving me crazy and I want some peace and quiet -- I could never act on it!) Not only did she leave her home and husband in London, but once she was "free" she still managed to escape even further by leaving her children with a virtual stranger and running off with a pirate. I guess you could say that desperate times called for desperate measures, but I pretty sure that most women will not be able to relate to the extreme nature of Dona's actions. It does make for terrific reading though!

One of my most pleasant surprises about FRENCHMAN'S CREEK was the amount of humor in this story. Of course, Dona and her pirate were terrific characters but I loved how Ms. du Maurier brought them to life. While I didn't respect Dona for her decisions, I must say that I had a wonderful time reading about her escape; and I loved her sarcasm and her sense of adventure. Even though I found some of her actions despicable, I could almost understand them given the expectations and trappings that she felt existed in her life. I just couldn't comprehend how she could abandon her children, putting her own desires ahead of them. Of course, I could understand how she fell in love with the pirate -- he was a smart, perceptive and exciting man despite (or maybe because of) his choice of professions.

When I started reading FRENCHMAN'S CREEK, I wasn't really thinking about it as a book club selection. However, as I really got into the story and the characters, I discovered that it would make a wonderful selection. I think the themes of escapism and self-actualization make this book ideal for discussion (especially among women.) And I really liked that the book deals with these topics while also being a very entertaining and enjoyable read. I was thrilled to see that the paperback edition includes a reading guide in the back.

beautiful and haunting
Another amazing read by Du Maurier. I got hooked to this author after reading Rebecca, and it seems like with each novel I just fall more in love with her. Du Maurier creates a mysterious, beautiful atmosphere as the back drop for this romantic story about a woman's journey to find happiness. ... Read more

Product Description

The highly anticipated reissue of the du Maurier classics American fans have been waiting for

Customer Reviews (10)

Real Live Characters
... another absolutely wonderful story by DuMaurier .. personalities have such life and beleivability you feel like you really know and understand them. I truly hated to see this story end, I wanted more.

Another really great one
Whenever I read a book by Daphne Du Maurier, I always want to go out and buy all of her books currently in print. Her books generally fall into two categories: suspense (like Rebecca or The Scapegoat); or historical fiction, like (Frenchman's Creek or The King's General); or something in between, like The House on the Strand.

The King's General is set during the English Civil War. Honor Harris falls in love with Richard Grenvile, but her planned marriage to him falls short when she has a rising accident. Many years later, Richard is the King's General in the West, and Honor is making shift at Menabilly, a house built and owned by the Rashleigh family. Daphne Du Maurier brings a piece of Cornish history to life as Richard and Honor's stormy and often complicated relationship plays out.

Honor and Richard's relationship isn't what you might expect. It's passionate, but at no time in the novel do they ever consummate it. Instead, everything is pretty much hidden under the surface, and there's a lot that they don't say about the past and what happened between them. I'm not sure why Honor cut him off completely after her accident, but it adds a lot of suspense to their relationship.

The historical parts of the novel are well researched, though there was a point in the middle where the plot suffered in favor of the Cornish rebellions. The novel is told from the Royalist point of view, but the author isn't terribly partial to one side or another. There's also a kind of mystery here, too, involving the house and mysterious visitors in the night and secret hiding spaces. It's vintage Du Maurier, and she does this type of suspense very well in all of her novels.

Some really wonderful characters enhance the novel's plot. Honor may be a cripple, but she's not bitter about it, nor is she nostalgic for times gone by. She's straightforward and honest, and she has a habit of listening in on conversations. Her crippled state makes people notice her less, and that's why she's the perfect character to narrate this story. I loved the tension between Honor and her sister-in-law, the grasping and selfish Gartred Grenvile, with whom she's always playing literal and figurative games of Patience. Really, this is a well-written novel, and it's now one of my favorite of Du Maurier's novels. I wish Sourcebooks would reprint her books at a faster rate! Maybe they'll reprint The Glass Blowers soon?

Awesome read
My favorite book for 15 years and I'm hard to please. This book grabbed me as a flighty teen and has kept me ever since. I have about 6 copies including an original but I read it a couple times a year and I've loaned it out so I've been fanatical about keeping a spare copy. I treated myself to a new release on my b-day.

This is a story filled with drama, romance, comedy, history and fun all the way through. So descriptive you're there, a slightly dry first chapter only prepares the way for a great read. The language of the book bridges the generation gap seamlessly (published 1946) Most scenes could be modern day. No spoilers here but you can smile, frown, laugh and cry on this one.You may have mixed feelings about some of the characters but you will love Honor and Richard, hate Gartred, and pity Dick. Don't skip this book.

A most unusual love story
Set during the English Civil War of the 1640's, du Maurier retells a lesser known bit of Cornish history as an elderly Honor Harris reflects back on her life and love. Wooed by the charming, irascible but extremely flawed Richard Grenvile, eighteen year old Honor loses her heart and prepares to marry Richard until a tragic accident changes their plans. Richard and Honor separate, but meet years later during the Civil War as he is now the King's General in the West as they fight the Parliamentarian rebels - although not all the Royalists think too highly of Richard's high-handed approach to prisoners and discipline. While Honor refuses to marry Richard, her feelings for him are as strong as before and they begin a most unusual relationship as the tides of war ebb and flow around them.

Honor takes up residence at Menabilly, the family home of Honor's brother-in-law Jonathan Rashleigh and things soon begin to go bump in the night in typical du Maurier fashion - mysterious comings and goings, a secret door, a mystery floorboard in the summerhouse and..... well more than that, I'm not telling - read it for yourself. du Maurier once again weaves a magical tale, albeit this time with real-life characters. The dialogue between Richard and Honor sizzles off the pages, as does the enmity between Honor and Richard's sister - and boy can those two swap some memorable barbs. The scene where those two sat and played at cards and witty repartee as the rebels sacked Menabilly to its bare walls was just brilliant, as was the bit when Richard over indulged in dinner and wine and called the troops back after retiring - simply priceless.

All in all a very unusual love story and an interesting glimpse at a footnote in Cornish history. I'd love to see this one on film - the actors would have a field day. As for Menabilly, du Maurier rented the home from the Rashleigh family and lived in it for some time and was the inspiration for her most famous novel, Rebecca. Five stars and now I'm off to find more of these almost long lost gems to put on the reading pile.

Fascinating historical tale...
Cornwall, England, 1600s. Honor Harris is a child when she first meets Gartred Grenvile, the woman who becomes her sister-in-law. Curious by nature, she eavesdrops and witnesses the marital difficulties between her brother and Gartred after she flirts with one of her brothers-in-law and with other men. After Kit (brother) dies, Honor hopes to never see Gartred again. Fate, however, has other plans. Honor meets Richard Grenvile on her eighteenth birthday. He is an army officer, handsome and something of a rascal, whose unconventional ways get Honor into trouble. He is also Gartred's brother, which doesn't sit well with Honor. But feelings for him develop anyway. After a brief secret love affair, they decide to marry, but then a horrible tragedy tears them apart. Years later, England is in an uproar, war between the rebels and the royalists has been declared, and Honor flees to Menabilly, her brother-in-law's Cornish estate. During the war, she is a prisoner at Menabilly, where she discovers secret passages, hidden treasure, and other things as soldiers take over the estate and cause mayhem. She also reunites with Richard, who has become cynical and cruel and whose dealings with the army have made him unpopular. But his feelings for Honor have remained intact, but will it survive the war and Gartred's sudden return into their lives?

"The play goes on then -- what you have just read is but the prologue."

Those are Honor's words. It fits the novel, but it also fits the above summary. The King's General is such a fascinating historical tale of a woman's love and strength during times of tragedy and chaos. She does more than it could be expected under her sad circumstances. Believe me, if there is a perfect model for a strong female character, it is Honor Harris. The story is well developed and woven. The characters are complex -- no black and white ones found here. This is especially true with Richard. You hate the way he sees the world and his ill treatment of his son, who he sees as a weakling, but his love for Honor when he sees her again is quite beautiful. The scene where they reunite is wonderful, and I admit that I got goose pumps when I read it. The descriptions of the British Civil War are so well written that I couldn't wait to see what happened next. The most fascinating factor in The King's General is that the story is based on a real English estate. Menabilly had been Daphne du Maurier's home since the moment she married Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Browning. (It is rumored that Richard is a fictional version of her husband.) Menabilly is also Manderley in Rebecca. Daphne du Maurier was a versatile author. Although she was known for her romantic suspense novels, she also wrote historical fiction, romantic adventures, horror and dark stories -- none of which lacked substance. She is definitely one of the most underrated authors of all time. I so look forward to reading Daphne by Justine Picardie (who wrote an introduction in the Virago Modern Classics edition), a fictional account of du Maurier's life. ... Read more

Product Description
An NYRB Original

Daphne du Maurier wrote some of the most compelling and creepy novels of the twentieth century. In books like Rebecca, My Cousin Rachel, and Jamaica Inn she transformed the small dramas of everyday life—love, grief, jealousy—into the stuff of nightmares. Less known, though no less powerful, are her short stories, in which she gave free rein to her imagination in narratives of unflagging suspense.

Patrick McGrath’s revelatory new selection of du Maurier’s stories shows her at her most chilling and most psychologically astute: a dead child reappears in the alleyways of Venice; routine eye surgery reveals the beast within to a meek housewife; nature revolts against man’s abuse by turning a benign species into an annihilating force; a dalliance with a beautiful stranger offers something more dangerous than a broken heart. McGrath draws on the whole of du Maurier’s long career and includes surprising discoveries together with famous stories like “The Birds.” Don’t Look Now is a perfect introduction to a peerless storyteller. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

First rate collection
It being my turn to select something for my book group in October, I felt something macabre was in order.I considered Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and James's "The Turn of the Screw."Then I remembered that earlier this year the group read two Maugham stories ("Rain" and "The Letter" - both brilliant BTW) which proved a big hit with the members, so I thought: why not "Don't Look Now" and "The Birds"?Though I had never read these, I had seen both film versions and thought I knew what to expect.Both have been expanded for the screen (naturally).However, where "Don't Look Now" succeeds at bringing du Maurier's story to life on screen brilliantly and faithfully, the Hitchcock adaptation pirated only two words from du Maurier's manuscript: "the" and "birds."Yes, the birds attack in both, but that is where the similarities end. [I still enjoy the Hitchcock film, which terrified me as a child].

I enjoy most stories set in Venice - a dream location [and vacation destination]."Don't Look Now" uses the city to stunning effect; the labyrinthine canals and dark deserted alleyways make for a perfectly sinister setting.A grieving couple has come to the city of falling angels to regroup after the loss of their young daughter.They encounter a strange couple: twin sisters, middle aged, one a blind medium gifted with precognitive gifts.The sisters relay a warning from the daughter that the couple is in danger and must leave Venice.....to go any further would spoil the suspense (which would be a crime worthy of jail time).Needless to say, there is tension, intrigue and dread on every remaining page.Densely plotted and executed with unparalleled skill, "Don't Look Now" is a ghost story worthy of the masters.

"The Birds" is a masterpiece of suspense, stark and beautifully articulated.Set on a farm in Cornwall just after WWII, the story is an apocalyptic vision of a world where birds are suddenly waging war against humans.du Maurier's tale is bleak and relentless: 90% of the action takes place in the cottage, and the author creates a claustrophobic nightmare.There is no journey to safety; there is only "the cottage."
This is a story that would make a great film.I imagine it just as written, shot in beautiful black and white.

I am most eager to hear what the rest of my group will think of these dark tales.I've been urged by several of them to read "Rebecca" (that's right, I've never read it), and perhaps I'll go ahead now that I've wetted my apatite with these gems.

The Dark Side of du Maurier
She was one of the most popular authors of the twentieth century, and her celebrated novels alone would guarantee immortality for any writer. But Daphne du Maurier created another, equally fascinating body of work that is now being rediscovered: several collections of dark, moody, perfectly sculpted short stories. Nine of these gems have been reissued by the New York Review of Books (no less!) in their ongoing series of great lesser-known works by literary masters.

I'm a writer, and I first read all of her short stories (and everything else she wrote) years ago. Her dark visions inspired me then, and they still do. "Don't Look Now" and "The Birds" are masterpieces of the short form, far beyond the famous movies made from them, and the other seven stories here are chilling, evocative samples of her extraordinary imagination. To read this collection is to be transported into a Twilight Zone/Outer Limits type of alternate reality. This woman clearly inspired several other masters, including Patricia Highsmith, Shirley Jackson, Stephen King, Ruth Rendell--and Patrick McGrath, who contributes the introduction to this collection.

I'm glad that the NYRB has made these stories available again. They are required reading for writers, and they will amaze and delight any fan of the best in suspense.

Read the introduction AFTER the stories
I'd already read "Don't Look Now" twice and "The Birds" once before picking up this book. The other stories are just as good and compelling... so much so that I put aside time to read each story without interruption.
The story of "The Birds" is much better than the movie. My other favorites are "Blue Lenses' and "Split Second", both real page turners.
WARNING: Read the introduction after you've read the stories, Patrick McGrath gives away key plot points (why, Patrick, WHY?). I was NOT happy about that.
Still, a great book... and great cover, too.

Classic tales of the bizarre, creepy and gothic.
Daphne Du Maurier's story collection, Don't Look Now, is a must-have for readers interested in the literary elements of the creepy, bizarre and gothic. Primarily known for her gothic novel Rebecca, Du Maurier was equally adept at the short story; her tightly written tales are of upper and middle class English people confronting situations that are outside the box of normality. One of my favorite stories is "Don't Look Now," in which a young English couple is traveling in Italy, trying to recover from the death of their daughter. While there, the wife encounters two elderly spinster sisters while dining, one of whom is psychic; the sister with second sight informs the wife that their daughter is with them and not to be too sad. Also, the husband appears to clairvoyant, but he is unaware of it and not in full grasp of his powers. While the set-up is established, the backdrop of the environment is firmly conveyed. But here, there is a story within the story, and that is that there's is a serial killer prowling the area; it is hardly mentioned throughout the tale, if only as an afterthought, something that is out of sight and out of mind and therefore not worth particular in-depth attention. This is where Du Maurier's genius lies. As the reader progresses into the story, the backdrop slowly creeps forward into the aforementioned lives of the couple. And when both separate experiences collide, jaw-dropping horror is the end result. All of the tales possess this type of creepy foundation, and when the foundation is built up, cringing and disbelieving horror is the result. The pages get turned quickly.

Another example is the short story "Kiss Me Again, Stranger," where a young English bloke has fallen in love after meeting an usherette at the theater. She is romanced and is politely receptive to the gent's polite yet amorous affections. The gal is wooed and wowed in of all places, a graveyard. Needless to say, the women is not what she appears to be. There is evil duplicity, but that is showcased in all of Du Maurier's character creations. Yet, they are all so strikingly original. In any case, this collection makes for an engaging and worthwhile read; the language is beautiful proper English, and how Du Maurier weaves that beautifully crafted language into what she does - simple evocative horror - is nothing short of surprising. I would even go so far as to say that Daphne Du Maurier (in respects to the short story) was the English equivalent to Shirley Jackson. I think Edgar Allan Poe would have been proud.

Du Maurier short stories
Am enjoying her stories and am happy to be able to buy the book of short stories by an author of such talent who is no longer around. ... Read more

Product Description

"From the first page…the reader is back in the moody, brooding atmosphere of Rebecca." —The New York Times

Customer Reviews (50)

my cousin rachel
First time Amazon shopper.I was looking for the book, and did not realize this was a short play format until I received it. Too much hassle to return it for the cost.I'm better off going to the second hand book stores.

Suspense and Insight
....captured my interest from the first few words, as Du Maurier most always does. "My Cousin Rachel" is a bit dark and brooding .. wonderful insight into character's personalities which drives the suspensful story...one of my favorites, right up there with "Rebecca."

Deliciously suspenseful
Daphne du Maurier is growing on me. While quite not as good as Rebecca, My Cousin Rachel is as suspenseful and well plotted.

The book is written from the 1st person POV of Philip Ashley. Philip is a 25-year old heir to his beloved older cousin Ambrose, who for years have been substituting Philip's dead parents. Unexpectedly, on one of his doctor-advised trips to Italy, 43-year old Ambrose marries his (and Philip's) distant cousin Rachel. Soon after the wedding Philip starts receiving alarming letters from his cousin - Ambrose accuses his wife of slowly killing him. Philip doesn't know what to make of these letters - are these allegations true or they are delusions produced by Ambrose's tumor-affected brain? The young man rushes to Italy to check for himself, only to find his cousin dead and buried and Rachel gone. Soon after Philip's return to England, Rachel shows up for a visit and she is not quite what the young heir expected her to be. Is she a cold-blooded murderer or simply a victim of a series of very unfortunate events?

My Cousin Rachel is a very well written, tightly plotted mystery. Du Maurier skillfully builds suspense throughout the novel, throwing in a good amount of love, obsession, jealousy, passion, and deceit. While I am not sure Philip's male voice is completely believable (at times he sounds a tad feminine), his changing affections towards Rachel are. Rachel's subtle play at getting young and naive Philip to become enchanted with her without him even realizing it is masterfully done. Oh, this woman knows how to flirt and entice! An ambiguous ending is a plus too.

I am definitely up for some more du Maurier.

A Gothic masterpiece
My Cousin Rachel is my third book by Daphne du Maurier, and re-confirms to me once again why she is regarded as one of the great writers of the 20th century.Du Maurier's style is full of imagery, even symbolism, and yet nothing is superfluous; each scene, each passage makes a clear and definite contribution to the whole.My Cousin Rachel, even more than her previous two works, reads like a longer version of a short story in its sparseness and foreshadowing.

Daphne du Maurier subtly adjusts her style to fit the time period in which her books are set, and this was most evident to me in My Cousin Rachel.Set in 19th century Cornwall (with a brief passage in Italy), the dialogue, especially, felt more restrained and formal than in her other works, which contributes to the Victorian setting and feel of the novel.

I won't recap the plot, as countless other reviewers have already done that and this is not a book report, after all.I will only comment on the book's famously ambiguous ending which leaves many readers wondering "did she, or didn't she?"For me, there really wasn't much if any ambiguity at all.Although she didn't absolutely state what Rachel had or hadn't done, du Maurier left plenty of clues along the way to make it pretty clear.Although she did throw in a few contradictory tidbits they never raise any serious doubt, at least not to my mind, but they do make the book significantly more interesting.

Although My Cousin Rachel is as skillfully written as Rebecca (which is one of my all-time favorites) I think there are a couple of important reasons why it has never achieved quite the level of popularity that Rebecca has.One, is that My Cousin Rachel lacks the twists and plot surprises of Rebecca.When reading Rebecca for the first time you really have no idea where the story is going to take you; with My Cousin Rachel it is much more straightforward and predictable.Du Maurier even weaves in subtle clues along the way that are almost like signposts of the road ahead (for example, the recurrence of laburnum trees).

But perhaps the more significant reason why My Cousin Rachel is less popular than Rebecca is its less-likable narrator.In Rebecca the narrator (the young and never-named second Mrs. De Winter) is an innocent bystander for the most part, who engages our sympathy from the first page and holds it all the way until the end; in fact, by the end we admire her even more than we did in the beginning.With My Cousin Rachel it is just the opposite.In the beginning the narrator Phillip Ashley engages our sympathy with his naivete, his innocence, his inexperience, and his unswerving love and loyalty for the cousin who raised him, Ambrose.However, this changes abruptly upon his first sight of Rachel; not only does he fall in love with her, but he begins to act like a complete fool, disregarding the good advice of everyone who loves and cares about him, and even discounting the letters and notes left behind by Ambrose.At the end Phillip does come to his senses but never reclaims our sympathy; rather, the reader almost recoils from what he becomes, as symbolized by Louise who asks him near the end, "What have you done?!"

My Cousin Rachel showcases du Maurier's amazing skill at showing the reader the whole picture by using the most subtle of language (for example, Phillip's abrupt switch mid-way in the book from referring to her constantly as "my cousin Rachel" to simply "Rachel").That she is able to reveal Phillip's foolishness and pig-headedness, and even allows us to see him through other people's eyes, in spite of the fact that he himself is telling the story, is evidence of her superb talent as a writer.

My Cousin Rachel will definitely be a future re-read and is a solid five stars; how could anything by du Maurier be any less?

I never thought another book could live up to the book 'Rebecca', but this one did!
I read Daphne Du Maurier's book "Rebecca" and fell in love with it.I decided to buy another one of her books and read online that "My Cousin Rachel" had a similar feel as "Rebecca" so I decided this was the one to buy.I didn't think it would live up to Rebecca, but I was mistaken.It has the same dark, mysterious atmosphere to it, the same kind of wonderfully developed characters and a great storyline that captivated me from beginning to end.Just like Rebecca, this book was not predictable to me and left me thinking for days after finishing it.I didn't want to put it down and was sad when it was over."My Cousin Rachel" and "Rebecca" are now my two favorite fiction books. ... Read more

Product Description

A lush generational novel from the bestselling author of Rebecca

Customer Reviews (5)

Needs Development
If you like DdM and have read a number of her other works, give this a shot. This shouldn't, however, be your first DdM read. The obvious criticism with this novel is that it needs to "pause" and develop both the story and its characters. The book often jumps ahead several years within just a few paragraphs. Weak 3 stars.

A classic author's beginner effort...
It all begins in Plyn, Cornwall, 1830.Janet Coombe is a free spirit.Sometimes she feels she should have been a boy.She loves boats and the sea, and dreams of being a traveler and adventurer.A perfect day for her entails running about the countryside with her skirt hiked up to her knees.But since she is born female, things are expected from her.So she marries her cousin Thomas, a boat builder, and gives him children and marital contentment.But as he becomes involved in his family business, Janet begins to wonder if this is all there is to life.She passes her spirited ways on to her son Joseph, and amid family drama, tragedies, changes and some suspense, it is Joseph's granddaughter Jennifer who, with her own free spirit, intends to mend everything and live the life that was once meant for Janet Coombe.

Janet Coombe seems to be the fictionalized version of Daphne du Maurier.In various autobiographies, Du Maurier often said that she wished she had been born a boy, that she'd always been a tomboy and that she lived her fantasies through her male narrators in various novels.This is her first novel, and probably her most autobiographical effort.The Loving Spirit has a wonderful beginning.It kept me turning the pages because the writing is lyrical and sublime, and it engaged me with little effort.It does get a bit tedious somewhere in the middle, and it took me a while to read it at that point.It does, however, pick up when Jennifer's story comes in.It is, in fact, the best part of the novel and I couldn't put it down.Daphne du Maurier is one of my favorite novelists.She wrote a little bit of everything, took risks that paid off.This is a wonderful look at her writing during its beginner state.I have to say this debut is better than most books written by today's experienced authors.And that speaks volumes about today's commercial fiction.

Eh, well every writer does have to write the first novel
"High above the clustered houses and the grey harbour waters of Plyn, the loving spirit smiles and is free."

Although you know I'm not going to tell if that's from the beginning of the book or the end. This first novel of Du Maurier's tells the story of four generations of the Coombe family of Plyn, Cornwall beginning in the early 1800's as young bride Janet Coombe, happy as she is with her children and husband, always longs for the freedom of the sea. Her son Joseph follows his mother's dreams and sets sail in the merchant ship built by the Coombe family and named after his mother - as is her image the figurehead at the prow of the ship. Joseph eventually marries, but his real love is always the sea and when he can no longer sail he takes his bitterness out on his family, which eventually leads to dire changes in their lives.

Joseph's son Christopher, realizing he is not cut out for the sailing life, abandons ship in London and ekes out a living there and marries his landlady's daughter Bertha Parkins. Finally tiring of London life, they return to Plyn in hopes ofreuniting with his estranged family and find work in the family's shipbuilding business - although his uncle Phillip's grudge against Joseph continues unabated against his son and forces the grief stricken family to return to London. The book culminates with the story of Christopher's daughter Jennifer as her restless spirit brings her back to Plyn to a chance meeting with a long-lost cousin at the wreck of the Janet Coombe, as well as a show down with her great-uncle Phillip over the damage his hatred has wreaked on the Coombe family.

Throughout the book, the loving spirit of Janet Coombe seems to guide her family through the best and worst times of their lives. As a first book it is certainly good, but far from what readers of her later classics might expect, and a bit slow paced for the most part except the last 50 or so pages - she had me biting my nails for a while there. While I do enjoy family sagas continuing over multiple generations, this one is far from the best either, a bit too short and not as well developed as I like them. I'd recommend this one for fans of Du Maurier wanting to get a look at her first book, but I doubt there's enough here to hold the interest of a more casual reader. 3/5 stars.

first DuMaurier
I read a serialized version of this in the late 50s in a British women's magazine (Women or Womens Own).It made a huge impression on me, though I was barely a teenager at the time.It spoke directly to my heart about a woman's emotional fulfillment and finding and keeping your own true self (though I could not articulate that at the time).Over the years, I have searched bookstores and thrift shops across America on a quest to find this book.When I located a copy via Amazon it was with fear that I opened and began to read.Would it hold up? Have I become too jaded to defer to my 13 year old taste?
I LOVED it once again.

The Loving Spirit
The Loving Spirit is the most underated novel by Daphne Du Maurier. In her first published novel Daphne's characters, especially the women, are multidimensional with many desires, the strongest being to follow theirheart and remain true to their spirit. With four generations of family,each character gets closer to the truth and living a life that fulfillstheir inner needs and that of their soul. Rich in romance, wit, adventureand also very much a spiritual book, even for it's time period, The LovingSpirit should be read by all DuMaurier fans and those wanting to changetheir paths in life and look within themselves. ... Read more

Product Description
In this haunting tale, Daphne du Maurier takes a fresh approach to time travel.A secret experimental concoction, once imbibed, allows you to return to the fourteenth century. There is only one catch: if you happen to touch anyone while traveling in the past you will be thrust instantaneously to the present.Magnus Lane, a University of London chemical researcher, asks his friend Richard Young and Young's family to stay at Kilmarth, an ancient house set in the wilds near the Cornish coast. Here, Richard drinks a potion created by Magnus and finds himself at the same spot where he was moments earlier--though it is now the fourteenth century. The effects of the drink wear off after several hours, but it is wildly addictive, and Richard cannot resist traveling back and forth in time. Gradually growing more involved in the lives of the early Cornish manor lords and their ladies, he finds the presence of his wife and stepsons a hindrance to his new-found experience. Richard eventually finds emotional refuge with a beautiful woman of the past trapped in a loveless marriage, but when he attempts to intervene on her behalf the results are brutally terrifying for the present.Echoing the great fantastic stories of H. P. Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe, The House on the Strand is a masterful yarn of history, romance, horror, and suspense that will grip the reader until the last surprising twist. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (43)

From the time of LSD: a somewhat more literal "trip"
This is one of the better of du Maurier's romances in my opinion. Written in the late 60ies, the story flows from the public perception of the drug revolution. Not heroine and cocaine but hallucinogens. Timothy Leary and the LSD phenomenon.

A 40-something Englishman married to an American woman with two boys from a former marriage has quit his job with a publisher in London and his wife hopes he'll accept the job offered by her brother in New York. His name is Richard Young--Dick--and he's resisting the move to New York, but still has no idea what he wants to do. His old Cambridge friend Magnus (the name reeks of the alchemists of old) is a successful scientist who has a "pet project"he wants Dick's help on. Magnus offers Dick his house in Cornwall for the summer. The house is several hundred years old but its foundations are even older (based actually on the house du Maurier lived in). In the basement, in an old kitchen, Magnus has a lab where he experiments privately. His current project is mixing hallucinogenic drugs. He's evidently taken it himself and has a sense of what will happen.

Dick takes the drug in the free time he has before his wife and boys arrive. He goes back in time to the 14th century where he seems to be following Roger who lived in Magnus' house at the time. Dick is evidently still physically in the present but he experiences the world of the 14th century. The people he encounters can't see him and there is no interaction, though Dick becomes emotionally entangled in their issues, particularly in the troubles of the beautiful Isolde.... When Roger goes some place, Dick follows. But the terrain has changed. The sea has receded and what was a riverbed in the 14th century is a valley only in the present--with a railroad running through it. Dick with his problems and uncertainties in the present is drawn to the life of the people he encounters and literally becomes addicted to the experience, the somewhat more literal version of the "trip" described by LSD crowd when they alluded to the experience of altered awareness.

The House on the Strand is thoughtful book in many ways even though the time travel mechanism is pretty unbelievable, especially many years after the fascination with LSD's possibilities.

Brilliant merger of science fiction, historical & romantic suspense
Possibly my favourite Daphne du Marier novel. Dick Young is staying at a holiday home owned by a friend who is also a biochemical researcher. He agrees to take an experimental drug developed by his friend and find it takes his mind - but not his body - 600 years into the past where he witnesses intrigue, adultery and murder. He becomes increasingly obsessed with the characters from the past and resents the time he must spend in the present world. Despite evidence of the dangers to his present day body and relationships, he can't resist taking just one more trip into the past.

Creative, Very Creative
For those familiar with psychedelic drugs, this novel possibly takes one back into their own past. The confusion and lack of separation between the experience and reality is eerily true.

"House on the Strand" picked up pace as it progressed. Initially, there wasn't much intrigue in the 14th century story, but we quickly developed a relationship with its scheming characters. Same with our reality based story - little more than establishing a mood at the beginning, but once our protagonist's wife sent word that she would be visiting, watch out.

Readers frequently compare du Maurier's "Rebecca" to the rest of her works. I find that unfortunate because her novels are quite different from each other, offering something for everyone. Personally, I don't find "Rebecca" her strongest effort. I thought "My Cousin Rachel" was the better of what I consider two similar stories.But read them all, not just a couple, then judge.

"We are all bound, one to the other, through time and eternity"
While vacationing at the Cornwall home of old chum Magnus, Richard Young is convinced to act as guinea pig for his friend's latest experiment - a drug that enables the mind to travel into the past - although the body stays in the present. Richard's "trips" take him to the 14C where he is soon so wrapped up in the past that it becomes as addictive to him as a drug - or is it the drug itself that is addictive? Are the lives of those in the past so much more important that his wife and step-sons become a hindrance to his journeys? Did these people really exist or do they only exist in Richard's mind? Although Richard's mind is in the 14C while on the drug, his body is not and as he walks in the footsteps of those in the past it leads him into some very close calls when his mind returns to the present. He could be standing anywhere - the middle of a road, on private property or in the path of an oncoming.......

Nope, I'm not telling and to say much more gives the whole thing away - half the fun is the guessing and unexpected twists in the story. Although the segments in the 14C were well written they were a bit confusing to me at times, but don't spend too much time trying to sort those relationships out. IMO they were mostly background and the main focus were the parts in the present day. Du Maurier is superb and understated as always, and this one will definitely leave you guessing all the way to the very last page and beyond. 5/5 stars and highly recommended.

Unique and enthralling time travel suspense by Du Maurier!
Richard Young used to work in publishing, is married to an attractive American woman and has two stepsons.He seems to have come to terms with his boring, stale life.However, when he agrees to let his friend Magnus, a biophysicist from London, use him for a drug experiment, his life takes an unexpected turn.Vacationing at Magnus's home in Cornwall, England, he travels through six hundred years of time with the help of the aforementioned drug.Physically, he is not at the other time -- fourteenth century -- rather, he is an invisible spectator, and Roger, a steward, is his unknowing guide.During these "trips," his body wanders around the lands that the people in his mind had once apparently lived in.There among the nobility, monks and landowners, there is a lot of adultery and political alliances; there's even talk about a second rebellion against the king (Edward III.The first one had taken place in 1322 with Edward II), which is dissolved before it even begins.Dick is enthralled and wants to know what happens with these people, especially with Roger and Isolda.Is this drug a hallucinogen?If so, then how come every character in his trips seemed to have existed?Is Roger nothing more than Dick's "alter ego"?If so, how is it possible that he and Magnus apparently share the same hallucination and the same alter ego?He and Magnus, who is in London, become interested in the land's medieval history and begin to dig for any references to the people they see during their "trips."But as Richard becomes all the more involved in the past, he loses grasp of his present life.His wife and stepsons become a nuisance to him, and he has to figure out ways to ditch them so that he could enjoy going back in time at his leisure.When past and present close in on him, he at times no longer distinguishes between past and present, fantasy and reality.To make matters worse, the drug seems to have some rather strange side effects -- vertigo, nausea, sweating, numbing of the hands, bloodshot eyes, among others.Still, he needs to know what happens to Roger, even if it means putting his own life and that of those around him in danger.How will it all unfold?

Does the plot sound complex to you?That's because it is.I couldn't possibly describe it all without giving away crucial details or writing some sort of book club discussion-type of review in the process.Many of the story's plot lines and twists are subject to the reader's interpretation anyway.This is a very unique time travel story.It's also one of the best I've ever read.Daphne du Maurier put a rather interesting spin on things.She didn't have to worry about the character adjusting to life in another era or any of that stuff.The way she describes Richard's entrance through 1330s and his return to his time (late 1960s) is so well written that you feel as though you're traveling through time as well.You almost also experience the sickness and vertigo Richard experiences.The historical aspect of the story is well researched.All of those things, mixed with the author's distinctive writing style, make for a fascinating read.The House on the Strand has become my new favorite Daphne du Maurier novel.Never mind Rebecca, which I still love, this one is the creepier and more fascinating read out of the two.THIS should've been Du Maurier's most popular novel!Rich with suspense, historical references and unexpected twists, it is somewhat similar to My Cousin Rachel and The Scapegoat in that the main character is male and has a weak personality, in this case becoming a human guinea pigfor a "friend."You won't be disappointed. ... Read more

Product Description

The coachman tried to warn her away from the ruined, forbidding place on the rainswept Cornish coast. But young Mary Yellan chose instead to honor her mother's dying request that she join her frightened Aunt Patience and huge, hulking Uncle Joss Merlyn at Jamaica Inn. From her first glimpse on that raw November eve, she could sense the inn's dark power. But never did Mary dream that she would become hopelessly ensnared in the vile, villainous schemes being hatched within its crumbling walls -- or that a handsome, mysterious stranger would so incite her passions ... tempting her to love a man whom she dares not trust.

Customer Reviews (59)

A Place of Danger...
"Jamaica Inn", Daphne du Maurier's classic 1935 novel of suspense and romance, holds up surprisingly well as an entertaining read.Set in the author's rugged and half wild native Cornwall, the brooding Bodmin Moor is a key component of the story.

The year is 1815.A young woman named Mary Yellan, who has helped run a small farm with her widowed mother, is suddenly an orphan with no place to go but the home of her Aunt Patience and Uncle Joss Merlyn at the remote Jamaica Inn.The Inn has an evil reputation, and Mary soon discovers the reason is her brutal Uncle Joss, who has intimidated Aunt Patience into snivelig subservience while engaging in a mysterious and presumably illegal enterprise.

The plucky Mary refuses to knuckle under to Joss Merlyn; her curiosity will put her in the path of a vicious criminal gang which will threaten her with kidnapping, rape, and murder.She will be attracted to Uncle Joss's enigmatic and handsome brother Jem and seek uncertain assistance from the mysterious albino priest Francis Davey.The hard truths of Jamaica Inn will change her life forever.

"Jamaica Inn" is highly recommended to fans of Daphne du Maurier, and to readers looking for a well-written period romance.

Not as good as "Rebecca" or "My Cousin Rachel"
I have to say, this book by Daphne du Maurier is a little underwhelming.

The writing is, as expected, gorgeous. Just like in Rebecca and My Cousin Rachel, it is very atmospheric. There is, no doubt, an air of Emily and Charlotte Bronte's style about it. Considering that I am a huge fan of both Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, that's a big plus. Du Maurier is also very skillful at building suspense. A feeling of dread and foreboding is maintained throughout the novel making it an intense reading experience.

But the writing is not the weakest point of Jamaica Inn. The story itself is. For me the mystery of Jamaica Inn and the crimes it hides is too simplistic. Nothing much happens in the story besides Mary Yellan trying to figure out what awful business her dreadful uncle is a part of and whose brain is behind the whole crime scheme. She figures it all out very quickly indeed. And we along with her. There are simply not enough characters in this book to not figure out who the biggest bad guy is. As for the perpetrator's motive, I don't think I quite got it.

And romance. While there are some great conversations, the love story is a bit rushed and underdeveloped IMO. The heroine is smart and strong-willed, but her attraction to the hero is too quick and her decision at the end of the book is strange. Maybe this is what a genre of gothic romance is all about though? An atmospheric story with a romance of the complexity of an average Harlequin novel? I don't know, I am not very familiar with the genre.

Anyway, in spite of my slight disappointment, I am still interested in exploring Daphne du Maurier's works in future, but I hope they are more akin to Rebecca rather than Jamaica Inn. Are they?

Classic Gothic Fiction
One of duMaurier's best - a rich, romantic, and atmospheric gothic romance - a classic.

An Exciting Classic
First off, I rarely read fiction, much less romantic fluff.Don't let the New York Time's proclamation, "A Fine Romantic Tale..." scribbled on the book's front cover scare you off.There's little romance in this novel--only a trickling of emotional feelings surface periodically.Rather, the book offers suspense, superb writing skills/dialogue and rich location/time period imagery.A wonderful page-turner and fun read.

Time Changes All Things
I first read Jamica Inn as an inexperienced teenager living on dreams and fantasies of finding true love and living happily ever after.I thought the story of Mary and Jem was a wonderful love story, over coming all obstacles, giving up all for true love, over coming evil, and setting off for a life of romance and adventure. Ten years later and no longer dreaming of love and happily everafter I reread this book. It depressed me.Mary, by going off with Jem, had condemened herself to the same life that had drained her aunt of hope and vitality.Drink and time would eventually turn Jem into the same abusive character his brother had been. When the kids started coming and there was no steady income, no secure shelter Mary would turn into a shrew.

It really depressed me.

The story was suspensful, and the author was a gifted writer. Just don't think too long on the future of the two lovers after the book ends. ... Read more

Product Description
Spanning nearly a century, this is the enthralling saga of the famously artistic du Maurier family, written by its most celebrated member.

When Daphne du Maurier wrote this book, she was only 30 years old, yet she was already established as a biographer and novelist. The Du Mauriers was written during a vintage period of her career, between two of her best-loved novels: Jamaica Inn and Rebecca. Her aim was to write her family biography "so that it reads like a novel." It is due to du Maurier's remarkable imaginative gifts that she was able to breathe life into the characters and depict with affection and wit relatives she never knew. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Wonderful Book
This book is wonderfully written. I could hardly put it down. Daphne Du Maurier is one of my favorite authors and this was facinating reading. This book really takes you back in time.

A spirited saga of family history
Popular novelist Daphne Du Maurier's superbly written and memorably personal autobiography of her own family provides a spirited saga of family history, and will prove a 'must' for any student seeking a full coverage of Du Maurier's influences and life. From the histories of relatives she never personally knew to her own life, The Du Mauriers makes for a lively and engaging "first-person" read.
... Read more

Product Description
Both in her novels and her memoirs, Daphne du Maurier revealed an ardent desire to explore her family's history. In Myself When Young, based on diaries she kept between 1920 and 1932, du Maurier probes her own past, beginning with her earliest memories and encompassing the publication of her first book and her marriage. Often painfully honest, she recounts her difficult relationship with her father, her education in Paris, her early love affairs, her antipathy towards London life, and her desperate ambition to succeed as a writer. The resulting self-portrait is of a complex, utterly captivating young woman. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

The First 25 Years -The Journey of a Writer
Du Maurier is the most underrated writer of the 20th century. I am not the only one to write this bold statement. She is certainly not a Joyce or a Sartre, two experimental writer's who have become legends of Modernism...

"May the common reader be damned!" was certainly the catch cry for Modernism in prose; I cannot exactly name who made this claim, but when reading Joyce's "Finnigan's Wake", this text is certainly out of most readers' reach. In Modernism, the reader is invited to take an Active role, a "writerly" mode as oppossed to a "Readerly" mode, that is to say, a passive role, in the task of reading.(Barthes) Chronology was out and Chaos, in some cases, moved centre stage. After WW1, art changed forever - cubism, surrealism, expressionism. Philosophy's like Existentialism and Marxism moved into the intellectual spotlight - Realism was out, named an illusion, a trick, and with the help of psychoanalysis, the imagination, the "unconscious" according to some, was the core of the imagination, and needed to be expressed.

Although Du Maurier was only a child during WW1 and a young adult during WW2, these sweeping movements in "art" did not appear to affect her work in anyway.

She wrote what she knew and did it extremely well.

In this text, written when the author was in her late sixties, constantly refering back to her journals at the time, in her simple and descriptive prose, somehow magically moves the reader to the period; an upper middle class English childhood; an imagination run wild amidst a very regulative life.

We see her grow as a writer, torn between her beloved England and her impressionable years in Paris.

Similar to many writers' I know, writing is a task, writing is work and it requires discipline to sit in front of a blank page everyday and worry, maybe only for a moment, that there is nothing more to say; that you just do not have the ability anymore. Then, you calmly sit down, take a deep breath, and you move into the Zone and simply begin as if on automatic, and before you realize it, five hours have passed.

Daphne had the same fears - everyday!

Du Maurier had that uncanny ability to write "literature" and thoroughly entertain at the same time.

Something that few writers, during this period, could accomplish.

Fascinating insight into an unusual young woman
Based upon a collection of old diaries, Daphne du Maurier looks back in time to provide readers with a picture of who she was as a child and how she developed into both a young woman and successful author.

A compelling read that takes one to another time, it's fascinating to realise that far from being a precocious adolescent, she was a highly intelligent but emotionally immature child living much of her life in her own dream world almost up until her marriage. Definitely a worthwhile read for those who want to learn more about this elusive author.

A Peek Inside the Moulding of A Creative Mind
It's interested peering into the upbringing of this most prolific and admired writer, written straight from the heart and without pretense, and demonstrating how her experiences and family and the places she went helped shape her stories.

Must Read for Any Young Woman That Wants to Write
I sleep with a copy of Rebecca next to my bed - as a young writer I read it every now and then to remind myself of what I'm aiming for; I consider it a perfectly crafted novel, with beautiful writing, a compelling plot, and a character that I strongly identify with.DuMaurier's autobiography does not touch the time when she was writing Rebecca, but rather her life in London, Paris and in Cornwall, England from ages 3 to 25. If I could choose a life, her's would be the one I'd want.This is a must-read for anyone who feels that they have a gift of the written language (sometimes a burden, mostly a drive to do something REALLY BIG). ... Read more

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The Birds The idea for this famous story came to her one day when she was walking across to Menabilly Barton farm from the house. She saw a farmer busily ploughing a field whilst above him the seagull s were diving and wheeling. She developed the idea about the birds becoming hostile and attacking him. In her story, the birds become hostile after a harsh winter with little food, first the seagull s, then birds of prey and finally even small birds, all turn against mankind. The nightmarish idea appealed to Hitchcock who turned it into the celebrated film. Daphne disliked the film and particularly disliked the translation of the setting from Cornwall, with its small fields and stone hedges, to small-town America. Monte Verita The Apple Tree The Little Photographer Kiss Me Again, Stranger The Old Man ... Read more

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Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again. . . With these words the reader is ushered into an isolated gray stone manse on the windswept Cornish coast, as the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter recalls the chilling events that transpired as she began her new life as the young bride of a husband she barely knew. For in every corner of every room in the immense, foreboding estate were phantoms of a time dead but not forgotten -- a past devotedly preserved by the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers: a suite immaculate and untouched, clothing laid out and ready to be worn, but not by any of the great house's current occupants. And with an eerie presentiment of evil tightening her heart, the second Mrs. de Winter walked in the shadow of her mysterious predecessor, determined to uncover the darkest secrets and shattering truths about Maxim's first wife -- the late and hauntingly beautiful Rebecca.

Customer Reviews (551)

Memories of Manderley...
"Rebecca" had several elements that I loved:a large Gothic-style manor, ghosts, mystery and suspense.In the book, the narrator (in which interestly her first name is never revealed) is a young English lady of twenty-one, who is working as a "companion" to a middle-aged American gossip-loving socialite.The young lady and her employer are staying at a hotel in Monte Carlo, where the young lady is introduced to Maxim de Winter, the owner of a large English manor house called Manderley who has lost his wife in a tragic drowning one year prior.Mr. de Winter is a strange, serious man which everyone attributes to the loss of his wife, Rebecca.

The narrator and Mr. de Winter have an odd relationship over the course of the couple of weeks in Monte Carlo and when the narrator is told she is to go to New York, Mr. de Winter proposes marriage.The narrator, longing for something more in life, agrees to marry him.She is deeply in love with him, although he often remains distant and mysterious.She expects that life at Manderley will be quite different from what she actually finds once she arrives there.

Although the first Mrs. de Winter is no longer living, there are traces of her all throughout the mansion.The new Mrs. de Winter is told how wonderful Rebecca was and is very insecure in herself in that she feels she can't live up to Rebecca's reputation.Rebecca's maid, the eerie Mrs. Danvers, immediately dislikes the new Mrs. de Winter.As days go by at Manderley, the new Mrs. de Winter begins to have serious doubts that her marriage will be successful and that the house she is living in is still under Rebecca's influence.Maxim becomes more and more distant and odd, and the narrator becomes more uneasy and afraid, as is understandable as the mystery of what happened to Rebecca is unraveled.

I really enjoyed the author's writing style - vivid descriptions with each scene set up nicely.The author did a remarkable job of creating a suspenseful atmosphere.Although I saw some of the mysteries of Rebecca's fate coming well ahead of time, there were still some new surprises waiting for this reader.I would liken reading the book to walking through a large, historic manor house like Manderley, with each turn and hallway revealing another twist in the story and finding surprises all along the way.I've seen other reviews that have said they found the book slow and dull, but I didn't want to put it down until every mystery was solved.

My only letdown of the novel was that even while Rebecca was not a nice person, I found it very weak for the main character to stand by Maxim de Winter so faithfully after what he had done.

After the story ended, I found it helpful to reread the first couple of chapters to be happily fulfilled with the ending.

classic!
I had known about this book for as long as I can remember, but just recently read it for the first time. What a great read! I thought that because it was written in 1938 it might be good but would be hard to read, etc. Not true. It moves really quickly and the story really grips you from the very beginning. It only took me about 5 days to read. It would have taken less time than that, but as I reached the end I wanted to make it last so I slowed down the pace. There are a few twists that I definitely did not see coming. I loved this book and plan to read some of Du Maurier's others as well. The 1940 Hitchcock film is a nice complement to the book, but just bear in mind that they do make some changes and it's not exactly true to the book, but still entertaining in its own right. I highly recommend the book and the movie!

"Last Night I Dreamt I Went To Manderley Again"
This is a hauntingly great story.The first thing I did when I read the very last sentence was to start from the beginning and reread the first chapter.It is one of those books that makes you think about it after it ends.What a Classic.

Rebecca
It's been a very long time since I first read this book.We reviewed it at book club and everyone much enjoyed reading it again.The book arrived early enough for me to read it and make the necessary notes.

Sensational
It was a great book, a gift for my mom. She received it in a timely manner, and was very pleased! ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Confused
I recently checked out of the library what I thought was this book. Especially since it mentions that it is a hardcover book.
However, upon opening it to my dismay - it is and it isn't. It has none of the pictures of Daphne and her family, which is why I so wanted the book. The other book under the same name had lengthy text quoted from her books, and a detailed map of Cornwall, and the places she wrote about. Which books were from where. Very informative. I will not return this book. It is nice, it is just not as biographical as the one I got from the library.Vanishing Cornwall (Virago Modern Classics)

VANISHING CORNWALL
I had read many Daphne De Maurier books in the past but wanted something more factual about the most beautiful part of Britian. My home for nearly forty years was Cornwall & this book highlighted all that was so historic and reminicent of an era gone by. She completes the complete essence of being Cornish and of begining to understand how culturally different Cornwall is. It's celtic beginings transend through the ages so clearly identified by De Maurier. An great book for any Cornishman or Woman to read and enjoy. Her book truly reflects what has happened in Cornwall to the prescent day particullary over the last hundred years. ... Read more

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The highly anticipated reissue of the du Maurier classics American fans have been waiting for

Customer Reviews (7)

Don't mean to be a party pooper, but...
Having enjoyed each of the other eight DdM novels that I've read, I was disappointed that "Mary Anne" came in far below expectations. The story starts off readable enough and I'm curious how the protagonist will navigate forward from her (typical for the times) difficult early years. Unfortunately, the story doesn't sustain itself. There simply isn't any character development. Mary Anne, herself, is nothing but a shallow, villainous woman whose attitude is that the ends justify the means. She brings much of her adult station in life upon herself. If you are a DdM fan, and have read a number of her other works, by all means read this - as they say, different strokes for different folks and you may like it.

Oh No, Mary Anne...You Go, Mary Anne
I'm a bit conflicted about this book, I liked it and I'm glad I read it, but at the same time it really bothered me, it was depressing and I found myself alternating between being really proud of Mary Anne for being so strong and smart and being angry with her for being so foolish.

Mary Anne Clarke was Daphne Du Maurier's great-great grandmother.She was clever, witty and beautiful.She was a mistress to Frederick Augustus Brunswick the Duke of York and Albany, son of King George III.She was also the star witness for the opposition when the House of Commons launched an investigation into allegations that the Duke had been accepting payments in exchange for military commissions.Mary Anne had an interesting life to say the least.

The history in the story is sometimes difficult to follow, but at the same time it's not imperative that you know all the political details.I recently read 'The Secret Wife of King George IV' by Diane Haeger and was really glad I had some understanding of the references to the Prince of Wales and Mrs. Fritz, his wife and mistress.Du Maurier writes about Mary Anne's relationships with a subtlety that can escape the reader if they aren't paying close attention.

Mary Anne had guts to stand up to the government's cross-examination and the public scrutiny during the investigation, I admired her bravery.I thought it was fascinating that memorabilia was being produced and sold with Mary Anne's likeness during the scandal.So many things were as they are now.

I am a fan of Daphne Du Maurier, I just love her writing and I'm also very curious about her family history.There's a lot of really fascinating stuff in the Du Maurier family tree.I wanted to read this book and get an idea about the Du Maurier family past.It took some courage to write this story the way that Du Maurier did.I'm sure I would have taken the sugar coated path if I had been writing about my great-great grandmother.

Du Maurier describes the facade Mary Anne created to give people the impression she was living a luxurious and carefree life, the reader has to wonder if the same is true for the author.Was she living a life with a facade that was very different from reality, the more I read about her the more I think so.

Classic yet intriguing du Maurier
I became interested in this book after reading du Maurier's earlier works, "Rebecca" and "My Cousin Rachel". This book differs in the sense that there is not the whole murder mystery aura overriding the story. However, it is just as riveting because of du Maurier's excellent affinity for creating compelling yet restrictive dialogue between characters. The entire book seems to be a well-played game between two societal camps at war with each other, and this is reflected even at the level of polite banter among the characters. The fact that this fiction is based on a very real relative of du Maurier's makes the story even more attractive. This book provides numerous hedonistic pleasures from its veiled references to sex to its focus on scandal and exploitative trends in society. To be more explicit, if you like to pick up the occasional tabloid in the grocery store for some unknown reason, you will feel a very rich reward along those lines when reading "Mary Anne". Though fiction, it's stunningly exact in details and makes one wonder about du Maurier's own personal experiences w/the aristrocratic society of early 20th Century England.

Revenge of a Georgian feminist...
The Napoleonic era was not easy for the people in England, especially for women like Mary Anne Clarke.In the 1790s, Mary Anne is a teenager with the intelligence and wit that men twice her age lack.And it is through this sharpness that she survives many downward spirals, including her stepfather's abandonment, which threatens survival for her and her family.She suggests offering lodgings to earn extra money, something that leads to her future problems, for she meets Joseph Clarke -- a young, handsome man from a rich family, or so he claims.Mary Anne fancies herself in love with him, and does everything in her power to secure a marriage with him.It is only after they marry and have children that she realizes her mistake.Joseph's father has washed his hands off him, leaving him at his brother's mercy.He goes downhill with drink and laziness.Fed up, Mary Anne leaves him and tries her luck as a courtesan.There she meets the Duke of York, a prince and commander-in-chief.He gives her a life that, to all appearances, is full of luxury and comfort.The truth is that she can barely make it with one thousand pounds a year.In order to make extra money, she uses her newfound influence on the duke to help army men get promotions, pay raises and whatnot.She becomes a middleman of sorts.But this newfound status doesn't last.Her husband makes sure of that.The duke seems to have his eyes set on other pursuits anyway.Mary Anne is left abandoned and humiliated.What is she to do now?One thing is certain: the sharp and cunning anti-heroine will not keep her arms crossed.She has never been idle when it comes to making things happen, and she definitely won't be idle now.

Daphne du Maurier had quite a fascinating family history.The daughter of an actor and granddaughter of a respected writer, she is also a descendant of Mary Anne Clarke.And she has penned a fascinating fictional take on her great-great-grandmother.Like in her other novels, feminism plays a major role in the story.Mrs. Clarke is depicted as a woman long before her time, someone who rebels against the conformities and prejudices set against women.She is who she is and makes no apologies.She even uses her feminine charms to her favor from a very early age.(Notice her subtle but determined flirtation when talking to Mr. Day.)This is yet another wonderful effort by this great writer.This isn't one of my favorites -- Rebecca and The House on the Strand still hold first place -- but it's definitely on top of my list.If you've never read anything by Du Maurier beyond Rebecca, then what are you waiting for?You won't regret taking the plunge.

(4.5) Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned....
A bit different from your usual Du Maurier novel, in this one she tells the story of her great-great-grandmother Mary Anne Clarke. Borne into a poor London family, Mary Anne marries Joseph Clarke who ends up drinking and gambling away any money he gets from his family. Disgusted with the marriage and desperate to support her children, Mary Anne finds herself tempted by a *cough* broker for the wealthy nobility and becomes mistress to Frederick Duke of York.Although being a mistress of a prince with no head for money brings on its own dilemma - how to run a household and a lavish lifestyle on the meager allowance the Duke gives her. With a war looming, men eager for commissions seek preferable treatment through Mary Anne, as the Duke is also the Commander-in-Chief and an offer of money gets a word in the right ear.

Eventually the Duke tires of Mary Anne and she finds herself out in the cold with massive household debts and no pension from the Duke, her brother unjustly cashiered out of the army and her finger is very much in the pie when the scandal of selling commissions hits Parliament with a full blown investigation including the testimony of one very disgruntled ex-mistress.I won't be a spoiler, but further actions taken by Mary Anne in revenge against those who "done her wrong" don't work out as planned and sets her on a nine-month path of harrowing consequences.

Du Maurier is superb as always, she had me hooked from the very unusual opening reflecting back on Mary Anne's life (do go back and reread it after you've finished) to the very end as she makes a very final and fitting farewell to the man who had such an impact on her life. The kind of woman you either love or hate, Mary Anne was most definitely a woman who did what she had to do in order to survive in a man's world and make a better life for her children.Du Maurier doesn't sugar coat her image either - she's presented as is, warts and all. I loved the relationship between her and the Duke, particularly their first meeting in the *cough* broker's parlor where not knowing who she's set to meet she natters on about the latest court gossip (priceless!), to their first dinner and the popping buttons (you'll know when you get there) although tops was the way the author worked in Mary Anne getting those officer's names out there in between seducing the Duke. Its so refreshing to see that an author can write a sex scene so subtly that it isn't staring you in the face with blow-by-blow details but you know what's going on at the same time. The only parts that did drag were the court scenes, with endless pages of testimony and dialogue, and for that I'm knocking off 1/2 star - 4.5/5 stars. ... Read more

Product Description
The idea for this famous story came to du Maurier one day when she was walking across to Menabilly Barton farm from the house. She saw a farmer busily ploughing a field whilst above him the seagulls were diving and wheeling. She developed an idea about the birds becoming hostile and attacking him. In her story, the birds become hostile after a harsh winter with little food -- first the seagulls, then birds of prey, and finally even small birds -- all turn against mankind. The nightmarish vision appealed to Hitchcock who turned it into the celebrated film. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Hitchock screwed the ending.
The Hitchocks ending of this tale was so confussing to me until I read The short story by DU Maurier...In her version the birds present an end to "Mans Rule" of the world, her version leaves you with the dread and terror of the demise of Humans rule of Earth...in the movie you are left to decide on your own, what the final out come will be....in some movies this works good, because only your own imagination can be more terifying than the Movie Maker,...but in the Hitchock ending it just didnt feel that way..."They get away and all live happily ever after, La De Da...If you like THE BIRDS movie, please read this short story, you will enjoy Hitchocks masterpiece/classic even more.

Hitchcock screwed up
Du Maurier's classic, The Birds, is a story of an avian apocalypse.The birds have developed a mass consciousness and decide to take utter revenge for thousands of years of persecution.The story is related by a farmer on the English coast.We see his struggle to understand what is happening and, once he understands, we see his struggle to save his family.

Birds of all species attack during the night.During the day they sit silently and vindictively on their perches.Nat, the farmer, boards over his windows and doors but during the nights there are the terrifying sounds of birds pecking at the weak spots.Even more frighteningly, he hears the ripping sounds as vicious birds of prey tear into his house.

The radio is no help.At first the announcer warns his listeners to beware of attacking birds--then there is total silence.Maybe America will help?But Nat knows that is a hopeless wish.The human race is dying all over the face of the earth.

Hitchcock based his screenplay on this story and he would have been wise to have followed it more closely.Maybe/probably he wanted a positiveending and his hero and heroine escaped out of their bird-ridden area to some bird free area not too far away.Not nearly as ominous.

Ron Braithwaite author "Skull Rack" and "Hummingbird God"

Not Free SF Reader
A good collection of horror stories, with a 3.58 average.The score for this one is hence basically 4.25 out of 5.

Birds and Other Stories : The Birds - Daphne duMaurier
Birds and Other Stories : Monte Verita - Daphne duMaurier
Birds and Other Stories : The Apple Tree - Daphne duMaurier
Birds and Other Stories : The Little Photographer - Daphne duMaurier
Birds and Other Stories : Kiss Me Again Stranger - Daphne duMaurier
Birds and Other Stories : The Old Man - Daphne duMaurier

I Ran - Flock Of Everything.

4 out of 5


Immortal mountain terror.

3.5 out of 5


Newly dead growth trap.

3.5 out of 5


Creepy pose.

3 out of 5


Shooter girl.

4 out of 5


Swanflict.

4 out of 5




4 out of 5

The Source of Hitchcock's
This is my first taste of Du Maurier but I like it very much :)
The language is beautiful but compact, concise. Fast paced. No extra burden for the eyes.

THE BIRDS, the inspiration of Hitchcock's movie version. Although it is different between the book and movie, the dread they caused
is almost the same with their own focus. In the movie, you'll get the visualization of the dread while through book the description of the attack was violent enough that you couldn't see no end.

MONTE VERITA. It's like reading supernatural story about Maya people at first which was followed by friendship between 2 people, their meeting with a very beautiful enigmatic woman until the strange happening in Monte Verita. In the end, it was still the supernatural one but behind it, there was a horror value in it that makes you see what Monte Verita really was.

APPLE TREE. This is my fav story of this book. A creepy tale of a wife that haunted her husband after her death.
What you thought will not be the same with what you would along the way. A very good material for Outer Limit program.

LITTLE PHOTOGRAPHER. Like watching an Agatha Christie's mytery movie but leave the detective part. This is a story of unintentional villain with heart that was numbed because of life.

KISS ME AGAN STRANGER. Hohoho, this one has a horror surprise!! I wouldn't give any detail what kind of surprise less it would spoil the fun.

OLD MAN. This is my second fav because what I thought when this story began is dashed beautifully at the end ;)

the plot was fine...
but i Could Fall asleep while reading. I didn't find it so exciting. 3 stars are only for the unusual plot full of fantasy, but the writing isn't so marvellous in my opinion. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Old classic worth reading
Liked "Rebecca"?You'll LOVE The Scapegoat.Can't buy new anymore; get one of these nice old editions from Amazon and you'll get caught up in a bygone age.Wonder why they never made a movie from this one, it begs for it.

The Scapegoat
Another book was sent to me in error:"How To Get Clients" by Jeff Slutsky arrived in an envelope stating its contents as "The Scapegoat" by Daphne duMaurier which is the book I had ordered.I responded by your Customer Service dept. by e-mail and received an apology for the error, along with instructions to keep the 'wrong' book.I then received the book I had ordered "The Scapegoat" within another week or so.

Pages of "The Scapegoat" are yellowed and some are stained.However, the binding is secure and no pages are missing.

I only rated the transaction with three stars due to the delay caused by the shipment of the wrong book and because of the less than pristine condition of "The Scapegoat." ... Read more

Product Description
"Someone jolted my elbow as I drank and said, 'Je vousdemande pardon,' and as I moved to give him space he turned and staredat me and I at him, and I realized, with a strange sense of shock andfear and nausea all combined, that his face and voice were known to metoo well.

I was looking at myself."

Two men--one English, the other French--meet by chance in a provincial railway station and are astounded that they are so much alike that they could easily pass for each other. Over the course of a long evening, they talk and drink. It is not until he awakes the next day that John, the Englishman, realizes that he may have spoken too much. His French companion is gone, having stolen his identity. For his part, John has no choice but to take the Frenchman's place--as master of a chateau, director of a failing business, head of a large and embittered family, and keeper of too many secrets.

Loaded with suspense and wit, The Scapegoat tells the double story of the attempts by John, the imposter, to escape detection by the family, servants, and several mistresses of his alter ego, and of his constant and frustrating efforts to unravel the mystery of the enigmatic past that dominates the existence of all who live in the chteau.

Hailed by the New York Times as a masterpiece of "artfully compulsive storytelling," The Scapegoat brings us Daphne du Maurier at the very top of her form. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (30)

"I cannot believe how good this book is ... Seriously!"
A usual du Maurier page-turner, in which she typically & savvily incorporates the ennui of the rich, the plight of the working class, the vestiges of war, the tensions between the sexes, the human need for meaningful work, the uncanny insight of children and animals, the history of the Occupation in WWII France (specifically), and god-knows-how-many-other-things in the service of a "pick it up and read it at the beach" entertaining yarn.

AND: every chapter ends with a SURPRISE! (You know, like those old "Hardy Boys" books ... except they're LEGITIMATE surprises!No "rip-offs" or "cheats"!)

Who Am I, and What Am I Going to Do About It?
Literary and yet surprisingly readable tale of an English professor of French who finds his exact double in a cafe in France. He awakes the next morning to find himself drugged, his clothes and identification gone, and his duplicate's possessions in their place. Now he has to assume the Count's identity, figure out the secrets of the ancestral mansion, and repair the damage his French twin has done all his life. What is the Count's relationship with his mother? His spinster Catholic aunt? Or the young girl who is convinced she is a saint?

Du Maurier's prose is poetic without being preachy, literary without being boring, and still manages to make you want to turn the page. More than that, the novel deals with big concepts like identity, personal responsibility, freedom, family, and the continuing aftermath of the German occupation of France during World War II. Recommended for literature fans and anyone who wants a good book and a cup of coffee to curl up with on a rainy day.

Great
The Scapegoat is the story of two men, identical in appearance, who meet by chance in a train station one day. After a few drinks too many, the Englishman, John, wakes in the morning to find that the Frenchman, Jean, has stolen his identity--and that John must take his doppelganger's place, as the Count de Gue and the master of a failing estate, family, and glass making company.

I've read I believe six of Daphne Du Maurier's novels now, and I can honestly say that this is different from the others. It's not an historical novel, nor is it a novel of suspense. There's no real feeling of terror that the reader feels (except maybe for one scene at the end) while reading this book. There's no real mystery, here, either, except for the one of Jean's past that John tries to piece together bit by bit. So what kind of novel is The Scapegoat?

It's a brilliant novel about human nature, which pits two men who are in appearance very similar; but in other ways are very, very different. John's life may be going down the tubes, too, but he doesn't ever contemplate running away from his troubles the way that Jean does--therein lies the difference between the two men. I have to think that Jean de Gue (the real one) is a bit of a coward, running away from his responsibilities. But on the other hand, John is also a bit cowardly. I find it hard to believe that anyone, after making such an impact on a family in the space of the week, would just be able to walk away at the end. Also, I found it hard to believe that John could react so calmly to what Jean reveals about John's life at the end of the book.

Still, this novel shows how amazing it is that people will believe anything you want them to, if it's in the realm of possibility. After all, nobody would believe that two men, identical in appearance, would meet by chance one day and switch places--it's just too fantastical to contemplate (which is why the chauffeur believes "Jean" to be drunk when he picks John up at the hotel at the beginning of the book). It's a brilliant novel, as I've said about the way of human nature. It's not my favorite of Daphne Du Maurier's novels, but it's pretty good all the same.

Two strangers, identical in appearance, a chance meeting and.....
...lives are forever changed. English John meets French Count Jean and share dinner and drinks as they discuss the remarkable likeness the two share. But Jean's financial problems drive him to render John unconscious, switch identities and leave him in his place to deal with his failing glass factory and fractious family. John soon finds himself in the midst of a mine-field dealing with a pregnant "wife", a couple of mistresses (one of those being his sister-in-law), a "sister" who won't speak to him, a precocious "daughter" and an ailing "mother" with a bad habit.

Despite all the pitfalls, John comes to care for this new family and strives to find ways to make the glass factory a success - until a tragedy strikes that brings an unexpected financial windfall to the family's fortunes - but news of that windfalls also brings back...... More than that I'm not telling - you know I'm not into spoilers and book reports. As with all Du Maurier's books her writing and characterizations are subtle and sublime and I'm once again left with an enigmatic ending that kept me guessing just a little bit more. Four stars.

Story will Linger in Your Mind
As another reviewer wrote, "The Scapegoat" doesn't have the eeriness of other du Maurier works. There simply isn't that feeling that one or two of the characters really need to go lay on a couch and spend some time with a therapist. This lack of emotional stability among the players, which creates tension for the reader, would certainly crank up the book's intensity a notch.

Enough of the negative, though. This is a good novel - not fast paced but typical du Maurier in its detailed descriptions and insights into human frailty. It'll leave you with an aftertaste, so to speak, well after you've moved onto your next book.

Some readers complain that the storyline is not plausible. Well, you just have to take a right turn into the ditch at the beginning of the book and then let events take their course. Personally, I don't understand how two people's voices could be so identical as to not give one away.

I would like to have seen our protagonist, John, show more backbone at the end instead of reverting to the wimp that he was in the opening chapter. I mean, in one short week he had begun to heal the dysfunction in his adopted family.

I was unable to grasp, though, where John was headed - only 50 km away - at the end of the book. Can someone provide me with that answer?

Incidentally, the April 2009 issue of "Our Daily Bread" refers to DdM's book and says the origin of the word "Scapegoat" comes from a ceremony performed with two goats on the Hebrew Day of Atonement (known today as Yom Kippur). The high priest would sacrifice one goat and symbolically place the sins of the people on the head of the other -- the scapegoat -- before it was sent into the wilderness carrying away the blame of the sin.
... Read more

Product Description

Auerbach examines the writer of depth and recklessness now largely known only as the author of Rebecca, looking at the way her sharp-edged fiction, with its brutal and often perverse family relationships, has been softened in film adaptations of her work. She reads both du Maurier's life in her writings, and the sensibility of a vanished class and time that haunts the fringes of our own age.

Customer Reviews (5)

This Is NotA Biography
If you are looking for a biography on Daphne Du Maurier, I would not recommend Haunted Heiress.This is a rambling, free form work of literary criticism.You would do better to check this book out from the library rather than paying the steep price.

You can learn more about the story of Du Maurier's life by doing a web search.

Also, if you are interested in visuals, there are none in Haunted Heiress, save for the cover. The text did conjure up some mental images of Ms. Auerbach, though... (narcissistic, cranky, and snobbish) but none of Daphne Du Maurier.

I did very much appreciate Ms. Auerbach's observations on Du Maurier's affinity for the way men can live their lives, with more freedom and flexibility.

I wish Ms. Auerbach would have done more research on Du Maurier's life and interwoven it with her pop-up thoughts on this book or that.

Du Maurier - More Than Just Escapist Fiction
Auerbach, a professor of literature at University of Pennsylvania, dazzles the reader with her fascination for the writings of Daphne Du Maurier, the writer unfortunately best known for the so-called Gothic novel, 'Rebecca'and various film adaptations like Hitchcock's 'The Birds' and Roeg's 'Don't Look Now'.
As a young summer camp participant in the early 50s, Auerbach found herself both entranced by Du Maurier's vicious protagonists and repulsed by her label as a 'romantic' writer of escapist woman's fiction.Her analysis of Du Maurier's work vehemently disputes Du Maurier's dismissal by critics; Auerbach finds her male centered stories brimming with fully drawn characters that derive their strength from a violent/murderous reaction to the females who enter their lives.Du Maurier's female narrators (1st person or otherwise) depend upon their omnipotent male counterparts for identity; the so-called romances of Rebecca, Jamaica Inn and Frenchman's Creek are not driven by love as they are erroneously depicted in the corresponding movie adaptations, but revolve around the transition of the female acquiescing to the strength of the male and becoming dependent on him for identity and definition.These female protagonists, like Du Maurier, herself, initially possess the characteristics of young boys and only become women by losing their independence.Above all, Auerbach describes Du Maurier's haunted inheritance: the necessity of keeping of her heritage alive as initiated by her grandfather George, author of 'Trilby' and her actor father ,Gerald.

This is not a biography of Daphne Du Maurier, but rather a literary critique of her many novels and fantastic short stories.As it relates to Du Maurier's fiction, Auerbach eludes to Du Maurier's penchant towards lesbianism, citing Margaret Forster's book, "Daphne Du Maurier: The Secret Life of the Renowned Storyteller" as her source.She analyzes the movie adaptations, finding Hitchcock's 'Rebecca', 'Jamaica Inn' and 'The Birds' inferior to the original thoughts as penned by the author, herself.

As I have found myself compelled over the years to reread Daphne Du Maurier's lesser known masterpieces, like 'The House on the Strand', 'The Scapegoat', and 'My Cousin Rachel', I fully understand Auerbach's fascination with the author and the strange almost spellbinding hold she has over her readers.I recommend this book to anyone who has been under the Du Maurier spell and realizes that she is much, much more than just a escapist romance writer.Like Patricia Highsmith, her amoral comments on male/female relationships wickedly define the 20th century.

A revealing, absorbing study
Du Maurier is the author of almost twenty novels, articles, plays, memoirs and short stories; yet is known for a relatively limited handful of popular works. Daphne Du Maurier: Haunted Heiress analyzes her lesser-known volumes and their characters, providing a strong literary analysis of metaphors in her writing, and ethnic and social observations of her choices and times. The result is a revealing, absorbing study.

Long overdue appreciation
This book is a great complement to du Maurier's fiction. Auerbach has written a very personal account of du Maurier's life and its relation to her writing. I liked the intimate tone of the book, as if you were talkingto Auerbach over coffee; there is nothing over-blown or haughty. Auerbach'sanalysis of how du Maurier's stories were (mis-)adapted for film isbrilliant, as well as Auerbach's discussion about du Maurier's sexualityand prejudices. Quite enjoyable.

HAUNTED HEIRESS - a pretentious work
Although the HAUNTED HEIRESS attempts to instill in the reader the notion that Daphne du Maurier's works do not fall into the "romance" genre, she fails to convenience the reader of this.Even drawingcomparisons to du Maurier's grandfather and contrasts to the great Brontës,all is lost in her attempt to move Daphne du Maurier out of this shallowgenre and into one of a more academically acceptable category. Hersupportive arguments are grotesquely silly and oftentimes clouded by anawkward, pompous writing style. ... Read more