Review Detail

I never read Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, so I can’t comment on any similarities – as such, the story was completely new to me.

I liked the main character – it startled me at the end when someone said her name. I hadn’t realized that for the entire book she’d only been called “New Girl.” I liked that she figured out pretty quickly that she was worth far more than what her classmates made her out to be. I liked that she stood up for herself.

I pretty much hated the rest of the characters, even Max. Yes, even Max.

They all treated her so horribly – as if she were trying to steal Becca’s identity – when all she was trying to do was live her own life. They were mean to her. They were petty.

I think that’s why the book left me so unsettled – I couldn’t find a redeeming quality in most of the characters I met. Max managed to redeem himself – somewhat – but no one else did.

While I didn’t care for the characters so much, I can’t deny that the writing was high quality. If Harbison hadn’t written such descriptive characters, I wouldn’t have ended up feeling the way I did – and I wouldn’t have been so eager to find out what happened to Becca and how things would end up for everyone.