Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Birds and Other Stories by Daphne du Maurier

5 reviews

loxeletters's review against another edition

mysterious reflective medium-paced

3.5

This was fun! None of the stories really blew me away, but "The Old Man" does have a very nice twist for an ending. I continue to enjoy Du Maurier's prose a lot - it's captivating in a very simple way. Makes me want to keep reading no matter how interested I am in the actual story. Some major themes in this collection were humans & nature  (esp. "The Birds", "The Old Man") as well as the mundane, everyday depravity of humans? I'm not sure how to phrase this one, but it's especially visible in "The Apple Tree" and "The Little Photographer", both of which also had varyingly strong feminist undertones. 'Weird' relationships were a key theme to almost all of the stories. 
On a more personal note, as someone who grew up in the 21st century, the casual references to the war were quite interesting.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, and Murder

gnomescottage's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Death

Moderate: Ableism

questingnotcoasting's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

There are six stories in this collection and while The Birds is definitely the best, I did enjoy all of them. I've read a few of her short stories before and these were similarly dark and atmospheric in tone. I really enjoy her writing and now I'm trying to decide which of her novels to read next. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Animal death, and Death

Moderate: Ableism

btrz7's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Child death, Death, Infidelity, and Murder

smithreads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Animal death, and Terminal illness