January 2021 book of the month club

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rubysmama

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I'm not so bored with Rebecca anymore. I'm starting to adjust the slower pace and the writing style. I think I just need to stop trying to rush through the pages and take my time reading it.
I'm happy to hear that. :yess: It's still slow going for me, but I too am trying to get used to the slower pace and enjoy the ride. :read:
 

Lola3791

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Just finished chapter 19.
:jawdrop::jawdrop::jawdrop:
I did too. I was so shocked!
I feel so bad for the main character. Her marriage has failed and Mrs. Danvers is so evil. She tried to convince the main character to kill herself and she tricked her into wearing Rebecca's dress! Mrs. Danvers grief is so... intense, if that's the right word to describe it.
 

Mia6

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It's as though Danvers blames Mrs. De Winter for Rebecca's death I think she thought of Rebecca as her daughter. That stunt she pulled at the ball Re: the dress was scandalous.
 

Mia6

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It always struck me as odd that she didn't have a first name.


Clue to Mrs. De Winter's firs name

Du Maurier's book does contain a few hints about the second Mrs. de Winter's name. When Maxim sends her a note at the hotel where the two of them meet, she notes that her name is "spelled correctly, an unusual thing." Later, Maxim comments that "you have a very lovely and unusual name," to which the protagonist replies that she owes it to her lovely and unusual father. As the conversation wraps up, Maxim returns to the subject of her name and says "it becomes you as well as it became your father" - suggesting that the "lovely and unusual" name he was referring to was actually her surname.

Du Maurier's book does contain a few hints about the second Mrs. de Winter's name. When Maxim sends her a note at the hotel where the two of them meet, she notes that her name is "spelled correctly, an unusual thing." Later, Maxim comments that "you have a very lovely and unusual name," to which the protagonist replies that she owes it to her lovely and unusual father. As the conversation wraps up, Maxim returns to the subject of her name and says "it becomes you as well as it became your father" - suggesting that the "lovely and unusual" name he was referring to was actually her surname.




SOURCE

Rebecca: Why Lily James's Character Doesn't Have A Name
 

pearl99

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I'm not so bored with Rebecca anymore. I'm starting to adjust the slower pace and the writing style. I think I just need to stop trying to rush through the pages and take my time reading it.
I stayed up one night until 2AM to finish it, I had to know how it ended.
 

gilmargl

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What did you guys think?
I thought it was amazing. Wonderful language without being pretentious.

Throughout the book we are all on the side of this young Mrs De Winters, hoping she'll find happiness, At the end she's living in exile - her husband's companion - keeping his mind from dwelling on his first wife and home. She's no doubt happy in this role as it's one she learnt while being paid as a lady's companion. She was always jealous of Rebecca and she can now pretend that to all intents and purposes she never existed. Her life will no doubt continue in this way until either she or her husband dies.

But when we compare the 2 Mrs De Winters, and dare to ask ourselves which of the two was the more alive? Obviously Rebecca - running Manderley, organising events, horse riding ...... always busy. Which one was loved? Everybody loved Rebecca (even her husband, who killed her, otherwise he would never have been so distraught after her death!) People didn't necessarily approve of her behaviour, but they all loved Rebecca and wanted her around. She was manipulative - getting people to like her, but she evidently succeeded very well.
Which one would you (as a woman) prefer to be? The timid, rather secretive "No-Name" who is married to a murderer, and keeps her thoughts to herself or the mad, flamboyant Rebecca (yes, she's got a name!) who laughs about her sexual escapades with men (and women?), lives life to the full and even organises her own death when the time comes. It's just as well we can't choose.

But Daphne du Maurier had her own doubts about what a woman should be - she hated being just an extension to a husband.

(Use my husband's name, I'm just a boring No-Name and easily interchangeable)

A very clever book!!! Sorry that I'm not good at putting my thoughts into words.
 

Mia6

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No-Name manned up in the end. telling the staff about different foods, etx. She got spunky.

gilmargl gilmargl I don't think everyone loved her, maybe in awe of her. I think Maxim felt guilty about killing her
but I think he deeply loved little no name.

I think Rebecca had Bipolar Disorder, untreated, I don't know if there was anything to treat it with back them.
Laurence Olivier was married to Vivian Leigh and she had it. He played Maxim in the film which I have coming from the library.
 

gilmargl

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No-Name manned up in the end. telling the staff about different foods, etx. She got spunky.

gilmargl gilmargl I don't think everyone loved her, maybe in awe of her. I think Maxim felt guilty about killing her
but I think he deeply loved little no name.

I think Rebecca had Bipolar Disorder, untreated, I don't know if there was anything to treat it with back them.
Laurence Olivier was married to Vivian Leigh and she had it. He played Maxim in the film which I have coming from the library.
Please don't take me too seriously. Let's agree to disagree. But ..... I have only read the book although I did watch the film many years ago, and it definitely concentrated on the psycho-/scary effects far more than the book does. I cannot believe that Maxim loved No-Name and certainly not "deeply". She was convenient but was not allowed to talk about the past - not even hint at it. She had to remain a little girl, keeping her hair straight and not dress up or develop in any way. She could be trusted not to rock the boat and that was all that mattered. If that is love then I really don't want to know about it. Perhaps of all three he was the biggest nut case :) We only really see him through No-Name's eyes and ...... well, she is a bit biased.
 
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rubysmama

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Despite this book being published 83 years ago, I not only had never read it, I knew nothing of the story or author. So I went into it blind, and at first even thought the narrator was Rebecca.

I can now say I loved the book, and would give it a rating of 4 1/2 stars out of 5, but I did find the beginning very slow and boring. But very glad I kept going, as it turned into a twisty and curvy ride.

I was shocked when it was revealed that Max had killed Rebecca. In fact, even though he confessed, I still didn't believe it. I had myself convinced that Rebecca was still alive, what with Danvers keeping her room ready for her return. And the mysterious "woman in peach" at the ball. Who was she anyway? Just a red herring, I guess.

The final twist of Rebecca not being pregnant, but dying and subsequently taunting Max till he killed her was interesting. So she did, in a way, commit suicide.

Though I couldn't quite root for a murderer getting away with his crime, I did love how it all worked out without him being charged.

Poor Ben. Obviously Rebecca and Favell threatened him with the asylum if he ever told anyone he'd seen them together, so it served Favell right when he needed Ben as a witness, Ben denied knowing him..

After I finished the book, I went back and read the first chapter again, which now made a lot more sense. It was clear then that Manderley was gone, and yet I was still surprised by the ending and the fire.

It didn't help that with both a preview of another of the author's books, plus the afterword, I was only at 95% read when the book ended. So I really was shocked that it was over.

And while not as famous as "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again ", the final sentence "And the ashes blew towards us with the salt wind from the sea.” really left you with a chilling visual.

Great book. Great author. Not sure if I would have ever read it on my own, so glad it was chosen for the book club.

Now I want to watch the Hitchcock movie, which is on Youtube. And also the 1979 BBC adaption, which is on Hoopla. There's also a new Netflix version, but just watching the trailer, it doesn't look like it will have the same feel as the book.
 
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