Rating: Very Good
Source: Purchased
Description: Orphaned at an early age, Philip Ashley is raised by his benevolent older cousin, Ambrose. Resolutely single, Ambrose delights in Philip as his heir, a man who will love his grand home as much as he does himself. But the cosy world the two construct is shattered when Ambrose sets off on a trip to Florence. There he falls in love and marries - and there he dies suddenly. Jealous of his marriage, racked by suspicion at the hints in Ambrose's letters, and grief-stricken by his death, Philip prepares to meet his cousin's widow with hatred in his heart. Despite himself, Philip is drawn to this beautiful, sophisticated, mysterious Rachel like a moth to the flame. And yet... might she have had a hand in Ambrose's death?
Genre: Mystery - Classic
Why I Picked This Book: This book has been on my wishlist for years so when Mareli from Mareli Thalk ink suggested doing a joint review I couldn't resist. Go visit her here to see her thoughts.
My Impression: I was a little nervous going into this one. I loved Rebecca and adored her short story collection featuring The Birds (which the Hitchcock movie was very loosely based) but Frenchman's Creek and I were not friends. This story was more in the vein of Rebecca with all the creepy atmosphere and characters of questionable moments. Needless to say I was hooked pretty quick!
The story opens with Philip Ashley reminiscing about walking with his cousin and coming across the corpse of a man that had been hanged for murder. The scene disturbed him more than he'd like to admit and while not graphic starts the book off with an unsettling feel that doesn't let up until the end.
This wasn't a flawless read. I felt like it got a little slow in the middle and Philip had times when he needed to stop being an idiot blinded by love or not. However, du Maurier's writing style pulls the reader in. It just feels like something is going to happen and I didn't want to put the book down until it did! The ending is somewhat ambiguous in true du Maurier habit and it's left to the reader to determine guilt or innocence, angel or devil.
I'm not sure this book replaces Rebecca as my favorite du Maurier read but I definitely won't be nervous next time I pick up a Daphne du Maurier novel.
Would I Read More of this Series/Author: Absolutely! I've been neglecting du Maurier for far too long!
Would I Recommend this Book? Definitely! If you enjoy Gothic mysteries or loved Rebecca I think you'd really enjoy this one.
Hallo!! Ooh, this was a great book. I loved the opening line and closing line. It was just PERFECT.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that Philip should have stopped being such a wining idiot in the middle. Gosh, but I guess if you don't know women at all - a women like Rachel will have you in her claws.
Thank you sooooo much for joining me in reading this. We must really do it again. You can pick the next read!
xoxoxo
This is also on my list of books I want to read this year, so glad you liked it. I am looking forward to it. Now I will go check out Marli's site since you put the link.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to reading this book for RIP in the fall!
ReplyDeleteI really need to try one of her books - there's one on my shelf! Glad this was a winner for you.
ReplyDeleteI've never read this author and don't read many of the classics, but this sounds good.
ReplyDeleteI read this book many years ago, around the same time that I read Rebecca, Jamaica Inn, and Frenchman's Creek. I remember very little of the stories...just that I loved Rebecca and Jamaica Inn and have copies of both books to re-read. If I ever get around to them.
ReplyDeleteThe movie My Cousin Rachel is on Amazon Prime...I was thinking of watching it.
Thanks for sharing.
Glad it all came together. I have not tried this author, but this one appeals to me.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe I've seen hers before. That's awesome it turned out to be so good. I'm always nervous after not getting along with one.
ReplyDeleteI remember reading her books a long, long time ago, when I was in the Gothic stage, but despite her obvious talent, I'm not sure I can revisit any of her work these days. Loved your review, though. Hugs...
ReplyDeleteCan you believe that I have still not read Rebecca? I had it as a free audio book from the SYNC summer reading program a couple of years ago, but when I deleted my Overdrive app from my device all of the books went away. Overdrive said that wasn't supposed to happen, but they never offered any help about it. It happened again last year, so I think they are liars. :P
ReplyDeleteCan you believe that I have still not read Rebecca? I had it as a free audio book from the SYNC summer reading program a couple of years ago, but when I deleted my Overdrive app from my device all of the books went away. Overdrive said that wasn't supposed to happen, but they never offered any help about it. It happened again last year, so I think they are liars. :P
ReplyDeleteThis one is a favourite of mine - in many ways, I prefer it to Rebecca. That circular structure is just so clever and apt... And the ambigiuity at the end... She's a brilliant writer whose work simply doesn't date all that much.
ReplyDeleteI have Frenchman's Creek but I sounds like maybe I need to skip over that one and pick this one up first.
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