Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Far From the Caribbean

Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier

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For a book that bills itself on the cover as “The Classic Tale of Romantic Suspense” this isn’t very romantic or suspenseful. This is the third book of Du Maurier’s I’ve read, and the second one to be a massive disappointment for such a big fan of Rebecca. Jamaica Inn follows Mary Yellan as she moves to the north of England after the death of her mother to live with an aunt she hasn’t seen in years. The vibrant, loving woman Mary remembers from her […]

Last Night I Dreamed I Went to the 1300s Again

The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier

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Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca is one of the best novels I’ve ever read. It’s suspenseful and exciting and is also the reason I will likely never agree to be anyone’s second spouse. It’s been years since I read Rebecca on the recommendation of a trusted friend, but shamefully I’d never gotten around to reading du Maurier’s other work. I decided to rectify that recently, and the superb reviews of The House on the Strand convinced me it was the right place to turn. Sadly, while […]

Like Saturn, the Revolution Devours Its Children

The Glass-Blowers by Daphne du Maurier

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With the French Revolution as the historical background, du Maurier tells the story of a family of master craftsmen who prefer to live in a world of their own, with distinct traditions and rules, but when civil war breaks out, even they must choose a side. This is apparently based on du Maurier’s own family history, and the story is told by a fictional version of one of her ancestors. This is a great piece of historical fiction, and what sets it apart from other […]

Sweeping Story of the Brodrick Family

Hungry Hill by Daphne du Maurier

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So this to me is not a typical Daphne du Maurier novel. There are hints of some Gothic elements here and there with a curse being flung about. But other than that, du Maurier just follows along following five generations of the Brodrick family from 1820 to 1920 following five of the male characters from the Brodrick family. I have to say that from beginning to end the tale of “Hungry Hill” is going to grab you. And you start to wonder if a curse is […]

The perfect amount of creepy.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

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This was a book club pick in an attempt by our group to occasionally dip our toes into the classics. It had been in my TBR pile for a while, but I just hadn’t got to it yet, so being ‘forced’ into it was ok by me! Our heroine is an orphan girl working as a lady’s companion and we meet her as they are travelling abroad. During this trip, she meets the recently widowed Maxim de Winter. Despite his grief and melancholy, she makes […]

A Familiar Scent Rose Up Into the Air, and I Remembered Something Special From a Long Time Ago

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Rebecca is atmospheric, spooky, and sometimes downright scary. In it, our unnamed narrator meets the handsome widower Maxim de Winter while in Monte Carlo. They build a sort of friendship which eventually leads to a marriage (there’s no romance involved, as far as I can see), and he takes her back to his estate, Manderley. There she learns more about his first wife Rebecca, who was drowned in a sailing accident, and struggles to find her place as the head of the household. Her problems […]



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