Showing 1-4 out of 23 reviews. Previous | Next

• DAPHNE DU MAURIER: My Cousin RachelListened on audio 2009. Sensual, intelligent and chilling.Philip Ashley, a young upper-class man, has been raised in an all male environment by his cousin Ambrose and has little knowledge of women. When Ambrose travels to Italy and marries the enigmatic Rachel, later in life, Philip is jealous and sullen. Ambrose dies abroad suddenly and Philip’s anguish and his spite towards Rachel is exacerbated by several posthumous letters hinting at sexual intrigue, financial shenanigans and poisoning... When Rachel arrives in England, Philip's instinct gradually ebbs away and his feelings deepen from fascination to obsession. It appears that history is about to repeat itself, with Philip falling her under her spell just as Ambrose before him…… but, who is Rachel ultimately? Is she the sweet, charming, playful and mischievous woman driven by emotion that Philip falls passionately in love with? Or is she the cold, manipulative woman others think her to be, out for financial gain and a murderess to boot?In this heart-wrenching tale of love, longing and tragedy, the plot is intelligently structured with an intimate portrayal of the characters leading to the final twist. At the close of the novel, when Philip becomes responsible for her death, all expectations are reversed and the reader is left to question whether Rachel was good, mad, bad or indifferent and who was right, or wrong?Daphne Du Maurier lives and breathes her characters, taking the reader under their skin to produce a novel that is bleak, brooding, lush and chilling. The novel works around the notion that love is blind and explores perception, deception, individual and collective reality. Classic Fiction NovelPublished in 1951

  5.00 out of 5

  cscovil

• I will admit it took me a while to finish the book. I can't say it exactly drags but it is explained into in a great detail. It has a plot that will keep you guessing through out. This is one book I assure you where you are not going to guess the ending. Jealousy or greed is one emotion that is very prominent in the book.Overall it is a good book if you have the patience to read it.

  5.00 out of 5

  AmyLovsBooks

• Phillip Ashley idolizes his cousin Ambrose having been raised by him on Ambrose's Cornish estate. When Ambrose goes to Italy, meets and falls in love with Rachel, the widow of an Italian nobleman, then marries her; Phillip is extremely happy for his cousin. As time goes by, Ambrose becomes deathly ill and suspicion falls on Rachel as being the cause of his illness.Phillip has discovered that he is in love with Rachel himself and when she returns to England after Ambrose's death, Phillip tries to ignore the rumors about her and rashly settles Ambrose's estate in her favor. Once Ambrose's estate is settled, Rachel grows cold towards Phillip and he suffers a similar illness to the one that caused Ambrose's death. I loved this story and give it an A+!

  5.00 out of 5

  rosefireandmoonshine

• Why, why, why did I wait so long to read this book??? My Cousin Rachel blew me out of the water in its' greatness and left me wondering why I hadn't read it sooner! It is the story of Phillip Ashley and how his entire world changes when Rachel comes into his life. Rachel is the widow of his beloved Uncle Ambrose who is recently deceased. Everything Phillip has ever known changes when his cousin Rachel arrives.....and his life will never be the same.This is basically going to be a gush fest so be prepared. I adored this book. Just adored it! The atmosphere and underlying tension in this book was just amazing. It had me well and truly hooked as I was reading. My Cousin Rachel has this creepy feeling to it where you know something bad is going to happen and all you can do is wait for it. This feeling made the atmosphere of the book so creepy and intense. I just couldn't put the book down! (And I'll admit to peeking at the ending when I was almost finished because I couldn't take it any longer. I had to know. And it still didn't take away from my enjoyment of the novel.) Rachel and Phillip are on this destructive path together that neither of them realizes, and all the reader can do is wait for it to happen. Even then knowing that there couldn't possibly be a happy ending to the story, I was blown away by the ending. It left me thinking, and I had to go back and reread the first chapter again. And then the ending again. And I was still left wanting to discuss this one with someone. It was just that good!I don't think I need to even summarize my feelings on this one. I LOVED it, plain and simple! I would reread it again without a second thought and want a copy of it for my own shelves. Just thinking about it now makes me want to read it again so what can I do but recommend it to all of you! Highly recommended!!!Bottom Line: An amazing read.....nothing more to say other than that!Disclosure: I checked this one out from my local library but you can bet I will be purchasing my own copy!

  5.00 out of 5

  samantha.1020

Reviews provided by Librarything.

No reviews here.