My rating: 4 stars
Daphne du Maurier wrote the fourteen tales in The Rendezvous and Other Stories throughout her life. Thus, it’s not surprising that there isn’t a single theme focused on or one particular atmosphere in common. Some stories are surprisingly short, others are more than 20 pages long. Compared with other of her collections, this group of stories is not as memorable, despite featuring a couple of gems.
The highlight of the book is ‘Split Second’, the last story in the collection. Mrs Ellis is a widow and her nine-year-old daughter, whom she loves and is concerned about, attends a boarding school. Once, after returning from a walk, she finds her home occupied by strangers. The story is a great mix of mystery, supernatural elements and a portrayal of deep emotions. From the beginning, it’s gripping and intriguing, making readers care for the main character and want to figure out what has truly happened.
Other two stories are as enthralling and almost as flawless. ‘No Motive’ is an engrossing detective story whose only fault is to not answer all questions for sure in full. Thirty-something-year-old Marry Farren took her own life with her husband’s revolver while pregnant. John Farren could not understand the reason why, leading him to hire a private detective to discover what really happened. In order to look for clues, as something in her past could explain her state of mind better, Black, the detective, decided to go to Switzerland, where she had lived with her invalid aunt from when her mother died until her marriage. ‘The Rendezvous’ also partially takes place in Switzerland. Robert Scrivener is an author and literary critic who starts corresponding with a Swiss woman, Annette Limoges, who admires his work and wants to become a writer. When he goes to Switzerland to give a lecture, they arrange to meet, but things don’t go according to his plan. The characters are well portrayed. Annette is infuriating but believable, particularly because we are seeing her form Robert’s point of view. He behaves as a literary highbrow and is slightly arrogant. He is also struggling, though, and seems to feel lonely and unloved.
It’s not unexpected that the longer stories feature the most memorable plots and characters. There are, however, some quite short tales in the collection that are also impactful. ‘Fairy Tale’ depicts a part of a day in an ill woman’s life, comprising moments of moving disillusionment and hope. In ‘The Lover’, a married woman has an affair with a man who is only interested in her money. The depiction of snippets from their lives allows readers to have a good understanding of their personalities. ‘La Sainte-Vierge’ is about the deep concern that a woman feels for her husband. But does he deserve it? The story features great descriptions of natural elements.
“The sea shone like splintered silver, while westwards beyond the beacon streams of burnt clouds were massing in a purple haze.”
Although various stories have a gloomy tone to them, there are also many funny moments. They abound at the end of ‘Adieu Sagesse’, for example, a tale about a town full of gossips, judgemental people and a man’s desire to break free. The main character in this story, Richard Ferguson, lived in Maltby, where he was the manager of the Western Bank. Almost everyone in town thought that he was incredibly dull. He didn’t seem content with his life either. One day something changed! In ‘The Supreme Artist’, an actor receives the visit of a woman whom he pretends to remember. That pretence leads to a couple of hilarious moments.
The acting world is also part of one more story, but it is one of the three that I liked the least. ‘Leading Lady’, which is about a day in the life of a deceiver actress, is for the most part uninteresting. In ‘Panic’, a man and a young woman travel to Paris and seem to possibly be starting an affair. Despite the prose being attention grabbing, we don’t get to know much about the characters, since it only raises questions and provides no answers. A story featuring supernatural elements, ‘Escort’ has as narrator William Blunt, who has to assume the command of a ship after the captain falls ill. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have the necessary chilling atmosphere.
‘The Closing Door’, on the other hand, is very eerie. In the first page, it almost reads like a horror story. While it’s not objectively one, the tone is more than appropriate, as it’s about a man who learns that he has an incurable illness. The story is truly moving without trying too hard.
The Rendezvous and Other Stories may not be a coherent whole, but it comprises tales that mostly don’t put Daphne du Maurier to shame.
A Bag Full Of Stories 