These famous words open the most popular novel by Daphne du Maurier, the story of an intense romance set in a mysterious house in Cornwall. Its unforgettable atmosphere and tension has transformed it from a popular romance on the page and on film to become a modern classic. Here, it is presented in a new and absorbing recording by Emma Fielding.
Music: From the Naxos catalogue
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Reviews
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This production will capture listeners from its famous first sentence, "Last night I dreamt I went again to Manderley." Those familiar with du Maurier's classic mystery (in which the young narrator falls in love with the moody, wealthy Maxim de Winter) will enjoy it over again, absorbing new details; those not yet acquainted are in for a treat. Emma Fielding's narration has a dreamy, trance-like quality as she recalls the unfolding drama at Manderley, de Winter's ocean-side estate. The narrator Fielding creates (whose name we never learn) is deceptively simple, as unadorned as the young woman she portrays, and completely absorbing. Fielding smoothly handles other voices as well--from the narrator's brassy American employer, to aloof Maxim, to the haunting, jealous Mrs. Danvers. Fielding's cool, almost detached, voice contrasts with the over-the-top swelling violin music used at interludes to underscore the moment's drama, but somehow it all works perfectly. J.C.G. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine
