This obscure title from 1949 was a library book. For one of Dame Daphne's lesser known titles, I found it surprisingly engrossing. Her background knowledge about the world of performing makes this quite hard-hitting at times.
MY THOUGHTS:
One rainy day, a country squire named Charles Wyndham accuses his wife and her two siblings of being parasites. Taken by surprise, the trio spends the rest of the day assessing the justice of his claim and delving back through their pasts, collectively and individually. The fascinating flashbacks really inform what is currently happening (or not happening) in their lives.
They are the Delaneys, Maria, Niall, and Celia, all nudging 40. Their parents were famous entertainers and crowd magnets considered among the truly great. 'Pappy' was a powerful singer along the lines of Pavarotti, and 'Mama' was a breathtaking solo dancer. Offstage, they were both demanding divas.
The three kids trailed around on tour with them for as long as they could remember. They were brats who were tolerated by venue managers and fobbed off by their lofty parents. Maria is Pappy's daughter, Niall is Mama's son, and Celia is the child of both parents, therefore half-sister to each of the others.
Maria is now a stage actress who hardly has an identity of her own. She's a piecemeal person made up of all the roles she's ever played. Nepotism gave her a foot in the door, and now the identity she does hold together is extremely entitled and self-centered.
Niall is a popular composer who gets accolades for dance tunes which he churns out with the minimum of creative effort. He's lazy, indifferent to praise, and devoid of ambition, but fame has pursued him instead of vice versa.
Celia is an interesting case. On the surface, it appears unfair to consider her a parasite at all, since she's incredibly giving and self-sacrificing, forever putting the needs of family members before her own. But she admits the aptness of Charles' accusation herself. Living vicariously through others means never having to risk personal failure. As the demands of family members forever shields Celia from any need to put herself out there, she's in effect preying on them. (To be honest, I find this a bit of a stretch, but I get where she's coming from.)
Du Maurier uses a weirdly effective stylistic method throughout the story. The parasites frequently address the reader collectively (along the lines of, 'we came in and sat down') yet it is never Maria, Niall, or Celia speaking in first person. Whenever they are focused on as individuals, the story switches to third person. I would never have imagined attempting anything like this, or seeing any other writer successfully pull it off, but the result is strangely impactful.
Another thing worth mentioning is the extremely close relationship between Maria and Niall, with shades of sensual or erotic. Does the fact that they are not, in fact, sister and brother by blood, even though they were brought up as such, excuse any incestuous vibes? Du Maurier leaves this for readers to decide for ourselves. As I read other reviews, I saw some liken their relationship to that of Heathcliff and Catherine in Wuthering Heights. I know du Maurier was a great Bronte fan, so it wouldn't surprise me at all if there is substance to this claim.
It's a fascinating psychological study, well worth reading. We're rewarded with some excellent comedy. My favorite is an incident in which the dysfunctional Delaney family, including overbearing 'Pappy' and Niall's way older girlfriend Freada, are invited to stay at Coldhammer, the stuffy country home of Maria's new in-laws. Of course, the conventional Wyndhams can't be blamed for making assumptions that turn out to be way off the mark. It's hilarious.
For one of du Maurier's more obscure titles, I think it deserves far more limelight. Since she and her sisters were the real life progeny of their famous actor father, Gerald du Maurier, I'm guessing that this is largely autobiographical, close to Dame Daphne's heart, and possibly cathartic. I'm taking off half a star solely because the final scene, although heavy with poetic justice, is not to my liking.
🌟🌟🌟🌟½
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