The Scapegoat (Virago Modern Classics)

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Plain, English John, like the second Mrs De Winter is nameless, but in reverse: he has no family name, no patronymic, as the Russians would say, no identifying male line which is the sign of belonging as well as the sign of power. While both men try to come to terms with their destinies, the women are in a constant battle for the alpha position in the family. So despite the somewhat dated side of the context (the declining French aristocracy), the clichés (the mistress with a big heart, the runner-up squire), the improbabilities (the teacher probably knows the French language well.

It provides neither the delicious twist we have learnt to expect from this author, nor the massive ambiguity she can do so well. The Scapegoat is reminiscent of novels such as, "The Prisoner of Zenda" and according to one of Daphne du Maurier's biographers, this rollicking adventure was a favourite story of Daphne's when she was a little girl.

Even the fantastical situation seemed to be part of that exaggerated overall design intended by the author, like a play so many characters engage in too. When he acts out of a redemptive motivation, you begin to think his plans might work and improve matters. But, this is Daphne du Maurier, and she alone seemed to have possessed the necessary talent and skill to bring even the most unpromising scenario to the heights of realism. It's a suspenseful psychological study as we learn the secrets of Jean's life through the eyes of John as he works out the relationships and family history. Like Alice falling down the rabbit hole, the narrator finds himself in another world; a world that he finds curiouser and curiouser.

Don’t think, I’ve ever heard of this one before, but I’ve enjoyed Rebecca and in particular My Cousin Rachel and just read The Birds for the first time. It is precisely the book’s surreal qualities that give the novel its own peculiar dreamy charm instantly recognisable as du Maurier very own. Don’t know that one Liz but the reading group read the excellent My Cousin Rachel recently and I used Rebecca in a WEA Romantic Novel course. But, I've read other novels by du Maurier and that seems to be part of her style; she makes me come to my own conclusion. I walked on through darkness, undergrowth and moss, and now I had no present and no past, the self who stumbled had no heart and mind.I'm actually still a bit unnerved by this macabre tale and I will be thinking about this thriller for many days, probably weeks.

SIGNED by du Maurier in blue ink, and presented mounted in a grey cloth-covered diptych case, with a photographic image facing, and gilt titles to spine. Originally, in the Old Testament book of Leviticus, the High Priest confessed the sins of the people on the Day of Atonement over the head of a live goat which was then allowed to escape, taking the sins with it. The novel hurtles to its conclusion, within its short compressed time-frame, as John desperately tries to right the wrongs as he sees them. In "Rebecca", the episode where the new wife accidentally destroys a valuable china ornament given to her predecessor (Rebecca) on her marriage, and becoming a particular favourite, is powerfully symbolic.In a nightmarish scenario that follows, John finds himself overwhelmed by his “new” family members’ attention and, in some cases, hostility. In Daphne du Maurier's excellent novel, an English history professor on his way home from holiday in France, is reflecting on his unfulfilling and lonely life when he meets a man in a restaurant. For example, "Manderley" in "Rebecca", seems to be imbued with as much of a presence - to be as much a character - as any of the actual people in the book.