REVIEW: My Cousin Rachel (Daphne Du Maurier)

Book: My Cousin Rachel

Author: Daphne Du Maurier

My rating: 4/5

Premise: Philip Ashley has been raised by his benevolent and resolutely single older cousin, Ambrose. But the cosy world the two construct is shattered when Ambrose falls in love, marries and suddenly dies. Jealous of his marriage, racked by suspicion and grief-stricken by Ambrose's death, Philip prepares to meet his cousin's widow with hatred in his heart. Despite himself, Philip is drawn to this beautiful, sophisticated, mysterious Rachel. And yet... might she have had a hand in Ambrose's death?

What I love about this book is how the morality of various characters is questioned but never answered. Was Rachel evil and manipulative? Can we blame Philip for his possessiveness? All the way through, the questions were stacking up but went unanswered, which I liked. Reader is left to make their own judgement from the clues. There were times when I wanted to slap Philip because he was controlling over Rachel, but then was she encouraging his infatuation? For me, the action came a little too late in the book, but then I like the abruptness of the ending. Another entertaining and thought provoking book from Du Maurier!