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Kiss Me Again, Stranger
A Collection of Eight Stories, Long and Short. Includes the title story plus: The Birds ~ The Little Photographer ~ Monte Verita ~ The Apple Tree ~ The Old Man ~ The Split Second ~ No Motive.
319 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1952
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803 people want to read
About the author
Daphne du Maurier
432 books10.1k followersDaphne du Maurier was born on 13 May 1907 at 24 Cumberland Terrace, Regent's Park, London, the middle of three daughters of prominent actor-manager Sir Gerald du Maurier and actress Muriel, née Beaumont. In many ways her life resembles a fairy tale. Born into a family with a rich artistic and historical background, her paternal grandfather was author and Punch cartoonist George du Maurier, who created the character of Svengali in the 1894 novel Trilby, and her mother was a maternal niece of journalist, author, and lecturer Comyns Beaumont. She and her sisters were indulged as a children and grew up enjoying enormous freedom from financial and parental restraint. Her elder sister, Angela du Maurier, also became a writer, and her younger sister Jeanne was a painter.
She spent her youth sailing boats, travelling on the Continent with friends, and writing stories. Her family connections helped her establish her literary career, and she published some of her early work in Beaumont's Bystander magazine. A prestigious publishing house accepted her first novel when she was in her early twenties, and its publication brought her not only fame but the attentions of a handsome soldier, Major (later Lieutenant-General Sir) Frederick Browning, whom she married.
She continued writing under her maiden name, and her subsequent novels became bestsellers, earning her enormous wealth and fame. Many have been successfully adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel, and Jamaica Inn, and the short stories The Birds and Don't Look Now/Not After Midnight. While Alfred Hitchcock's films based upon her novels proceeded to make her one of the best-known authors in the world, she enjoyed the life of a fairy princess in a mansion in Cornwall called Menabilly, which served as the model for Manderley in Rebecca.
Daphne du Maurier was obsessed with the past. She intensively researched the lives of Francis and Anthony Bacon, the history of Cornwall, the Regency period, and nineteenth-century France and England. Above all, however, she was obsessed with her own family history, which she chronicled in Gerald: A Portrait, a biography of her father; The du Mauriers, a study of her family which focused on her grandfather, George du Maurier, the novelist and illustrator for Punch; The Glassblowers, a novel based upon the lives of her du Maurier ancestors; and Growing Pains, an autobiography that ignores nearly 50 years of her life in favour of the joyful and more romantic period of her youth. Daphne du Maurier can best be understood in terms of her remarkable and paradoxical family, the ghosts which haunted her life and fiction.
While contemporary writers were dealing critically with such subjects as the war, alienation, religion, poverty, Marxism, psychology and art, and experimenting with new techniques such as the stream of consciousness, du Maurier produced 'old-fashioned' novels with straightforward narratives that appealed to a popular audience's love of fantasy, adventure, sexuality and mystery. At an early age, she recognised that her readership was comprised principally of women, and she cultivated their loyal following through several decades by embodying their desires and dreams in her novels and short stories.
In some of her novels, however, she went beyond the technique of the formulaic romance to achieve a powerful psychological realism reflecting her intense feelings about her father, and to a lesser degree, her mother. This vision, which underlies Julius, Rebecca and The Parasites, is that of an author overwhelmed by the memory of her father's commanding presence. In Julius and The Parasites, for example, she introduces the image of a domineering but deadly father and the daring subject of incest.
In Rebecca, on the other hand, du Maurier fuses psychological realism with a sophisticated version of the Cinderella story.
She spent her youth sailing boats, travelling on the Continent with friends, and writing stories. Her family connections helped her establish her literary career, and she published some of her early work in Beaumont's Bystander magazine. A prestigious publishing house accepted her first novel when she was in her early twenties, and its publication brought her not only fame but the attentions of a handsome soldier, Major (later Lieutenant-General Sir) Frederick Browning, whom she married.
She continued writing under her maiden name, and her subsequent novels became bestsellers, earning her enormous wealth and fame. Many have been successfully adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel, and Jamaica Inn, and the short stories The Birds and Don't Look Now/Not After Midnight. While Alfred Hitchcock's films based upon her novels proceeded to make her one of the best-known authors in the world, she enjoyed the life of a fairy princess in a mansion in Cornwall called Menabilly, which served as the model for Manderley in Rebecca.
Daphne du Maurier was obsessed with the past. She intensively researched the lives of Francis and Anthony Bacon, the history of Cornwall, the Regency period, and nineteenth-century France and England. Above all, however, she was obsessed with her own family history, which she chronicled in Gerald: A Portrait, a biography of her father; The du Mauriers, a study of her family which focused on her grandfather, George du Maurier, the novelist and illustrator for Punch; The Glassblowers, a novel based upon the lives of her du Maurier ancestors; and Growing Pains, an autobiography that ignores nearly 50 years of her life in favour of the joyful and more romantic period of her youth. Daphne du Maurier can best be understood in terms of her remarkable and paradoxical family, the ghosts which haunted her life and fiction.
While contemporary writers were dealing critically with such subjects as the war, alienation, religion, poverty, Marxism, psychology and art, and experimenting with new techniques such as the stream of consciousness, du Maurier produced 'old-fashioned' novels with straightforward narratives that appealed to a popular audience's love of fantasy, adventure, sexuality and mystery. At an early age, she recognised that her readership was comprised principally of women, and she cultivated their loyal following through several decades by embodying their desires and dreams in her novels and short stories.
In some of her novels, however, she went beyond the technique of the formulaic romance to achieve a powerful psychological realism reflecting her intense feelings about her father, and to a lesser degree, her mother. This vision, which underlies Julius, Rebecca and The Parasites, is that of an author overwhelmed by the memory of her father's commanding presence. In Julius and The Parasites, for example, she introduces the image of a domineering but deadly father and the daring subject of incest.
In Rebecca, on the other hand, du Maurier fuses psychological realism with a sophisticated version of the Cinderella story.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
June 2, 2013
My favorite stories were "Kiss me again stranger" and "The Little Photographer". The first story was almost served for me as I realized a similar situation that I was going through and prevented me from getting ensnared by a woman with similar characteristics. In the second one I empathized totally with the two characters; I felt both,victim and victimizer. (I knock on wood, that I learned the lessons).
The other stories that I liked a lot were "No Motive" and "Monte Veritá". Although the stories seemed rather predictable in the last ten pages or so, du Maurier manages to increase the suspense little by little and the final result is successful. "The Split Second" was on the verge of accomplishing this same trait with its Twilight Zone quality although the end was rather vague and unbelievable; in a fraction of a sec. Mrs. Ellis saw all that coming before being hit by the laundry truck, that's what du Maurier said when asked.
The main point of the story for me is that the fastidious, obsessive compulsive woman is finally shaken of her tedious routine by an unexpected, shocking event.
In "The Apple Tree" a man feels liberated with the demise of a similar woman who spoils any joy he may have with her martyr-like,disparaging attitude in their twenty five year marriage. Nevertheless as one discovers later on, is the attitude of the husband who brought out this conduct of hers in the first place. He always felt ashamed of her and chided her when she was trying to attract him while alone at home or at a party she insisted on attending. The husband is actually the one who is dead inside and prefers activities where he would just be by himself without any social interaction. Du Maurier doesn't say why they got married in the first place, just that they lived together for so long as a result of habit. He wanted a young love, understandably enough, but as their background reveals he was a very callous,emotionally paralytic fellow who even his attempts at being close with young girls lacked energy and is his conduct that cornered his wife and forced her to develop her fractious antics. The resemblance of the old apple tree with his wife and the young tree with May are obvious enough.
The other stories that I liked a lot were "No Motive" and "Monte Veritá". Although the stories seemed rather predictable in the last ten pages or so, du Maurier manages to increase the suspense little by little and the final result is successful. "The Split Second" was on the verge of accomplishing this same trait with its Twilight Zone quality although the end was rather vague and unbelievable; in a fraction of a sec. Mrs. Ellis saw all that coming before being hit by the laundry truck, that's what du Maurier said when asked.
The main point of the story for me is that the fastidious, obsessive compulsive woman is finally shaken of her tedious routine by an unexpected, shocking event.
In "The Apple Tree" a man feels liberated with the demise of a similar woman who spoils any joy he may have with her martyr-like,disparaging attitude in their twenty five year marriage. Nevertheless as one discovers later on, is the attitude of the husband who brought out this conduct of hers in the first place. He always felt ashamed of her and chided her when she was trying to attract him while alone at home or at a party she insisted on attending. The husband is actually the one who is dead inside and prefers activities where he would just be by himself without any social interaction. Du Maurier doesn't say why they got married in the first place, just that they lived together for so long as a result of habit. He wanted a young love, understandably enough, but as their background reveals he was a very callous,emotionally paralytic fellow who even his attempts at being close with young girls lacked energy and is his conduct that cornered his wife and forced her to develop her fractious antics. The resemblance of the old apple tree with his wife and the young tree with May are obvious enough.
July 5, 2024
I don’t often read short stories, but this was sitting in the local Little Free Library and it obviously needed a good home. I have read two of Ms. du Maurier’s novels recently (“Rebecca” and “Jamaica Inn”) and enjoyed them both, giving each five stars. This collection of eight stories is not quite as good, although the first two (“Kiss Me Again, Stranger” and “The Birds”) are excellent. “The Birds” of course, is the basis for the classic old Alfred Hitchcock film of the same name. The rest I would rate at four stars each, except “The Old Man” which I didn’t care for and would only give three stars. I do enjoy her writing style. It is clear and to the point. I certainly plan to read more of her work.
September 27, 2019
Végre találtam még egy könyvet, amit régebben angolul olvastam!
Egész jó novellás kötet.
Egész jó novellás kötet.
December 9, 2025
This was my first foray into short story collections, and du Maurier sure set a high bar for future ones. The pervasive mist that hung over these stories was one of mystery, giving you the feeling of being in a limbo state, caught between dream and waking, of absolute darkness before the dawn, of a shadowy figure that you're desperate to follow but they are always just out of reach. The first four stories were very strong, and had the most atmosphere, whereas the last four were stragglers, and didn't quite fit the theme.
The standout to me was Monte Verita, in which our protagonist goes on a pilgrimage to seek purpose or sate his desires, only to be met with unspeakable horror. The stark, vast, ruthlessness of the highest peaks of our Earth contrasted with the beauty and serenity felt when faced with nature and the inner self was greatly contrasted with du Maurier's deft writing. This was a great introduction to her style of narration, and I'm excited to read more of her work.
June 8, 2023
short story rankings with ☆ ratings (imo) :
1. Kiss Me Again, Stranger 5☆
2. No Motive 5☆
3. The Little Photographer 4.5☆
4. The Split Second 4☆
5. Monte Verità 2.5☆ [yet still not the same person i was before, after having read this]
6. The Birds 3☆
7. The Old Man 2☆
8. The Apple Tree 1☆
This short story collection will forever be my awakening to Daphne du Maurier as I have not previously ever read her work and I can confidently say, despite my star ratings, all of these short stories were thoroughly entertaining and I was easily gripped from the start of each ! The talent simply spills off the page xD
1. Kiss Me Again, Stranger 5☆
2. No Motive 5☆
3. The Little Photographer 4.5☆
4. The Split Second 4☆
5. Monte Verità 2.5☆ [yet still not the same person i was before, after having read this]
6. The Birds 3☆
7. The Old Man 2☆
8. The Apple Tree 1☆
This short story collection will forever be my awakening to Daphne du Maurier as I have not previously ever read her work and I can confidently say, despite my star ratings, all of these short stories were thoroughly entertaining and I was easily gripped from the start of each ! The talent simply spills off the page xD
January 27, 2022
Again, this is just a stand in for reading Kiss Me Again, Stranger itself, as part of a random collection of selected stories from du Maurier as part of a book club.
What an incredible piece of work. Gorgeous, haunting, sweet, devastating. I cannot recommend it enough.
What an incredible piece of work. Gorgeous, haunting, sweet, devastating. I cannot recommend it enough.
January 19, 2009
You....are about to enter...another dimension. A dimension not only of sight and sound....
Very Twighlight Zoney short stories. Collection includes the original short story on which Hitchcock based "The Birds." Fascinating to see the degree he transformed the orginal story...the title is about all that survives the translation to the screen.
Entertaining, light stories. Perfect reading for recovering from a cold.
Very Twighlight Zoney short stories. Collection includes the original short story on which Hitchcock based "The Birds." Fascinating to see the degree he transformed the orginal story...the title is about all that survives the translation to the screen.
Entertaining, light stories. Perfect reading for recovering from a cold.
March 26, 2008
I love this collection of short stories by du Maurier- so scary! Kiss Me Again Stranger is probably my favorite- but love The Birds, Monte Verita, The Old Man and No Motive. All are great- chills up your spine- tense and tight writing- compelling stories and realistic characters.
December 4, 2010
Du Maurier's gift for suspense is evident in each of these tales (including the story that inspired Alfred Hitchcock's THE BIRDS) but I felt that several simply went on too long and would have been improved by some judicious editing.
July 15, 2007
It's a good little collection of short stories. Very eccentric. You definately get the idea that they are about more than they appear to be, as most short stories are.
May 14, 2020
In which I encounter du Maurier's chilling story, The Birds:
https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/20...
https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/20...
February 15, 2025
You can feel the tension of the post-World War II experience in this collection of stories by du Maurier. Whether it is in her classic 'humans against beasts' tale, The Birds, or in the story of an apparent suicide with 'No Motive' or in the explicitly post-war story, 'Kiss Me Again, Stranger,' du Maurier is presenting an edgy world far away from the bucolic English countryside of so much previous literature. The stories are not connected, but each of the characters share a sense of pending doom. Most of them lived through the nightly Blitz; the danger may have passed in their post-war world, but their survival instincts keep working on overdrive.
Kiss Me Again, Stranger - An ex-soldier tries to re-establish himself in civilian life but falls for a woman whose own war trauma makes her the clear and present danger to those around her
The Birds - This story is better known through the Alfred Hitchcock film, but I personally prefer du Maurier's version. Hitchcock's well-known cruelty to actress Tippi Hedren during the filming makes it all but unwatchable to me. du Maurier's version had a point and a literary quality; Hitchcock's version is more about his sadism to beautiful women who did not cater to him. In his version, the birds aren't the threat, they are the vehicle through which he expresses his anger.
The Little Photographer - A tale of upper class boredom, or the shallow lives of spoiled rich women with nothing productive to do. The marquise learns the hard way that people in lower classes are human beings with lives that are separate from their service to the rich.
Monte Verita - Novella about the pursuit of spiritual values and the rejection of the material world. Anna's pursuit of the transcendent life is intriguing, but as is usually the case with such stories, the purity of the search is marred by the conflicts and contradictions that are part of being human.
The Apple Tree - One man's longing for youth, which he associates with freedom, keeps him imprisoned and angry.
The Old Man - I spent the story wondering where she could possibly be going with this tale of survival of the fittest. Du Maurier fooled me - one of those stories where you note unusual wording and your brow is furrowed in confusion until the very end, when you have to laugh at how masterfully she pulled off her literary joke.
The Split Second - This story is the only one where the main character, Mrs. Ellis did not live through World War II, but the tension and terror comes when she suddenly finds herself on her own 1930s street - and every one she meets is living in 1952.
No Motive - A happily married, wealthy woman, who is soon to be a mother kills herself. There is no apparent motive, and her devastated husband hires a detective to find a reason. Du Maurier explores the role of memory and the rippling after effects of emotional trauma. I found this collection to be a fascinating read. There are so many books written today but set during the war, but Du Maurier's voice is authentically of her times, capturing the subtleties of changing mindsets working through the horror, the horror.
Kiss Me Again, Stranger - An ex-soldier tries to re-establish himself in civilian life but falls for a woman whose own war trauma makes her the clear and present danger to those around her
The Birds - This story is better known through the Alfred Hitchcock film, but I personally prefer du Maurier's version. Hitchcock's well-known cruelty to actress Tippi Hedren during the filming makes it all but unwatchable to me. du Maurier's version had a point and a literary quality; Hitchcock's version is more about his sadism to beautiful women who did not cater to him. In his version, the birds aren't the threat, they are the vehicle through which he expresses his anger.
The Little Photographer - A tale of upper class boredom, or the shallow lives of spoiled rich women with nothing productive to do. The marquise learns the hard way that people in lower classes are human beings with lives that are separate from their service to the rich.
Monte Verita - Novella about the pursuit of spiritual values and the rejection of the material world. Anna's pursuit of the transcendent life is intriguing, but as is usually the case with such stories, the purity of the search is marred by the conflicts and contradictions that are part of being human.
The Apple Tree - One man's longing for youth, which he associates with freedom, keeps him imprisoned and angry.
The Old Man - I spent the story wondering where she could possibly be going with this tale of survival of the fittest. Du Maurier fooled me - one of those stories where you note unusual wording and your brow is furrowed in confusion until the very end, when you have to laugh at how masterfully she pulled off her literary joke.
The Split Second - This story is the only one where the main character, Mrs. Ellis did not live through World War II, but the tension and terror comes when she suddenly finds herself on her own 1930s street - and every one she meets is living in 1952.
No Motive - A happily married, wealthy woman, who is soon to be a mother kills herself. There is no apparent motive, and her devastated husband hires a detective to find a reason. Du Maurier explores the role of memory and the rippling after effects of emotional trauma. I found this collection to be a fascinating read. There are so many books written today but set during the war, but Du Maurier's voice is authentically of her times, capturing the subtleties of changing mindsets working through the horror, the horror.
July 24, 2024
Recopilación de tres relatos de 177 páginas, publicada en 1952. Me han gustado sobre todo el primero "Bésame otra vez, forastero" y el tercero "El manzano", por su mezcla del género fantástico con el horror. El segundo, "El joven fotógrafo" es más de intriga. De todas formas, muy buenos los tres y con la exquisita pluma de Maurier, que no te permite dejar la lectura un solo instante. De lectura muy recomendada.
March 7, 2010
This is a compilation of short stories written by Daphne duMaurier. The first printing was in 1954 with the fourth printing in 1968. Used copies of this book can be found on Amazon and eBay. My favorite story by far is "The Birds". Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds" was loosely based (and I mean loosely!) on this short story. The only thing the book and the movie have in common is the fact that the birds attack during certain hours of the day. I read somewhere that some film maker is contemplating making another "The Birds" movie but following the original story more closely. I would really enjoy seeing that come about. Ms. duMaurier is a master storyteller and I thoroughly enjoyed reading (several times) all eight short stories in this book.
March 13, 2021
I love du Maurier. Always forget what a dab hand she is with the supernatural and uncanny. "Don't Look Now" anyone? I had no idea she wrote the story that "The Birds" was based on. This collection is a nice introduction to her work, and it is interesting to see where she gets her ideas that are more fully formed in books like Rebecca, and My Cousin Rachel.
April 2, 2011
Strange stories! I enjoyed a few of them, but wished for more resolution in many of them.
August 2, 2018
all of these stories are great and all but No Motive really hit me like a kick in the dick
October 6, 2022
Romantic and ghostly.
" . . . those old envelopes that she had kept because they were note town and could be used again (to tradesmen, not to friends) were thrown away." From "The Split Second."
" . . . those old envelopes that she had kept because they were note town and could be used again (to tradesmen, not to friends) were thrown away." From "The Split Second."
January 30, 2024
A collection of eight stories of varying length- from 10 to 70 pages. I thought six of the eight stories were phenomenal. The most famous story by far- The Birds, was ironically one of the two that didn't grab me. I don't remember the Hitchcock movie, but the du Maurier story had no ending to speak of. The father was at home with his wife and children, the birds were attacking the windows, and the story ends.
The first story is about a lonely man who goes to the movies alone and takes a fancy to the female usher who works there. They go out on a date. She is very secretive about her life and the man finds the date unsatisfying, but still wants to see her again. He reads about her in the newspaper the next day, and I won't spoil the ending.
The Little Photographer is about a woman of means who has an affair with a poor photographer. When she ends the relationship, he threatens to tell her husband about the affair, which would basically ruin her.
The Apple Tree is wonderful. It's about a man whose wife has just died, and he notices a strange resemblance between her and the sickly apple tree in his yard. du Maurier leaves it up to the reader's interpretation as to whether or not a supernatural element is at work.
The last story I believe is the best. No Motive starts with a character's suicide. The victim's husband hires a private investigator to see if he could figure out why she killed herself, because there were absolutely no indications beforehand. The investigator travels from place to place, asking questions about the victim's past. You think you know what happened, but du Maurier takes you on a ride, throwing a few red herrings to throw you off track. I found it a fascinating experience to read it.
I highly recommend "Kiss Me Again, Stranger" for du Maurier fans.
The first story is about a lonely man who goes to the movies alone and takes a fancy to the female usher who works there. They go out on a date. She is very secretive about her life and the man finds the date unsatisfying, but still wants to see her again. He reads about her in the newspaper the next day, and I won't spoil the ending.
The Little Photographer is about a woman of means who has an affair with a poor photographer. When she ends the relationship, he threatens to tell her husband about the affair, which would basically ruin her.
The Apple Tree is wonderful. It's about a man whose wife has just died, and he notices a strange resemblance between her and the sickly apple tree in his yard. du Maurier leaves it up to the reader's interpretation as to whether or not a supernatural element is at work.
The last story I believe is the best. No Motive starts with a character's suicide. The victim's husband hires a private investigator to see if he could figure out why she killed herself, because there were absolutely no indications beforehand. The investigator travels from place to place, asking questions about the victim's past. You think you know what happened, but du Maurier takes you on a ride, throwing a few red herrings to throw you off track. I found it a fascinating experience to read it.
I highly recommend "Kiss Me Again, Stranger" for du Maurier fans.
July 5, 2022
Mbak Daphne memang bener2 pinter ngeramu cerita. Setiap kali baca cerita karangan beliau pasti ada aja yg bikin sy terpukau dan terpikat. Jadi di buku ini ada 8 cerita pendek.
1. Kiss Me Again, Stranger. Ttg seorang mekanik yg jatuh cinta pada pandangan pertama kepada seorang wanita karyawan bioskop. Creepy ngeliat kelakuan si mekanik walaupun pada akhirnya kasian juga sama dia.
2. The Birds. Ttg teror yg dilakukan burung2 pada manusia. Umat manusia terancam musnah akibat serangan burung2. Cerita ini yg menjadi inspirasi filmnya Hitchcock yg berjudul sama.
3. The Little Photographer. Seorang sosialite yg bosan dgn kehidupannya yg gitu2 aja berusaha merayu fotografer muda hanya supaya kehidupannya menjadi lebih berwarna namun siapa sangka tindakannya itu malah menjadi petaka.
4. Monte Verita. Ttg sekte tersembunyi di sebuah gunung yg memiliki kekuatan magis menarik para wanita utk bergabung di dalamnya. Di antara semua cerita sy paling suka Monte Verita ini krn tema folk horornya.
5. The Apple Tree. Ttg roh istri yg masuk ke dalam pohon apel saking tidak mau berpisah dgn suaminya.
6. The Old Man. Ttg perilaku seorang pria tua penyendiri dan keluarganya. Cerita ringan namun kesan misterinya tetap bisa dirasakan.
7. The Split Second. Ttg seorang wanita yg mendapati rumahnya dikuasai gerombolan pencuri sepulangnya ia dari jalan2. Frustasi bgt baca cerita ini. Pengen ngejitak semua karakternya terutama si tokoh utama.
8. No motive. Ttg seorang detektif yg berusaha mencari tahu alasan dibaliknya kasus bunuh diri seorang istri bangsawan.
1. Kiss Me Again, Stranger. Ttg seorang mekanik yg jatuh cinta pada pandangan pertama kepada seorang wanita karyawan bioskop. Creepy ngeliat kelakuan si mekanik walaupun pada akhirnya kasian juga sama dia.
2. The Birds. Ttg teror yg dilakukan burung2 pada manusia. Umat manusia terancam musnah akibat serangan burung2. Cerita ini yg menjadi inspirasi filmnya Hitchcock yg berjudul sama.
3. The Little Photographer. Seorang sosialite yg bosan dgn kehidupannya yg gitu2 aja berusaha merayu fotografer muda hanya supaya kehidupannya menjadi lebih berwarna namun siapa sangka tindakannya itu malah menjadi petaka.
4. Monte Verita. Ttg sekte tersembunyi di sebuah gunung yg memiliki kekuatan magis menarik para wanita utk bergabung di dalamnya. Di antara semua cerita sy paling suka Monte Verita ini krn tema folk horornya.
5. The Apple Tree. Ttg roh istri yg masuk ke dalam pohon apel saking tidak mau berpisah dgn suaminya.
6. The Old Man. Ttg perilaku seorang pria tua penyendiri dan keluarganya. Cerita ringan namun kesan misterinya tetap bisa dirasakan.
7. The Split Second. Ttg seorang wanita yg mendapati rumahnya dikuasai gerombolan pencuri sepulangnya ia dari jalan2. Frustasi bgt baca cerita ini. Pengen ngejitak semua karakternya terutama si tokoh utama.
8. No motive. Ttg seorang detektif yg berusaha mencari tahu alasan dibaliknya kasus bunuh diri seorang istri bangsawan.
November 30, 2025
I just watched Wake Up Dead Man last night, and now I’m craving mystery - the sharp, clever kind that Rian Johnson was able to expertly deliver in his latest addition to the Knives Out saga.
I saw Kiss Me Again, Stranger on a list of mystery recommendations, and its simplistic prose was helpful in easing me back into reading, if not just a tad dull. I liked the intrigue set-up around the unnamed seductive cinema usherette. After all, she was “not paid to advertise. [She was] paid to look like this and lure you in.”
I did wish for more visceral imagery to truly capture the eerie Gothic undertones of this post-war literary world. There was so much potential, if only the setting description was as evocative and interesting as the characterisation of the lead characters. I also enjoyed the proto-feminist commentary that Maurier begin to touch on - I love me some scary, no, *vindictive* women in the face of misogyny! Unfortunately, this too is underdeveloped.
Overall, I give it 3 stars 🌟🌟🌟 I still had a good time, it but definitely did not give me the Knives-Out fix I was looking for.
I saw Kiss Me Again, Stranger on a list of mystery recommendations, and its simplistic prose was helpful in easing me back into reading, if not just a tad dull. I liked the intrigue set-up around the unnamed seductive cinema usherette. After all, she was “not paid to advertise. [She was] paid to look like this and lure you in.”
I did wish for more visceral imagery to truly capture the eerie Gothic undertones of this post-war literary world. There was so much potential, if only the setting description was as evocative and interesting as the characterisation of the lead characters. I also enjoyed the proto-feminist commentary that Maurier begin to touch on - I love me some scary, no, *vindictive* women in the face of misogyny! Unfortunately, this too is underdeveloped.
Overall, I give it 3 stars 🌟🌟🌟 I still had a good time, it but definitely did not give me the Knives-Out fix I was looking for.
June 8, 2025
Great short story collection. Du Maurier was a talented writer, and I highly recommend!
“Kiss Me Again, Stranger” - I thought I knew where this story was going… I was wrong. & loved it!
“The Birds” - Very different from the film adaptation. So good.
“The Little Photographer” - Female empowerment story that goes horribly wrong. I loved it.
“Monte Verita” - Not bad but I saw no point to this story. Long story with little to no point.
“The Apple Tree” - Spooky tale in which a woman may be taking revenge.
“The Old Man” - Absolutely terrifying story, capturing the banality and dumbness that often accompanies evil.
“The Split Second” - Ominous story in which a woman doesn’t realise she’s dead, and her own daughter doesn’t remember or recognise her.
“No Motive” - A woman kills herself, seemingly for no reason. A private detective investigates.
“Kiss Me Again, Stranger” - I thought I knew where this story was going… I was wrong. & loved it!
“The Birds” - Very different from the film adaptation. So good.
“The Little Photographer” - Female empowerment story that goes horribly wrong. I loved it.
“Monte Verita” - Not bad but I saw no point to this story. Long story with little to no point.
“The Apple Tree” - Spooky tale in which a woman may be taking revenge.
“The Old Man” - Absolutely terrifying story, capturing the banality and dumbness that often accompanies evil.
“The Split Second” - Ominous story in which a woman doesn’t realise she’s dead, and her own daughter doesn’t remember or recognise her.
“No Motive” - A woman kills herself, seemingly for no reason. A private detective investigates.
June 23, 2023
Once snared, this rabbit freezes and reads. . . .and Ms. du Maurier caught me again. . .these eight stories, each with a twist, are told with an undercurrent that says everything from the neighbors to nature itself is in on whatever is at the crux of the protagonist's problem.
The title story was my favorite, and the last (No Motive) made me smile at the end, with each of those between tied for third. This author has a way with a plot line that wraps you with unease and spookedness. Often I'd doubt my facts, and have to closely re-read sections, as one does with puzzles. I enjoy this kind of reading "work" - where sentence structure itself is a clue.
Mmmm. I love me a Daphine du Maurier book!
The title story was my favorite, and the last (No Motive) made me smile at the end, with each of those between tied for third. This author has a way with a plot line that wraps you with unease and spookedness. Often I'd doubt my facts, and have to closely re-read sections, as one does with puzzles. I enjoy this kind of reading "work" - where sentence structure itself is a clue.
Mmmm. I love me a Daphine du Maurier book!
Read
September 3, 2025<100 pages
I really liked this story. It felt very much like a Scary Story to Tell in the Dark. The themes were fascinating, and the choice of narrator very interesting. I was kind of scandalized how much this weird virgin was immediately like "I'm gonna go ahead and stalk this lady home" and I appreciated that her reaction was like, "Sounds good, Target" as far as I can tell.
Again seeing themes of how The War can corrupt and reveal the rot that was always present in our fellow man.
I really liked this story. It felt very much like a Scary Story to Tell in the Dark. The themes were fascinating, and the choice of narrator very interesting. I was kind of scandalized how much this weird virgin was immediately like "I'm gonna go ahead and stalk this lady home" and I appreciated that her reaction was like, "Sounds good, Target" as far as I can tell.
Again seeing themes of how The War can corrupt and reveal the rot that was always present in our fellow man.
January 22, 2022
V tejto zbierke mi Daphne dokázala, že bez ohľadu na dĺžku textu má vždy všetko pevne v rukách. Dokáže navodiť krásnu atmosféru, vie vo mne vyvolať emócie a lapí ma hneď prvým slovom a nepustí ma, až kým neprečítam posledné. A pri tom všetkom dokáže vyrukovať so zaujímavým a v mnohých prípadoch prekvapivým rozuzlením. Pričom nezabúda ani na štipku fantastiky.
Skrátka, parádny zážitok. Nič iné som ani nečakala.
Skrátka, parádny zážitok. Nič iné som ani nečakala.
July 18, 2023
I’ve enjoyed reading this collection of 8 Daphne Du Maurier stories, some short and some long. Each one had a mystery all its own and completely spell binding. So.Good. I read them between other books, which is a nice way to read short stories. Daphne was so very talented! Can’t really choose a favorite, but most leave much to the imagination, which makes them a treat to remember!
Highly recommend!
Highly recommend!
January 24, 2021
4 stars. This is one of my oldies but goodies from my shelves and it is a collection of short and long stories by Du Maurier. I found them interesting reads, most especially "The Birds". She is the master of eerie books about ordinary things and this collection is in keeping with her genre. I thought this was a nice little easy read.
August 15, 2021
I am not a fan of short stories. Even less short stories with no ending. However, all 8 of these stories are excellent. I had not known before that her story, The Birds, was adapted inti the classic Alfred Hitchcock movie. This group includes suspense, mystery, and supernatural. A thoroughly enjoyable read
December 12, 2023
So, literally, for the longest time as I was reading the story, I was thinking is this going to be one of those where he’s on a date with someone that’s dead all along but oh my gosh, this book was not what I was expecting, and I loved it.
February 6, 2020
du Maurier strikes again. Fantastic.
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