Sep 26, 2005 04:38 PM
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(Updated Sep 26, 2005 04:39 PM)
How many of us can remain unbiased about a person we keep hearing about but haven’t met?
How many of us are guilty of misjudging a person we have heard about?
How many of us are influenced by other people when it comes to character analysis?
Is it possible not to base our perceptions of people as they have been portrayed to us?
All such questions and more tend to baffle you once you are done with the last page of this book.
In this book Daphne Du Maurier explores the suspicious side of human nature delving into mysteries of the human psyche.
The book begins with a sentence as gripping as the beginning of ‘Rebecca’
“They used to hang murderers at Four Turnings in the old days. Not any more though''.
Set in 19th century Cornwall, it is a dark and foreboding tale seen through the eyes of Philip, the narrator.
Young Philip and his uncle Ambrose enjoy their days in an all-male household until Ambrose decides to travel to Italy to enjoy better health.
The plot thickens at this stage when Ambrose decides to marry his distant cousin Rachel whom he meets in Italy.
Philip eagerly awaits his uncle’s return but all he gets instead is a series of letters from him. As days progress, Ambrose starts writing to Philip about the dubious nature of Rachel. Ambrose’s failing health frightens Philips, who visits Italy only to find him dead. A forlorn Philip returns to England with growing suspicion of Rachel having a hand in Ambrose’s death.
However when Rachel pays him a visit, he finds her quite contrary to his mental image. As she starts settling in his house Philip finds himself drawn into the vortex of her love at the same time skeptical about her motives.
As the book draws to a close it leaves us asking questions, which seem to have no answers.
As many of her books demonstrate, Daphne Du Maurier is a highly skillful writer who grapples with the elements of human psychology set in a thrilling plot. Having spent most of her life in Cornwall, it invariably lands as the backdrop of her books. This book has tragic connotations and we find ourselves transcribing to her characters' own feelings and perceptions.
On the flip side the ambience of the book is dark and sometimes slow, which might leave you in a gloomy mood wondering about the unsolved mystery.
And for those folks who are not into reading, you can pick up the motion picture starring Richard Burton as the young Philip though I wouldn’t bet as to which one is better –the movie or the book.
Spanning about 300-odd pages this book would make a compelling read especially on one of those dark and stormy nights.
