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Rebecca cover art

Rebecca

By: Daphne Du Maurier
Narrated by: Anna Massey
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Summary

Exclusively from Audible

'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.'

So begins Daphne du Maurier's masterpiece, Rebecca. When the story's nameless narrator, a young and unassuming lady's maid, meets a wealthy and handsome widower, she is immediately swept off her feet in what many would've considered an unlikely 20th century match. Maxim de Winter, the owner of a large country estate by the name of Manderley, whisks his new bride away to his home in Cornwall, hoping to rid himself of his sinister past. As the heroine begins her new life at Manderley, she comes to the realisation that the shadow of her predecessor, Rebecca de Winter, lives on through the masonry of the home and through the stern and scathing housekeeper, Mrs Danvers.

A tense and unnerving tale, Rebecca depicts the crippling effect that self-doubt and external manipulation can have on a young and innocent woman's spirit. Due to her own feelings of jealousy, du Maurier based the tale on her husband's first fiancée, claiming that Rebecca would demonstrate the 'influence of a first wife on a second', where 'wife two is haunted day and night' and 'tragedy is looming very close.' Much like her heroine, Daphne du Maurier was said to be solitary, comfortable with her own company and possessed of an incredible imagination. First and foremost, however, du Maurier was an excellent storyteller, and Rebecca is undoubtedly a shining example of her talent.

Narrator Biography

Anna Massey was an award-winning stage and screen actress best remembered for her roles in Peeping Tom, Frenzy, The Machinist, Possession and The Importance of Being Earnest.

On the small screen, Anna became a mainstay of British costume drama, acting in adaptations of Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Anna Karenina, The Cherry Orchard, and Oliver Twist. In 1986, she won a BAFTA for her performance in the BBC adaptation of Hotel du Lac and was made a CBE in the 2004 New Year Honours List.

Her audiobook narration credits include Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Sense and Sensibility, Hotel du Lac, Nicholas Nickleby, Fairy Stories and Talking Heads.

©1938 Daphne Du Maurier (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Rebecca

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A classic story of love and life.

A true wonder in the world of the others. Rebecca transports you to a world of decadence, to a world of a young girl who falls in love with an older man. She follows him home but finds there is a skeleton in the closet and that skeleton nearly destroys her world. More twists and turns than a ride at Alton Towers.

Well read and played out. You are transported into the lives of the characters and feel an affinity to the main characters.

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44 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

What a treat...

This is an aural feast; Daphne Du Maurier's superb, atmospheric storytelling combined with Anna Massey's wonderful narration. It has been my constant companion for the past few days, as I snatch time wherever I can to follow the journey of the unnamed second Mrs de Winter through her life at Manderley. It's a story I know well, of course, from the classic film, but I have never read the book. Now it's all coming to life in my head - the sunlit morning room, the air of menace in the cove, the scent of the rose garden and, over it all, the brooding presence of Mrs Danvers, simultaneously repelling and fascinating our shy and puzzled protagonist. I may know the plot, but now it is being fleshed out so vividly that I could almost imagine that I can turn a corner and find myself in the mysterious West Wing at Manderley and encounter the spirit of Rebecca. Absolutely fantastic stuff.

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43 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Rebecca

Anna Massey has the perfect voice to narrate this book. Her voice expresses just the right amount of menace for the sinister housekeeper Mrs. Danvers.

An excellent choice for listening to while sipping a cool drink in the sunshine. I have awarded it five stars and it is worth them all. A super audio book.

I listened to it last summer while sitting in the sun doing my knitting - perfect!

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32 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Mixed experience

Would you try another book written by Daphne Du Maurier or narrated by Anna Massey?

No. As much as I admire Anna Massey as an actress, she can't really find the right voice for the male characters in the book. Her reading of Maxim de Winter is in a constantly angry tone, which makes him a big bore and the moments when he IS angry or annoyed, go for nothing because he has been sounding like that all the time. Maxim had a few charming moments, especially at the start of the book. Massey doesn't bring them out.

For other male characters (Colonel Julyan, Jack Favell) Anna Massey goes for a kind of nasal caricature so the dramatic climax scene in the library at the end of the book with all the three male characters sounds like something out of a Bertie Wooster book: hilarious. Her American accent for Mrs. Van Hopper sounds what it is: and English woman doing an impersonation of an American caricature, all wrong.

Would you be willing to try another book from Daphne Du Maurier? Why or why not?

Perhaps. Rebecca might be Daphne Du Maurier's most famous books, but MY COUSIN RACHEL was better and also her short story DON'T LOOK NOW. I think Rebecca is a bit dated, it has a famous reputation but I think modern readers will have a hard time with it. The 'I' character (the second Mrs. de Winter) doesn't need Mrs. Danvers to slap her down, she does it herself in about every second sentence.

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of Anna Massey?

Perhaps Joanna David.

Did Rebecca inspire you to do anything?

Yes, to watch the film by Alfred Hitchcock again. This is one of the rare occasions when the film is better than the book.

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29 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Eerily beautiful

Any additional comments?

This was a deliciously eerie 'get-away', the story itself a classic and the very solid narration of Anna Massey made it a wonderful experience. An easy, yet a little gloomy listen which takes one back to the 'good old days'..

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

what a great story.

If anyone is looking for a classic novel, then Rebecca is the one for you. I thought it was wonderful. An atmospheric tale of intrigue and romance with beautifully defined characters and a taut narrative that will hold your attention from beginning to end. As fresh and compelling as the day it was written.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Atmospheric

'Rebecca' is one of my favourite novels and I couldn't resist buying this audiobook to listen to Anna Massey's narration. I wasn't disappointed as she gives an excellent reading with distinctive voices for all the characters, Mrs Danvers and Beatrice being particularly good.

'Rebecca' is a brilliant novel. The descriptive writing is beautiful and full of memorable images, and the plot goes in several surprising directions before a haunting ending. I'm glad to have this book in my audiobook library and will definitely listen to it again in the future.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • E
  • 09-04-13

Firm Favorite

This has always been a book I return to again and again, the story never fails to please after many times of reading it. The added bonus of having the delightful narration of Anna Massey is a joy. I am once agin transported from the south of France to the rugged coast of Cornwall with the ever-present Rebbeca hovering in the background of the story. Lovely easy listen and I will without doubt listen again and again!

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A classic in the true sense

I have seen the film many times but never read the book - so pleased I finally have. This is a true classic - suspense and intreague - you truly feel for the young Mrs De Winter and can understand all the twists and turns and know it could be no other way. I know I will revisit this again and again - the classic draw of Mandalay......

Well recommended - and the internal question - what is her first name ?

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A stunning lesson

What a great listen! I was engrossed by the narration and recreation of 1950's upper class England.
Recommended

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7 people found this helpful