I have read this over the weekend, as soon as I started it, I knew I would not want to put it down. Justine Picardie has written a literary mystery which revolves around Daphne Du Maurier who is my favourite author. I do not always like fictionalised accounts of real people but it is evident from the very first page that the author has done painstaking research into her subject. Daphne is based on biographical fact and there are three key strands to the story. Obviously Daphne Du Maurier is the main one and we meet her in 1957 as she begins work on her new book on Branwell Bronte and enlists the help of Alex Symington, a distinguished Bronte scholar. The Brontes, especially Branwell provide the second focus and the many mysteries surrounding the family are explored. The third strand of the book is set in the present day and follows an un-named narrator who is embarking on her thesis concerning Daphne Du Maurier and the Brontes.
Justine Picardie weaves her story so well, the basic idea is very simple but it is all the little details and sub-stories she explores that make this book so fantastic. The character of Daphne Du Maurier is perfect, I felt like she had captured this woman so well. Justine Picardie explores Daphne's childhood and relationship with her father Gerald plus the difficult relationship she has with her husband, the great Boy Browning. I also found the connection between Daphne and the Llewelyn Davies brothers (the children that J.M. Barrie adopted and based Peter Pan on) truly fascinating.
I felt that perception of one's self was a key theme of the book. Daphne at many points feels she has to act in a certain way as a best-selling author and wife of a war hero rather than truly being herself. Menabilly, the inspiration for Daphne's book Rebecca and her true home in Cornwall is integral to the story. It is at Menabilly that she feels safe and able to relax more. Alex Symington has many secrets to hide and it is through his letters to Daphne that he is able to portray the man he would like to be and who he thinks he should be. Peter Llewelyn Davies features heavily in the book obviously as a family member but more importantly as a confidant of Daphne's; the reader sees his struggle with the legacy that J.M. Barrie placed on Peter and the pressure that he feels from the public who see him as the boy who never grew up. This theme of self-perception continues with the un-named narrator in the present day; she has entered into an unhappy marriage and initially tries to change who she is to please her new husband. It is a chance meeting with the ex-wife that brings these perceptions and beliefs crashing down and ties the whole story together.
The book also offers insight into Daphne's inspiration for many of her books but especially Rebecca and My Cousin Rachel. We almost see Daphne being haunted by the character of Rebecca who she greatly identifies with, especially due to the relationship she has with her husband.
I can only apologise for this rambling review! What I am trying to show is that Justine Picardie explores so many different avenues in such a short book, the way in which she weaves all these strands together is extremely clever and insightful. I think that Daphne is a book that I could read again many times and still take something new from it. Reading this has definitely made me reach for my books on Daphne Du Maurier and the Brontes and I shall certainly be doing some new reading on J.M. Barrie and the Llewelyn Davies boys. I believe that Justine Picardie has done Daphne Du Maurier proud with this excellent book. ( )

The plot combines a fictionalized account of Daphne Du Maurier's life when she was conducting research about Branwell Bronte, and the life of a twenty year old woman who wants to write about this period of the author's life. Details about their works and lives are intermingled and are supposed to illuminate one another. The 'contemporary' female character is introduced in chapter three and described as a self-pitying just married Cambridge graduate. She has married someone twice her age and although she got a first class degree at university and has been given a scholarship to write a PhD (for which she does not even have a proposal ready!?) she suffers from very low self esteem and continuously compares herself with her husband's ex-wife. Although Du Maurier created a believable character in Mrs de Winter, trying to recreate it in the twenty first century does not work. The whole 'contemporary' episode of the encounter with her future husband, their rushed weeding and their strained relationship is slightly ridiculous. I almost stopped reading the book at this stage. It becomes a bit better later on, but the contemporary part of the novel is quite weak. Nevertheless, Du Maurier had an interesting life, it is that what made me finish the book . ( )

FF of Avis at She Reads and Reads (Nov. 28)

The three central characters in Daphne are (1) Daphne du Maurier, who is doing research for her biography of Branwell Bronte, coping with her husband’s poor heath and the revelation that he has been having an affair, and questioning her own mental health; (2) J. A. Symington, who has been studying Branwell for years but who has also been suspected of stealing manuscripts and falsifying signatures; and (3) an unnamed first-person narrator who is a young grad student, newly married and researching Branwell Bronte for her PhD, even though she’d rather study du Maurier, a subject her husband, a Henry James scholar, treats with scorn. Also significant to the story is Peter Llewelyn Davies, du Maurier’s cousin, perhaps best known as one of the boys who inspired J. M. Barrie to write Peter Pan.

Yes, this book is a literary feast, and Picardie’s acknowledgements show that she did her homework, talking to members of the du Maurier, Llewelyn Davies, and Symington families. The book includes the text of several of the actual letters exchanged by du Maurier and Symington. Even without a strong prior interest in du Maurier (or Branwell Bronte), I found the entire story fascinating.

But for me, the most interesting thing about this book was what it says about readers and about our relationships with the authors whose works we love. All three of the central characters have ideas about the writers they are studying. These ideas are based on their works, but do they have any basis in reality? Picardie’s exploration of the author/subject/reader relationship shows that it isn’t all neat and tidy and that, in many cases, the real story of the author may never be told.

See my complete review at my blog. ( )

In this interesting fact-based novel the author tells the story of how Daphne du Maurier came to write her biography of Branwell Bronte in the early 1960s, The Infernal World of Branwell Bronte.

When the novel opens Daphne du Maurier is in her early fifties and is dealing with a host of personal problems. Her husband Tommy has had a breakdown and is temporarily hospitalized. Their relationship is rocky in any case because of Daphne has found out that he had a recent affair. She is portrayed as being rather unstable, she frequently hears the voice of her most famous character, Rebecca, and she can hardly ever bring herself to leave her isolated house, Menabilly.

As Daphne becomes enthralled with the Brontes and writing a biography on Branwell, she begins to write letters to J. Alexander Symington who had edited a Collected Works of the Brontes and been the librarian of a large collection. It becomes clear that he has a large collection of original Bronte manuscripts (questionably acquired!) and he offers to sell some of them to her. But since he has planned to write a book himself for many years he only sells her a few unimportant pages, keeping the best back for himself.

The story is told from alternating points of view: Daphne du Maurier, Mr. Symington and a young female narrator who is not named. She is a young student who is working on Daphne du Maurier's obsession with the Brontes for her PHD. She discovers the letters between Daphne and Mr. Symington by accident but they end up having quite an impact on her personal life.

This novel is packed with facts that make it a fascinating read for any lover of English Literature, Daphne du Maurier or the Brontes. For example, J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan, adopted Daphne's five male cousins after they were orphaned in 1910. (That part of the story was made into a movie a few years ago, Finding Neverland). He was part of the family, Daphne called him "Uncle Jim." And Daphne du Maurier put her diaries of her early life in a bank vault in 1979 with orders that they not be released for fifty years!

It's an intriguing story, well written and carefully researched. I recommend it!

Daphne by Jutine Picardie will be released by Bloomsbury in August, 2008. ( )