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Amazon.co.uk Review
The book opens on April 12, 1951, the 20th anniversary of Rebecca's death. "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again", writes Colonel Julyan, an old family friend of the de Winters. As old age and ill health threaten to overtake him, 20 years of doubt about the true cause of Rebecca's death are sharply reawakened with the arrival of an anonymous parcel containing a small black notebook entitled Rebecca's Tale. Meanwhile, a mysterious stranger, recently arrived in the locality, appears equally determined to find answers to the string of inconsistencies raised by Rebecca's life and death. The Colonel and his dutiful daughter Ellie are both drawn to the handsome, intelligent Terence Grey but both are wary and wonder if he really is what he appears to be.
As the plot twists and turns, the revelations are both shocking and inevitable. Favourite characters--spooky Mrs Danvers and Jack Favell, Rebecca's reckless cousin-drift in and out. This is a big book (495 pages), yet, once begun, most will find it difficult to put down-just as well for there are so many complexities it doesn't do to take your time. Ultimately, Rebecca's Tale offers its own version of events, yet for du Maurier fans, it is reassuring in that it raises many more. And, cleverly, Beauman has added her own, somehow more relevant sub-plot. Perhaps the "truth" about Rebecca's life is only as important as the legacy she left those whose lives she touched. What they choose to do with it, and how they choose to live their lives, is the central issue here. This novel will appeal to anyone who has ever read Rebecca and, thanks to her finely woven plot and subtle undercurrents of hope and inspiration, it will appeal just as much to those who have not. --Carey Green --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
Compelling, absorbing, captivating, haunting- Sally Beauman's most ambitious and imaginative book so far (Elaine Showalter )
REBECCA'S TALE is bold and clever...In this evocative and compulsive reworking of the balance of power between the sexes, Sally Beauman steers her creation into feminist territory and succeeds in overturning our loyalties. (Elizabeth Buchan, THE TIMES )
Once you start reading a Beauman book, you can't put it down, as Rebecca's Tale attests...I felt satisfied that she had done an extraordinary thing; she convinced me that the Rebecca of these assorted memories really was the Rebecce that du Maurier's novel (Linda Grant, GUARDIAN )
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Customer Reviews
Its separation into four sections with different narrators was a brilliant device - I was completely thrown when the second rebuffed so believably some of the 'facts' stated by the first. We see Rebecca, Mrs Danvers, Maxim and even the faceless second 'Mrs De Winter' through the eyes of four very different characters, learning more about both the past and present throughout.
It leaves many questions unanswered, but that's part of its charm: it forces your imagination into overdrive, just like the characters in the book. Despite being a hefty book, it took me less than a week - staying up far too late every night - to read. Now I can't wait to re-read the original!
I felt that the ending was unsatisfactory, I had been gripped throughout the book and thought the ending was a let down. I don't want to ruin it but the rest of the book was really interesting and I could barely put it down (why I gave it 4 stars)
Rebecca's Tale is told from four points of view, each distinct and each rich with its own secrets. Though there was a bit of a confusing start to the story (thus four stars instead of five), Beauman's writing style soon took over and the story flowed interestingly. It begins with a purported quest to find out what really happened that night in 1931 when Rebecca's boat was scuttled just off shore, but it quickly becomes more than a simple murder mystery. The characters here have to deal with their own private motivations, and Rebecca's Tale becomes a fascinating story of chasing down phantoms in both past and present.
Most of the major players are present at some point in Rebecca's Tale including, most enigmatically, Rebecca herself. By the end of the novel, I was no closer to any answers, but I was much closer to the characters involved. In this Sally Beauman did something laudable; she created well-written, interesting people about whom I'd love to learn more. This is admirable indeed.
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