Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

My new friend Christy highly recommended this book for our book club. I didn't get a copy of it until after our book club met, and the discussion really intrigued me! People were mixed in their assessment of the type of story it was...did good triumph? was evil rewarded? There is no simple answer! My interest was piqued. Sierra had really liked it, and said she it was one of those rare books that you want to begin to read again as soon as you finish it...
Well, it didn't disappoint! The first thing I noticed was what lovely, poetic language the author uses. Her introduction and epilogue are just exquisite and drew me in immediately. Her descriptions of the foliage and surroundings are lush and again, poetic. There is a LOT of foreshadowing in her descriptions as well.
And then there's the unfolding of the story...quite an intriguing mystery as the main character begins to understand what's going on around her. The story of her innocence being lost is fascinating to observe, and her relationship with Max unfolds like a flower. So many of her inadequacies are heart-breaking in their telling!
It's also an interesting time in an interesting country--England in the thirties. There is a lot of description about the estate and surrounding culture that is fascinating. Du Maurier is such an intelligent writer and often writes in an unusual and unexpected, even surprising way. I am ready to read it again...just to bask in the beautiful language and setting again. Despite the challenges and darkness of events, it's not a dark story. It's lovely...

Emma by Jane Austen

I have always wanted to read Emma, and finally got the chance. I was between books, and was in the mood for a romance, so I decided to see if it was available for free download. It was! I read it on my recently-acquired iPad. I am not a fan of reading a novel on my iPad. Here's why:

• It was a little awkward and heavy to hold
• I would often lose my place or page by holding the iPad wrong
• I couldn't tell when I was near the end of a chapter, or worse, near the end of the book!

It WAS, however, a good learning experience for me. I had to really think about whether Austen was winding down near the end of the story, because I didn't have that physical evidence of a thinning book! As for the book's content, I enjoyed it. It's an engaging story of romance, and it held my interest. However, there were whole paragraphs that were really obscure. I didn't get them at all. And there were some parts that were just filled with insights about Emma's character that I could relate to. Somehow the plot and characters were a little uneven. There were so many characters, I had a little trouble tracking them. Not my favorite Austen work, but an enjoyable one. I found the relationship between Emma and her father kind of trying...and redundant.There was occasional humor which was enjoyable. I think I probably missed a lot of it--there is so much of her language that is difficult and complicated...even in slowing down and rereading, I found it sometimes hard to understand. Still, parts of the story just sparkled.