Rebecca, our reader for the second part of the year

First edition front cover

Rebecca is the story of a woman named Rebecca… oh wait. No. It's totally and completely not. It's actually the story of the rich, stylish and frightening widower (his wife had died), Maxim de Winter, and his fabulous country house (in fact, a very large property), called Manderley. 

The story is narrated by Maxim's second wife, known only as Mrs. de Winter, who finds herself living in the shadows of Maxim's first wife. And that's Rebecca!  However, we never meet her... Strange? 

It was published in 1938 and its author is Daphne du Maurier, who was born in Cornwall, a county in the southwest of England. (check the map). The novel was an instant bestseller and has never gone out of print.

Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier
in Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca

The novel has been adapted for the theater, the TV and cinema. Alfred Hitchcock's film based on the book won Oscars for Best Picture, and Best Cinematographer. The movie is a must-see, a classic piece of cinematic history. But, you'll probably enjoy it a lot more when you've devoured the deliciously disturbing novel on which it's based.

The best thing about this novel? It's both serious literature and guilty pleasure.

Why should I find it interesting?
Rebecca is a classic story of deception and betrayal. It's a serious look into the imperfections of upper class society and the war between good and evil within a single person. It will leave you thinking about the meaning of sacrifice, desire, and nostalgia... OK, ok... is this too serious? Try the following...

Hello, lovers of guilty pleasure! So, you love page-turners that you can fly through in hours? You're looking for something to read on a long plane ride? Rebecca is totally for you. This is a soap-opera crime thriller: the story of obsession and murder; old lovers and new lies.