Rebecca - Daphne du Maurier.
I guess I am the last person on the face of the planet who is this late in reading this book. And Just when I thought (prior to reading this book) that I already have read the best of the year 2018 came along this one which changed it all for the best. After finishing the book and falling in love with it big time, not only with the amazing characters I am literally finding it hard to explain how I feel. Take it this way, if you have ridden a Harley Davidson bike, the experience I will call "Love in motion" similar way Rebecca is "Love in literature". Where the reader not only falls in love with the book or the story or the characters but with everything else as well and totally lives in the Awe of it all. I read the Kindle version and up-to the 33% mark I was like "Who is Rebecca?", around 66% mark I was like "What is Rebecca" and by the time it hits the end I was like "Why Rebecca Why??". What an amazingly superb and delightful read this was especially when the entire story of one Mrs. de Winter (Rebecca) is told by second Mrs. de Winter who Author refuses to name or disclose the name to the readers. I was short of eyes to read this gem of a book and decode it as well as I had to keep an eye on the Husband, an eye on his new wife, an eye on the mistress of the house in their absence, an eye on the dead wife (Rebecca), an extra eye on her cousin, and one final eye on the remaining characters which keep making an entrance and exit.
Book starts with the legendary line "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again." and I had Goosebumps 
. Now that I know what it means, it makes so much more sense. Story of heart broken Max de Winter who has recently lost his wife in a mysterious circumstance meets a girl half of his age and ends up marrying her in no time. One the other hand we have a girl with no name (I was thinking of Murakami) and no life whatsoever who works as an aid to a whimsy American lady. In a very brief encounter with Max, she actually falls in love with the man and prays that he rescues her from her mistress who is about to take her to America against of-course her wishes. And imagine all of this happens in one of my all time favorite places "Monte Carlo", again I must mention that I am huge huge F1 fan and Monte Carlo has one of the best racing tracks in the world where the race takes place inside the cities roads. And that's where Max and the future Mrs. de Winter fall in love as well end up marrying before they head back home to mysterious Manderley. The girls life changes upside down as soon as she steps in Manderley and comes in the Aura of the earlier Mrs. de Winter - Rebecca. The much loved and admired female not only by the people working in the house but also by everyone she comes across around the town as well. She realizes in no time that she is no match and no patch on Rebecca and she has committed a sort of mistake in falling in love and marrying Max who himself starts behaving differently once back in Manderley. Her worst enemy is Mrs. Danvers the chief housekeeper, who maintains that Rebecca is still there in Maderley even after a year of her death. I found the story hauntingly beautiful and very intriguing as the way it is narrated and almost every page the mention of Rebecca comes in, I kept imagining that she will actually pop out of a wardrobe, right in front of the new Mrs. de Winter to further haunt her. And trust me when I say this, she actually does you have to read the book to know how it goes ahead, if she is dead, why and how she died and how that all makes Mr and Mrs. de Winter's life into a hell. Who wins in the end, Rebecca or the Winters, what happens to Mrs. Danvers the ever so loyal of Rebecca and what about her cousin?
. Now that I know what it means, it makes so much more sense. Story of heart broken Max de Winter who has recently lost his wife in a mysterious circumstance meets a girl half of his age and ends up marrying her in no time. One the other hand we have a girl with no name (I was thinking of Murakami) and no life whatsoever who works as an aid to a whimsy American lady. In a very brief encounter with Max, she actually falls in love with the man and prays that he rescues her from her mistress who is about to take her to America against of-course her wishes. And imagine all of this happens in one of my all time favorite places "Monte Carlo", again I must mention that I am huge huge F1 fan and Monte Carlo has one of the best racing tracks in the world where the race takes place inside the cities roads. And that's where Max and the future Mrs. de Winter fall in love as well end up marrying before they head back home to mysterious Manderley. The girls life changes upside down as soon as she steps in Manderley and comes in the Aura of the earlier Mrs. de Winter - Rebecca. The much loved and admired female not only by the people working in the house but also by everyone she comes across around the town as well. She realizes in no time that she is no match and no patch on Rebecca and she has committed a sort of mistake in falling in love and marrying Max who himself starts behaving differently once back in Manderley. Her worst enemy is Mrs. Danvers the chief housekeeper, who maintains that Rebecca is still there in Maderley even after a year of her death. I found the story hauntingly beautiful and very intriguing as the way it is narrated and almost every page the mention of Rebecca comes in, I kept imagining that she will actually pop out of a wardrobe, right in front of the new Mrs. de Winter to further haunt her. And trust me when I say this, she actually does you have to read the book to know how it goes ahead, if she is dead, why and how she died and how that all makes Mr and Mrs. de Winter's life into a hell. Who wins in the end, Rebecca or the Winters, what happens to Mrs. Danvers the ever so loyal of Rebecca and what about her cousin?
This is undoubtedly one of the best Love stories cum suspense thrillers that I have read in the recent times where I totally felt helpless so much that I wanted to get inside the story and help the Winters . Although there is a little respite for the Winters too in the form of Max's right hand man Frank, who not only works for him but is a great friend too at all times. And Frith the butler too was one of my favorite characters from the story. But the aura of Rebecca is so strong that even after she being not there in person, it is very hard not to fall in love with her. The inevitable comparison of both the Mrs. Winters and the failure of the new one in keeping up with the Winter's previous style is totally amazing read. And the way the suspense builds up, opening of the card and the mind-blowing earth shattering ending, the book actually deserves all the accolades and an absolute standing ovation from the reader. Wow! that last para brought the Goosebumps back which the first line gives the reader.
. Although there is a little respite for the Winters too in the form of Max's right hand man Frank, who not only works for him but is a great friend too at all times. And Frith the butler too was one of my favorite characters from the story. But the aura of Rebecca is so strong that even after she being not there in person, it is very hard not to fall in love with her. The inevitable comparison of both the Mrs. Winters and the failure of the new one in keeping up with the Winter's previous style is totally amazing read. And the way the suspense builds up, opening of the card and the mind-blowing earth shattering ending, the book actually deserves all the accolades and an absolute standing ovation from the reader. Wow! that last para brought the Goosebumps back which the first line gives the reader.
Another amazing thing that put a big big smile on my face after I finished this book was, my own signature . If you have read this you know what I am talking about. Especially the way my R flows and is followed by the rest of the letters, I now feel amazing and it will always remind me of that haunting name Rebecca.
. If you have read this you know what I am talking about. Especially the way my R flows and is followed by the rest of the letters, I now feel amazing and it will always remind me of that haunting name Rebecca.
Have you read and loved Rebecca? Although (Unfortunately) this is my first Daphne du Maurier book, but is there a book from her which is at par or any better than this one?
PS (Spoiler ahead): For those who have read and loved the book, I really need to ask this. Is the ending justified as per you? By the way Max is let go from what he had done. And what happens with Manderley in the end, you think it is done by Mrs. Danvers as a revenge? And with that, you think she knows what happened with Rebecca in the first place.
No comments:
Post a Comment