Rebecca

Bibliography
Du Maurier, Daphne. Rebecca. Read by Anna Massey. Hachette Audio. 2014. Audiobook.
image from: www.amazon.com

My Thoughts
I listened to this book. Anna Massey did a phenomenal job reading. I found myself mimicking her voice and pronunciation to certain things. She also had a creepiness about her voice with a few characters that added to the suspense of the book.

Plot summary (from Amazon) "The reader is ushered into an isolated gray stone mansion 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 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. 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."

The book was originally published in 1938 and is 27 chapters long. As I was listening, I kept thinking, "Where's the action? This is supposed to be a suspense novel? How long is this going to drag on? Oh, this is so British!" Then, I hit the apex chapter and got very excited. I wanted to hear more. I had to know what was going to happen. In fact, I was at scrapbook retreat listening to this book! I had to find out what was next for these characters. When I finished the book, I was surprised. I expected one resolution only to find a different one. The story continues until the very last word. WOW! 

We are never told the narrator's first name. We are, however, told of Rebecca, the late first wife of Maxim de Winter. As the unnamed second Mrs. de Winter imagines what life was like or scenes from her husband's past or scenes of how something should occur, I thought about how we all do that--imagine scenarios. The narrator has quite the imagination of what life MUST have been like at Manderley with the beautiful late wife. Boy, was she wrong!

I'm not sure if I read this book, I would have stuck with it. However, listening to it was a great experience.