Daphne du Maurier, Branwell Bronte and London’s literati
Based on some facts but weaved in fiction, Daphne has a complicated structure, as the story follows three different narratives spread across two centuries. For fans of Daphne du Maurier, it is a treat, providing a glimpse into her life and her many literary incarnations minus the dryness of it reading like a straight biography. For, Picardie adds to it the story of Branwell Bronte, the wild, anguished brother of the Bronte sisters, and several literary figures of the 19th century, who make fleeting appearances through the chapters.

The book opens in the 1950s, when du Maurier, in her 50s, is at her lowest ebb because of her husband’s alcoholism and infidelity. At her beloved home Menabilly, she is haunted by the looming presence of her most famous fictional character, Rebecca. To combat her own impending gloom, she begins work on a biography of Branwell for which she writes to the Bronte scholar, J.A. Symington for help. This is based on fact: du Maurier was fascinated by Branwell’s impact on his more famous sisters and it is well documented in her book The Infernal World of Branwell Bronte that she dedicated to Symington. Their letters to each other are reproduced here. Meanwhile, in contemporary London, an unnamed PhD student is writing a thesis on du Maurier while struggling to keep her marriage to an older, distinguished intellectual intact, eerily similar to the situation of the insipid Mrs de Winter of Rebecca. While du Maurier and Symington are immersed in trying to prove that Branwell is largely the author of Wuthering Heights, the student finds herself becoming obsessed with their correspondence.

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