Blast from the Past: My Cousin Rachel Dazzles Modern Readers

An old pick, brought back to light with the premiere of a new major motion picture by the same name stars Rachel Weisz and Sam Claflin. Daphne du Maurier, who wrote the renowned novel of Rebecca, showcases drama most similar to Downton

Abbey. Social scandals and faux pas jump through the pages as Phillip tries to keep his enemies closer while exploring his cousin’s mysterious death. You would think this book was written during the time the story is set, but instead it was written in the 1950s. The writing is clear and straightforward and exceptionally modern given the circumstances. On the other hand, the book had an extremely slow start, with the two main characters not even meeting until 8th chapter in out of 26 total. With that said, this book is still a fantastic read, and most likely an even better movie.

Female villains are common, but well written ones are a rarity. If they are poorly written, their characters become overshadowed by their male counterparts. The best and the most terrifying are the realistic women. Their positive traits distract you and ultimately make readers humanize them. There is an overwhelming amount of empathy toward Rachel because of this relatability. Her love for Ambrose seems so real that you start to pity her becoming a widow. Though, you do find yourself questioning Cousin rachel and her intentions throughout the book. Are they pure? Is she just a gold digger? Just how manipulative is she? Rachel is authentic, and sticks to her beliefs no matter how benign or malignant. Daphne du Maurier avoids villain cliches like being psychopathic or having borderline personality disorder. Rachel is someone we can picture, she’s maybe even someone we know.

In terms of Philip, he is femininely stunted. This naive 24 year old grows up with zero feminine interaction. Philip was raised by a man who only had men working in their house. He had no way of understanding emotions or intentions, along with being oblivious to the function of women in his life. Philip becomes drawn to Rachel. She becomes his allusive challenge that Philip can keep captive on the grounds of his massive acre estate.

The ending of the novel is very abrupt. The gateway for the end of the story is only brought about at the beginning of the last chapter. We don’t know if Daphne couldn’t figure out how to end the book and just threw this in but it was a sudden contrast to the rest of the book, which was extremely drawn out. Overall the message of the book is superb and the story is unique. The common gender roles of the plot seem to be reversed, and it’s very modernly feminist for a writer from the 1900s.

If this book was paired down from 400 pages to an action packed 150 it would be one of the most impactful we’ve ever read. Instead every situation is painstakingly drawn out and explained with excruciating detail. It leaves you forever questioning who you trust and their intentions. Evil doesn’t mean psychotic, and you never know the truth that lies behind the eyes of those around you.

Better Read Than Dead,

Geneva and Addie