jamiejanae_6's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Classism, Misogyny, Murder, Bullying, Dysphoria, Toxic relationship, Death, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
yvo_about_books's review against another edition
3.0
"I suppose sooner or later in the life of everyone comes a moment of trial. We all of us have our particular devil who rides us and torments us, and we must give battle in the end."
WARNING: unpopular opinion ahead!!
I've been meaning to read Rebecca for years now, and after I saw one of my favorite books of 2023 The Hacienda being compared to this classic I decided to not wait any longer and finally pick it up. I had high hopes for this story, as I do love a good gothic thriller... But in the end I guess it wasn't ment to be. I know that the fact that I've been struggling with a reading slump might have been part of the problem, but I can't look past the fact that it took me eleven! days to finish reading a book that would usually only take me a day or two. I was warned of the slow start, and I definitely agree with that warning. I'm not sure if I would have continued reading if it hadn't known about the slow start, because the beginning is rather dull and tedious. Things do improve when the couple arrives at Manderley, and there are some clever twists and developments along the way. Sadly, I found the second Mrs. de Winter to be such a frustrating character to deal with though; having to spend so much time inside her head only made it more difficult to fight that slump and pick up my copy of Rebecca. The fact that she is basically a human doormat and lets everybody walk all over her became SO annoying, and she never fully redeemed herself for me. I did appreciate the descriptions of Manderley and the general gothic feel of the plot, but it wasn't enough to properly enjoy this story. I still might try a reread at some point to see just how big of a role the reading slump played when it comes to my reaction to this classic...
Graphic: Murder, Sexism, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Animal death, Violence, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Incest, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, and Mental illness
erynlasbelin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Ableism
Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Emotional abuse, Classism, and Alcoholism
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Infertility, Pregnancy, Cursing, Gun violence, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Blood, Cancer, and Fire/Fire injury
iammmartina_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Terminal illness, and Infidelity
Minor: Suicide, Infertility, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cancer, and Suicidal thoughts
excellent_potato's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Bullying, Classism, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Minor: Cultural appropriation and Incest
Ableism: there's an adult character that may have a developmental disability. People talk down to him and use disparaging words to describe him, and he is portrayed as being unintelligent. It's also heavily implied that he may have also been emotionally abused in the past and threatened with being institutionalized. The character is not present for most of the book. Bullying and emotional abuse: one character is intentionally hurtful to the narrator, playing upon the narrator's fears and insecurities. The narrator's husband stonewalls her sometimes and the narrator is impacted negatively. Cultural appropriation: Characters dress up in appropriated attire at an event. One is in brown face. Incest: a secondary character had a consensual relationship with a non-immediate family member in the past. Not described in detail. Suicide: a character is theorized to have successfully ended their life and the method is generally described but does not give violent details. Suicidal thoughts (very mild spoiler, no names):atelopxobia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Gun violence, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Cancer, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Violence, Incest, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Ableism, and Gaslighting
bethantg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Dysphoria, Infidelity, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Alcohol, Medical content, and Gun violence
Minor: Terminal illness and Cultural appropriation
marie_99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Murder
reading_under_covers's review against another edition
4.5
The fact that the MC is never given a name really added to the story and the ending had me 🤯 👀
Note: There were a couple of problematic scenes, which I guess at the time wouldn’t have come across that way, but were cringe and uncomfortable to read in the modern day.
Graphic: Racism, Cultural appropriation, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Infidelity
Minor: Incest
rhi_reading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Frequently undersold as a ‘gothic romance’, du Maurier’s ‘Rebecca’ is a masterclass in character work, suspense, and atmosphere. The titular character never appears or speaks a word throughout the novel but is so incredibly well written through the accounts of all the supporting characters that she stands out more than any of them.
The contrast of the headstrong and fiery Rebecca with the diminutive and awkward nameless narrator is one of the highlights of the book and a sharp take on the classic Madonna-Whore complex. Du Maurier manipulates her readers until the very end in to sympathising and hating the characters she wants us to despite their actions and motives, and asking us to consider what these feelings say about our own morality - after all, the truth doesn’t mean anything against a well crafted story.
Graphic: Ableism, Murder, Death, Suicide, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Murder
Minor: Cultural appropriation and Racism